AUSTRALIAN OPINION

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2420, 27 March 1915, Page 23

AUSTRALIAN OPINION

J THE SILVER BULLET IdEATH TOGERMAN TRADE " "< TOWN HALL GATHERING ' \{ ■' - v '--l/:--•ONE OF TflE" KEYNOTES--." BRITONS HOLD U-- YOUR OWN!"

There have been few more notable gatherings in Sydney, remarked the Sydney "Morning Herald" of February. 26, than that which took place in the .Town Hall' yesterday on the occasion of the public luncheon organised by "the Sydney Chamber of Commerce, the: New South Wales Chamber of Manufactures,' arid the Millions Club of ' Wales, for the purpose! of initiating the movement to ' cultvate . trade;within the Empire-and,with the Empire's Allies, in .substitution for trade' hitherto ' existing with ' enemy countries. Close upon fiver hundred' gentlemen, representative of all sections . of the community, Bat down to the luncheon, which was presided over by Mr.-F. Winchcombe, M.L.C.; president of the Chamber of Commerce, the vicechairg being occupied by Mr. H. E. Pratten, ex-president of the Chamber of Manufactures (in tlie absence of the president, Mr. W. Vicars), and Mr. , Arthur Richard, president of the Millions/Club. The State Governor, Sir Gerald Striokland, and the French, Russian;' Belgian, and Japanese Consuls were* present. The Prime Minister and-JState Premier were unable to attend,:;but were represented respectively by: Senator Gardiner and Mr. Arthur Griffith. Among others present, as guests of the management, were Mr. Joseph Cook, Leader of the Opposition in'the Federal' Parliament, Mr. C:-G. Wade, Leader of the Opposition in the State Parliament, Mr. _ G. T. MSlne (British Trade Commissioner),. Dr. Muira, Mr. Ferranti, Messrs. G. F. Earp, M.L.C., and F. W. Newman (representing the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce), and Messrs. Furner and Holland (representing the Goulburn Chamber of Commerce. The Object. "You can help; you should help: and if you are loyal you will help." These words were printed on the'cars--con-taining the toast' was'set forth ' .Retail .merchants are_ asked to display British and Allies' goods, giving prominence to those .manufactured locally, or in other sections of the Empire. Traders are asked to prevent in .every possible way the representa- • tipri of enemy goods as being made . unfriendly countries. Salesmen are asked. to recommend British and Allies' goods, and to ;assist the consumer in. every way to exercise the necessary discrimination. " -Women shoppers are asked to cooperate in the movement. . The Covernor's Views.,rc.r^. In-replying to the toast of "The' Governor," which was proposed by the chairman, Sir Gerald Strickland offered his-'congratulations -to those who had

organised the gathering. The movement, he .said, was certainly._one ; )vki(:li. should have the support of all in the community. When this great war was over—and he hoped that might be soon —a great many institutions would be melted down. It would . alter • many things, and among them the methods of the commerce of the world. Those who organised now would have an incomparably better chance of getting the trade, than those who waited for- the psychological moment.. It was with this in view that the meeting had..been called—to consider what steps should be taken to capture trade when the new settlement affecting the politics and commerce of the world had teen set on foot. For years the Imperial authorities had had ill mind the necessity of better organisation in trade matters, and' the Board of Trade had beeii' represented in Australia by Mr. Hamilton Wickes, and now by-Mr. Milne, whose business had been to draw more closely together the leading communities in the outside parts of the Empire with London and the other commercial centres of England. That work might not be sufficiently realised,-but the foundations were-- there.-- H""the Chamber of Commerce was alive to the immediate opportunities lying before, it, a very great movement would be started for the establishment of better methods within the Empire. (Applause.) The legislation after the war would greatly improve the opportunity for traders in Australia. We had had Tecent examples of the rapidity with which Bills"could be passed when everybody agreed that they were necessary, i War taught us, among other things, that trade was.a strife. It was a. strife which should '' be - conducted according to the laws of trade. Unfortunately, there were communities who carried on war not according to the law of civilised warfare. (Hear, hoar.) And, as regards the -method of.trade, we had aiso had.shocking 'departures from >.vhat we considered ' the' standards of, trade immediately-be-fore the outbreak of war; It- was therefore necessary for us to see that remedies were provided after the war against a recurrence of such things. It was "up to us" in the British Empire to get hold of all tho trade in the world we could acquire, in co-operation with those who were allies of ours in this great • strife. That the Chamber of Uommerco was prepared to wai;e' up to the opportunity-. this, was a m.afrv ter for congratulation:-/ Persbnally,'His ; Excellency took' it'-as' & honour that hci should be allowed to take part in this movement. (Applause.) A Creat Opportunity. ' : In explaining the' Objects of the committee, the chairman said the war afforded an opportunity for a grpat ox-1 pansion of trade within the . Empire, and between British -peoples and ths 'Em- 1

