PREFERENCE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 613, 16 September 1909, Page 7

PREFERENCE.

DEBATED BY THE COMMERCE CONGRESS i MR. CHAMBERLAIN'S MESSAGE. BRITISH OPINION AND BY-ELECTIONS. (Djr Telegraph.—Prcea A»»oclntlon.-OoDrrlßlit.l Sydney, September 16. The Congress of the Chambers of Como meroe of the Empire resumed its sitting too day, under tho presidency of Sir Albert 3 Spicer. ] Tho Congress decided to take the question 0 preferential, trade ftß tho first business, limiting tho speeches, after tho mover anyl t seconder had spoken, to fifteen minytes, with . the object of. closing tho debate by to-morrow night. Of "Present Practical importance." An animated discussion took place on the following resolution submitted by the London Chamber of Commerce, which was moved on bohalf of that Chamber by Mr. Davies: Whereas the fourth and fifth Congresses of Chambers! of Commerce s of the Empire ex'ho opinion that tho, bonds of the s British Empire would be materially strength- ■ fined by a mutually bcnefici.il, commercial policy, whereas it is the opinion of this-congress - that, it "is in tho interests of the Empire that steps should bo taken towards consummating such ftp arrangement, whereas the eixth Conil Bf6ss, held in London' in 1006, urged* upon* Ms 1 Majesty s ( Government,"? in tho United Kingdom and in the various colonies and dopendencies^t ho advantage of granting preferential treatment in thoir respective markets 1 on a', reciprocal basis, each to the other, • believing that thereby the bonds of union would be. d strengthened, the different parts of the Empiro more rapidly developed and Imperial commerce thus increased, > ' 1 , 1 be it ther;fore i roeolvod that this Congress, whilst reaffirming the foregoing, urge upon 3 the Governments of tho Entire that they treat th'S matter as •of prcsolit practical .importance, and that cach organisation rej> presented at this Congress pledge itself to press its respective' Government to tako J such action at the next Imperial -Confer, a once as will give cffect to the principle adi vocated. in this resolution. ,j, , 3 ' t Old Country Has Nothing to Offer. Mr. Davies said this was tho fij?t pccasi9ii ' upon which tho-Loudon Chamber, had formally given its official assent, to such a resolution. Canada had offered the Mother Country to treat her even moro goperc-usly than 1 Cauada was doing at present, if tho Mother 1 Country could offer a quid i#o quo',- bllt tho • trouble was that, as their fiscal system stood at present, these ill the' Mother Country had nothing to offer. They wcVo in the samo position with regard to all other nations. They had nothing td fight with, and beforo they could consider such a proposal as camo from Canada they must alter t ,thoir fiscal system. If they looked at the results of tho various by-elections at Home could not disguieo tho fact that public opinion in England, no . matter what nijght bo' s&id to tho contrary, was rising by leaps and bounds in favour of ' an alteration of tho system. He quoted i from a letter he had received from' Mr. Joyn-son-Hicks (the Unionist tariff reform M.P.),' who defeated Mr.. Winston Churchill (President- of the: Board of Trade) at' North-west' Manchester, in which ' Mr' Joynson-Hicks i said:— ... 1 "The Government have a vast ma- ! jority, and it will bo some timo be- ' • fore our party regains- offioe, but ' when it doe 3 I am convinced that tho J first thing, it should do would bo to r BUmmon a round-table conference'! : i with a view to entering into cotumer- 1 . • ; cial partnership, . with tho sister • States beyond the seas. 1 !: Mr. Davies, continuing, said 'their great I object should bo to beeomo like that" glorious , country, the United States; self-supporting. ■ They should seek to obtain,their own goods ; from,their own kith and kin. It was this I reason that the London Chamber had come S to tho conclusion that protection and rcci ; ' ■ procation were necessary between all pm J pies living: under tho British . flag.» Britain ~ must protect the commerce,, of -the Empire for the people of tho Empire. Prolonged : cheering greeted a mention of tho nartfo <f i Mr. Joseph Chamberlain, and Mr. Davies i road a letter front Mr. Chamberlain to tho i Congress, m which.he states:—• ' "I have no doubt you will find Australians ready to listen favourably to what you havo to tell. them. I wish . very