FISCAL FIGHT.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 716, 15 January 1910, Page 5

FISCAL FIGHT.

A POLITICAL ORACLE. ' ;; DUTY ON FOOD. MR. ASQUITH ONMR. BALFOUR. By Tclceraph—Press'Aasociatlon—CoDyrlcht : '. (Eeo. January 14,.10.35' p.m.) :•.'' :. . ,'■'.,-- . . 'Londoni January 14. Replying -to Mr. Balfour's .:tariff reform speech at York,. Mr. Asquith, speaking -at' Bradford,: said:' '; :"The-,oraclo -has spoken. Not Delphi nor Dodona; ;,in their palmiest-days of sacerdotal ambiguity, gave.forth a more uncertain sound. ;; ,- : .' -..-.:' "Mr., Balfour.. states that, he .much prefers' to tax 'the luxuries of the rich.' I' ask: ..Why luxuries'?■■•■ Is he.' going to remit , the . duties 'Von? tea. and sugar, as ;.Mr; ; Chamberlain promised? I don't envy. ■ the, Chancellor 1, of. the Exchequer who has to.,meet.the cost of old age,pensions . and the Navy, • and the ever-increas-' ing demands of social reform,.out of the odds an'dends which he: is' able to accumulate .under this precious, system, of taxing imported luxuries. ''\ ; ";"If .the revenue is; to be secured,:, how' will, a tariff end unemployment? After, this, Tork speech, the Opposition, is defini\ily committed to;.a; moderate :-duty iipoV'food.-.'•;.'■;■.■' ,'■.',' ,'-; ■.'. '■''' •.-.-■' ;has,the courage to pre-, diet scheme of'tariff-reform will diminish, father than increase,; the priceof: food,, because ,ii .-will bring. vast, untouched areas, of fertile wheat lands; into cultivation; But how long will this take?, 1 What are. we going to .do in the meantime?.: ','- : ■';' :■■ . -;;''-:,::' , .-'.'■■• •':! ./'lt -is/a. vital, necessity that'.. Britain; should have the .whole;, world- .td,;draw from. .The . vicissitudes,',of climate :■ and crops may cause, a-breakdown in a usually,. 1 dependable, .source -of supply.' ;, :We want to correct a 'shortage- in. one part by-Bupplies-.frbm. another." ;.;-,..,..-•:'■--. i; : ;; ÜBERALS'; SOCIALISM. ■ HAS ■' IT : . SACRIFICED - FREE-TEADE? ■ -■;■.-''" r ';._- '-.■" .-"■..-.." <,■';■■ London,; January.;. 13.: " ;■'- Sir- E. .Giffon,' tho ' well-known, statis-" 'tician, ;.objects 'to- the Socialism. involved in Mr. ;Lloyd-George's:Budget,, and considers that'the Liberal' Government has sacrificed' tho. cause* of.Free-trade.':, V:' ,' GERMAN HORSE-FLESH;AND BLACK ■ ! ''■': •"' :; ; BREAD.W; "::.;,W ; .':■;.:': OF CpMFOET;':;., ,;' '-. y,: '..:''.-■:'- ; ."'.'' .London, January' 13. Vr ;,. ;Mr.".Lloyd-George,., Chancellor,': of,' tho Exchequer, 1 in'a .speech'at', Wolverhampton,, declared -that the' Tories .were', trying' to. prove-that black bread and .horseflesh yore very .wholesome. ;-.Personally, - "he.'was not; afraid of ;the'German Navy • a'rid: Germany '■ trade - ; competition, 'but, he ■was; afraid., of 'German ..sausages.'. ,'; 1 , : ;;In connection -with v jFree-tradors', frequent warnings to' working rhen.;of the :prospectof their' eating black.'bread'and horse sausages in :the : ',o'vent of .tariff,reform., being ;,carried, ■> it na. now "shown toil this' King has black j.bread in every 'palace';and :bn.every yacht. r;;;;v;,; Radical; p'apoTs.; are "publishing a, pricelist of Jhorsefiesh. in'.Germany. :;' :, According 1 tq' Mr.. A. :W.,- Fox,, 'who .'compares the,', cost of, living-in Britain :'and Germany, : , "in, -regard to -food.the, Bril.ish,:workman's ineat iconsists mainly of-beef,and: mutton,;, whilst' pork: (oven including;'; bacon) ris;:,relatively .small :in .amount;,ithe,German .the other.hiiud, eats.'bhiefly; pofk (including ; sausage),' and beef;.''.and. only .a very .'little ■ mutton. .:;The ; pure .wheat bread Veaten -,by ( : the, working.; classes, of .the -.United Kingd6m;:is replaced• i 'in',Germany either by; pure rye - bread! - or; more..": commonly by. ; some-mixture 7 0f.;-rye, and,.wheat.; ; ~, .:;"International comparisonscanbe made by .these means,' ond'the' results obtained: are:of groat, interest and.:value...There' -is -little,:-if any,:difference^between- the gonoral ,kvels.-of ..rent.in.. Germany, .and : though. ;.<rents;.in-.England ' include aicohsiderable element of 16cal:tax'atio'n',' whilst ;.rents jn Geriaany, ; do -not; ■and- that,-rents'in 'Berlin 'exceed'those of all the btlier German, towns, investigated (except Stuttgart) to/practically the same extent ; as rents in' London exceed those whioh, .prevail ,ini;other.--towns ; 'of tie, United' Kingdom. •"!•;■•'■ 7::;; :•;',-:'■• ::■::".:': ..'.. "The range.of town price-levels in Qbt-'. :many,;:as in'-the..United/:;Kingdom,-• is not very great, though somowhat. wider in - the- case of the German towns, ;with the: result ; that- the difference between; the cost of .living'(so ; for as;it relates to expenditure oh.rent, food," and fuel) in or- other of -the' Gorman .towns investigated is: not .'--very,-: much - 'larger than that which' exists, between the towns of the' United 'Kingdom:.-:-The general level: of prices'; is;-, however, distinctly higher in Germany .than in the. United Kingdomj-and in, this connection an im- ■ poi'tont .instance; of-the effects/of ;.differences in national .habits may vbe'.noticed. The, English workman' going to j Germany .'and maintaining'hisiaecustomed:standard of -living woiild find^his- 1 expenditure, on :food.• and'.fuel .substantially';.increased; but in spite, of the generally higher level -of :prices;in'.Germany,,the'Germahi workman coming.. to Enguind, and maintaining his; own standard, , would, not" find: his 1 expenditure' reduced j in : a ; corresponding .proportion."; This is 'due'mainly to: the facti that -the .Germhn 1, workman -takes muoh more than vthe English ;workman of certain food, commodities,. chiefly potatoes and. milk, 'which.are cheaper, in German than ; in English towns.;','. ;: ■ ''Whilst nominal-rents are.'as: high-' in .Germany- as. in'"Englarid—and, -. in';facti .higher, since they ,do not: include : local .taxation,'.which., tho ,' German : workman must pay.separately—and' whilst the gen-'oral-,level of food prices in, the-German ; towns is , also .higher; -than 'in- England, wages > in those,.trades .for which a com-parison-has been: made are substantially lower, ;even ; when : longer 'hours are 'worked."-'. . : , -',".■ '.'■';■. ;■';' ■-'~',