pire's Allies'. The goods, which used to 'b&'obtainable from Germany irfust 'ill future be obtained elsewhere, and the object of the Trade Expansion Committee was to take every possible step to s\> that this trade was permanently secured by the British Dominions r.nd by the countries which were fighting with us. "We want no traffic with the nation's enemies," he went on.. "One of tho keynotes of .this gathering is expressed by a quotation exhib'teu on the wall to-day, 'Britons, holdyourown.' We are not seeking to rob Germany of anything which strictly belongs to her;'■•but to get'back for ourselves, and;for our own kith and kin,vthe" trade ' which rightly belongs:tb the Empire. It is our;,own.. Let us hold it. -And as a second keynote I would put into words" a sentiment which appeals to all .Englishman—a sentiment which, indeed,; earned our country, neck arid crop into the war: "'Briton's;-— stand : by' your friends.' And there you have it? In these two sentiments is our whole creed. Wo want to impress upon tho people of Australia that they have a twofold patriotic duty. The fir£t is to buy goods made within the British Empire; and the second is to let our fofeign trade be "done" with the countries which have proved their friendship by shedding their blood-with us in the cause of-freedom, justice,- and humanity. . It is our hope that never again will Germany" hold the trading posi- I tion which she has held in the recent past. She made evil use of Tier.opportunities. ' British territories threw open their doors to her commerce, and i with • tho profit?, of that commerce _ she ) made her preparations to crush Britain out of existence. - Let us make ■ sure "that such conditions do not arise again." Great Britain herself and her sister Dominions form a mighty source of supply for goods which We require in Australia. • And for the reßt, it is our duty. to., turn business we can into the hands of of Francd,of Russia, and of Japan. These, briefly,, are the.-objects which the.Trade Expansion Committee is aiming at. This 'deriibnstratioil to-day is to 'call public attention to these objects, and to ask the assistance of buyers and consumers in carrying them into effect. We want people to take care that when they sftfjit]. their, nlone}; they .will spend it ill such a way as will best serve the interests' of Australia, of our own Motherland, of our fellow-countrymen within the Empire, and of our comrades in arms who are fighting with us against these Prussian pirates." (Loud applause.) "No More Cerman Goods." Mr. H. E.- Pratten, following the chairman, said they had not only met to organise a trade expansion campaign, but also to endeavour to cO-o'perate with and. unify the ideas of all, sections of the community in this direction. The money which Germany was using today to fight us was money that had been won in trade from her enemies. OOur motto was "No more German goods." (Hear, hear.) He was speaking -for the manufacturers and.-the industrial community generally; and .he believed he was voicing't-he'views'of. tho whole pf tho people in Australia when he said they were all anxious to do something in this great crisis. "Wo can't all go to the front," lie said. "Wo cah't all take part ill the organisation of the military operations now going on, but fre can all take part' in a boycott— we can all give preference to our friends, and we can all reciprocate that staunch loyalty now being shofr.ri'by our fighting shoulder,, to, shoulder -.with" Britaiftvin :thiS -great' -wil-r.' for the progress and liberty of hot only ourselves, but our children who are to follow us, Wo can all help to manufacture the silver bullet, and I am hopeful that this gathering will inaugurate a, fearless, downright,. earnest, and tenacious movement to achieve what we have 6et out to do. _ I, believe that our legislators, our princes of commerce, 'our-captains of industry, our leading

citizens, will all act together and do tho duty that .libs nearest to their hands." In the Federal arena, lie believed, the question of a surcharge upon German goods would be brought up. He certainly thought the. question of reciprocity and preference should lead in any future tariff discussion. (Hear, hear.) Commercial men should endeavour tq cultivate tho proper; sentiment among -themselves,' and warn unwary purchasers against, goods' "made in Germany.'? This was no tiine promise, but for action. "Thrice is ho armed that hath/his quarrel just." Our quarrel to-day ivas just. And because of its justice he believed we should be fearless in advocating the r.hief aim. of this movement, and that was death to German trade. (Applause.) "Germany Under All." Mr. Arthur Richard said it needed no word from him to coiiimend this cause to the. gathering. / He was sure the movement would receive the commendation of the whole community. The public would most enthusiastically support any movement for the exclusion of German goods. The' British had always been too mealy-mouthed and too Fgonerous with their enemies. Tho preserit. was , an occasion .which called for militancy. . We must now declare war in trade. We had hitherto open-1 ed our markets to Germany, but they must not be opened in the future to German trade. It was possible we might bo disappointed with the terms, of peace. The generosity of the British people would come ill again, per-1 haps; but at all events they could appeal to the patriotism of consumers to put up a fight against enemy goods. Instead of "Germany over all," he hoped that after the. war it wquld be "Germany under all." (Hear, hear.) They had asked for "the day," and " tliej .had. got it, but- ; he thought it " was a day they would regret as long as they existed as a ■nation. • Concluding, he said: "We should tesolvo niost solemnly - and sincerely that we will pledge ourselves never to purchase any goods made by tho bloodstained hands of German 'kultur.'" (Applause.) Parties- United.Senator Gardiner, representing tlie Prime Minister, moved: "That this meeting resolves to do everything in its power to promote / trade within tho Empire, and with the Empire's Allies, and to discourage by every possible means' a continuance of trade with those countries which have declared themselves enemies to t'he British Empire." He had been asked, he said, to express Mr. Fisher's deep regret for his inability to be present, owing to pressing public duties. Mr. Fisher, however, expressed his most sincere wishes that the effort to capture the trade heretofore held by the enemy would meet with every success Proceeding, he said it needed no words to make the motion acceptable to any gathering of British people. Britain was agnation whose ports had.at all'''times been open ,tj the traders of the world —a nation which had not only competed in its own borders with the other nations of tho world on equal terms, but had given employment to hundreds of thousands of men who woro now'her direst enemies. The war had come as something of a shock to thoso who believed, and he was one of them, that Freetrado would lead, to the peace of tho world. Tho nation that had most benefited, by tho Ffcetrade policy of Britain was tho one that ■ was i caching its/; people- to.. hato us with the bitterest hate.' Well, lie had at last fallen into line liiriiself with the idea that it was our duty to look after our own people first. (Applause.) Earnestly did. he hope that, numerous and powerful as were our Allies to-day, we would liot have very . Jong to wait before they were more numerous and powerful still. He felt he could say that any assistance that could be given