much I, were still able to take . ah gcthro part in tho promotion of ; ' - ;. .... what I behove .to-be the greatest : movement in our ,own interest and . their own which I 'have seen for 50 years. I do not doubt' that that "■ • policy will win at the next election." ,• A Canadian Supporter, Mr. W, P. Cockshutt (Toronto). seconded tho motion. Ho outlined t.ho growth of the preferential movement in Canada,-and said' that uover in th& history of the world was there amalgamated under ono Government so many States with so much wealth' as were found to-day under the' British flag. The , consolidation of tho Empire .waß tho greatest question of modern times. Should they paS3 it down that it was beyond tho wit'of man or his genius vto diviso ways and means by which it could be doiio? He thought not. Thoy must work for it, live for.it, strive for it. No one in tho Congress dared say that tho position of Britain was as far in advance of America and Germany,as it was 25, years ago. Britain was purchasing more than she was selling. That was a wrong track. It was tho exports of a country that must show, in the filial analysis what w?s in tho pocket of' that country at tho' end of the .year. Let them within the Empire give a little better discount to their brethren in Australia, Now Zealand, South Africa, or. Britain than was given to America, Germany, or Russia. Canada's Foreign Treaties. ■ - Sinco last Congress, added Mr. Cockshutt., Canada had negotiated' two. foreign trado treaties —if not more—qno with Franco and ono with Japan, in whieli she was giving moro advantago-to those' two nations than she was giving to . her sister States within tho Empire. Would anyono.toll him that it wis proper to negotiate a' treaty with ; a most definite commercial rival, but that with one's own' people an advantage to t-hfe extent of a single penny could not bo^ given? Would anyono say that' they could' make treaties with all foreign- nations, but not , amongst their own family? Delay was dan- i gorous. Now was the time -to atriko tho blow. Tho wholo of tho colonies and the > Mother Country seemed to bo ready for it. ] Why should thoy ask tho United Statos and ! Germany what they thought of it?> Thoy , should follow what those countries did, and , should do what they- thought was best for j thomselvos in the matter, of trade. Britons- i must have regard for their own citizens first, i /They must- retain for tho benefit of their own ' race and flag and Empire that- grand hcritago 1 with which Providence had blessed them. I An Amendment! A Free-trade View. Mr. Sydney Cormack (Edinburgh) moved an amendment f6r tho appointment of oom- j missionen to inquire into the question of a preferential trado as affecting the parts of d the Empire they represented, tho commis- i sionors to afterwards confer and , report a jointly with a view to enabling, the Govern- 1 monts o{ Britain and tho Solonies and do- F pendencies to take legislative action to give J effect to the resolution. . i. The mover said that, although Britain was I the richest country, sho was unable to pro- o vide employment, for a considerable propor- c tion of hor industrial population. Peoplo in e Britain were sending abroad ' wages that f their Own people at Home should bo reeoiv- fl ing, aud wore spending for the support of ® the poor nearly as much as thoy were spend- {, ing for the support of the Navy. 0 0 Mr. S. W. Iloyso (Manchester) said lie e represented a that was Froe-trado n from conviction and on economic lines. Free- y trado had boon pursued for many years with V 1 conspicuous success by tho Old.; Country, . . 111 which was dependent on other opuntries for food supplies and raw matoria]. : j Anything fj •which' tended to mcroaso the prioes of -what y jmalo the Con£dry,iea*. abi>. u

