NEW ZEALAND'S PART.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16261, 11 July 1918, Page 7

NEW ZEALAND'S PART.

SIR THOMAS MACKENZIE'S . VIEWS. (By Cable.—Press Association. —CopjT-ght.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) (Received July 10th. 7.30 p.m.) LONDON, July 9. Sir Thomas Mackenzie, High Commissioner for New Zealand, was the principal speaker at a patriotic rally in the Town Hall at Leeds. Ho recalled the New Zealand of 30 years ago and said we had travelled far since the days of Adam Smith. New Zealand, he continued, had given the Motherland preference and after the war she was I going to put on a prohibitive tariff of 50 per cent, against German goods, and it would be 500 per cent, if necessary. New Zealand's aim, said tho speaker, was to keep out tho Germans bocauso 'they were dishonest, dishonourable, and brutal. Britain, he added, must also do something to keep out unfair competition. "Are you going," asked Sir Thomas, "to trade with the enemy after the war on the same terms as with the Allies. If so, the enemy will use every shilling of profit to train fresh armies to enslave the world."

Britain should sccuro the whole of tho Australian and New Zealand wool for herself and the Allies and prevent Germany over getting the finer wools, thus cutting hor out of that section of trade. Altogether the total output of South American merinos was only 73,000,000 pounds, and Germany alone used 238,000,000 pounds.

New Zealand, continued the speaker, bad sent 110,000 soldiers out of 1,000,000 inhabitants, but he confessed that the strain on her man power and resources was now beginning to toll. New Zealand, however, oould supply a superabundance of foodstuffs and raw material, while America had men in plenty who were willing to go. It would be a sound policy to accept men from America and foodstuffs from New Zealand.

Samoa and New Guinea must never be returned to Germany. With the Panama Canal opened, Samoa was the Charing Cross of the Pacific. It was impossible to allow Germany to sot lip aircraft stations and submarine bases there. We did not want those islands because of land, but we would not have brutal, dishonourable neighbours.