to-eompete iir thd mariasfc»-of-Hte wild, Ho = hoped tlio Congress would pause before it J passed tho resolution, wWch was a fixed and ' uofinito ono, to adopt reciprocal trado in tho Empire. Hie trado of tho Old Country with i : India was very valuable, and amounted to j somothing liko forty millions. Surely they ' would uot : endanger that. Personally ho would have prcforrod not to haws soon colo- , 1 nial duties imposed, but cach portion of tho Empire had to work out its destinies as it thought best. Besides India, other countries' trade with: tho Old Country meant hundreds of'millions. What mif^ht, bp good for Canada and Australia might nof'bo good • for the Mother Country. Hod it-li«en said -• by tho colonies: "We will join, \vit)j,(the Em- . piro in absolute Free-trade"—that would have been a noble sentiment.' I 1!? ' • Condlotlng Opinions.;. Mr. Dixon (Sheffield) believed tho ■ resolution would givo moro work' 'for the working ' i classes. . r>* L-' ) Mr. Marrincr (Christehui;sJi) read statis- "] tics showing New Zealand's trado and tiro . ' S valuo of tho preference ihfe 'had given Eng- j land. Whnt suited England would not id- 1 ways suit her dependencies. Tho great is- /. :| sue at stake was whether Britain and tho ' colonies wcro to he welded into' a compact j body, or whethor tho colonies were to drift ■ I apart, and go their several ways, making . their own commercial treaties - with foreign 1 powers. The time for preferential. treat- . r ment was ripe, and tlie chanco should not be ■ | let slip. - ' , j Ifr. Rogers (Sydney) regarded proforen-'. tial; trade as a wbif in elothing. Tho ■ j binding iiifluench'of-tho Empire must be j Free-trade, ujyjer which tho dumping 'of -j foreign articles'could J>e dealt with. . "';1 i Mr. M'RobrTt (Upper India) opposed" the j resolution. Ho stated the foreign countries ' j were India's best customers. j . Mr. Winoboombp (Sydney) was 'of opinion i that the-alrgumcnts for the proposed change- ' -1 had so far not proved tho necessity for it. • To project themselves against the, outside •] world, and then expect tho outside world to J buy fj-om thcin was a one-sided arrangement / .': 1 thoy could hardly expect: If they sank ■ | down to tho lovel of producing only what ■ j tligj'could eat, drink, and wear, it would re- ; duce the British Empire to a lower position j ifi' the family Of nations than it occupied todjiy. ' i J'_ A cablegram 'was received oxprefesing the '] lKing's thanks for the address from tlio Con- . j gress. - . v An invitation has been received by the delegates to visit New Zealand, • s THE DELEGATES, \ • Most of the delegates to tho Congress of the Chambors of Commerce of tho Euipiro, which "• is to opened in Sydney on September 14, ' ; arrived in BHfbano on- September 5 bv tho steamer Maraiua from Vancouver. They all reported m very enjoyable trip. Tho British • ■ . i delegates, to the number of twenty, 'woro'very ' : 'j favourably impressed by what thoy Saw of ' Canada, and the Canadian delegates, numbering : " i,' nine, are looking forward eagerly to tlieir • ; Australian visit. They wore all moro or less reluctant, especially the Britishers, to givo . •••'! thoir views ou the leading questions, to bo discussed at tho congress, preferring to wait ' ' ' • until that ovent comes' on, but on matters ' • which did not;raise any political issues'they. -■ iV' spoko freely, enough. .. .'. , ' Tho delegates who ; arrived ' by' the Marataia wero:-jressrs. Vf. Braithwaite., (Leeds Chamber), J. S. Booth'(Wakefield). H: W. Barron (Kendal),: Jameis. j Cormaelc,• i (Edinburgh), 5. Cordingley (Yeadon, Yorkshire), H. Davis (Derby), J. Fitton (Ossett, Yorkshire), T. G. Hoblis (Luton), L. P. Heodley (Canter-* , bury and • Maidstone), J. H. Ives (Yeadon), G. Pallisor, Martin (Bristol), .A. G. -Hoffatt - ; (Swansea),- A. Pattinsoh (Kdhdal),'* John ■ '• -•> Pcate (Leeds), G. 11. Pattinson (Kendal), ' A, J. Pyrah (Heckmondwike, Yorkshire), v i S. W.' Royse (Manchestor)i J. ; Beotii> (Dover), /' ■ J. Smith (Devrebury), C. H. Wilson -- l -; and the.following from Canada:—H. B. Ames, i* -M.P.- (Ji oiilTf-'al), W.- P." ■ Hatheway, ■> M.L,A. ' (St. Johns, ■ N. 8.). U. Alexander (Vancouver), ■ H. N: Belcher (Winnipeg), W. F, Cockshutt i (Toronto), W. J. Gozo (Toronto),' E. D. Mar- : tin (Winnipeg), l J.i Pender (St.'Johns, N. 8.), , and G. Hadrill,.(Montreal).' ;]?ivo-rother' dele- 1 > gates, had, previously arrived in Brisbane,by / -: ' other routes, vir,., Messrs.' J. G. Jonkins (Au6- 1 tralian.. .Chamber, London), Joseph Briggs j (Cloekhciiten,-,Yorkshire), A. J. Brander. and | : John (Aberdeen), J., R, itarke • > (Canadian • Commissioner representing tho j Gnelph'Chamber. Toronto),' and D, J. Ross I (Halifax, Nova Scotia). Included in the party. ;• were a.!number of ladies, wivos or daughters ? ■•■■■. of the delegates,amongst others:..MeWanics • Pallisor, Martin,•' Cookskutt,-■ Booth;• Royse, s. .-, . Ivos, Fitton,. Pcate,. Scott, Belchor, and Bnggs, i and Misses, I. and W. 'Gaze. - v