in a matter of this kind-. was sure to ba given by the Federal ''Government... But they would find themselves up against the little problem, how long will the war last? He knew of some people, who, if saddled with Australia's responsibility, would settle everything in a low weeks. He did not know how many hundreds' of thousands of men they would send. But what the .Government was trying to send were.- soldiers. . (Hear, hear.) And they must see to it that when the war ended there would be t'he same number' of Australians at the front as were. sent at the beginning.' The wastage of. war represented something like 10 pet cent..per month. The Commonwealth Government liad had to confront difficulties that might have proved insurmountable had it not been that from the Opposition, whose leader, Mr. Cook, was present—(applause)—they knew they could look for hearty a.id earnest ' sup-' port in everything that pertained to the welfare of Australia and the welfare of tlie British Empire, lie bolieved that the resolution he submitted would meet with tho approval of British people and the Allies of the British people from one side of the world to the other. And he furthermore earnestly hoped that the strength of tho Allies in the very -near future might prove to tho nations' who had brought this 'war upon us that it was useless to continue the campaign, and that the longer it lasted the -worse would be the disaster for those who had been responsible. (Applause.) Mr. Griffith's Suggestion. Mr. Arthur Griffith said he had been requested by the Premie."' to lend the support of the Government to tho resolution. It was the intention of the Government in New. South Wales, not only while the war lasted, but for all time, in the purchase of the immense amount of material required .by tho State, to give its first. preference to Australia, its second to other countries within tho_ British Empire, and its third to tjie Allies of the Empire—to tho absolute exclusion, iis far as was possible, of those who woro trying to : day to dismantle our -Empire. (Applause.) - The war would not end with the end' of the military operations. Whatever the German Government could do ..would be done with the utmost energy to restore the trade lost during the military operations —in the way of, subsidies to manufacturers, rebates to shipping;- etc. —and.it was for us to take measures to defeat efforts of this kind. There were certain goods in which the Germans had something of a monopoly. That monopoly must be broken. (Applause.) Security of. tenure, security against destruction, must be given to those men who were enterprising enough to invest their capital in capturing these industries. (Renewed applause:) They must have special assistance. And it was too important a question to leave to the chance of a fluctuating majority in the Commonwealth' Parliament. The suggestion ho made was to pick out certain of theso industries to which he referred, and fix for them a certain protective tariff to make up for the difference in tho cost of ■ manufacture in Australia and the cost ih Germany, and embody it in ail amendment of the Federal Constitution—a duty permanently fixed which could not. be reduced until a majority in the Commonwealth Parliament approved of such reduction, until a majority of electors by referendum had voted for it, and a majority of the electors in a majority of the Australian States had voted for it./' It .would always be-open to the : Fedoral to add a super-tax in tho event of any special efforts being made by Germany to stifle tho local industries. (Applause.) "The Gall of the Blood." Supporting the motion, Mr, Cook, who received an ovation, said he had uo doubt they would jn good time mould a scheme not only, in the interests of

Australia, but ono which would make for the Highest gdftd' in'the'maintenance <>£ that civilisation for which Wo wero fighting. He congratulated with all his heart those who had inaugurated this movement.! It represented the call of the blood, the call of the race, the call of ideals, the call of comradeship. It represented alt that the Allies wore fighting for, and all that they were to each :other at;.the present- time; And: there ;Was something shrewd about it—wo preparing vior peaco in a better way'., than we : 3ia'd prepared for war. We '■ were not ready when- war broke out,; and it had cost us a, great .deal_ in tlio.way of suffering and many precious lives.- The resolution pledged us to this—that no longer shall the ccoricfmic and' commercial . forces - be divojrced, from 'the larger' interests of the nation. (Applause.) .Nations did not develop along these hard, cold, material lilies at .all; but always along the lines of their inherited destiny. And many causes besides those which were merely business and economic entered into the ideals of a iiation and into the ambitious and supreme objectives of its Government. A writer in the "New York "Independent" laid down the proposition that , efficiency was a n.atter of willpower in the last analysis "Part of us is spirit, part of its is machinery," lie wrote. . "Consult the spirit, and then grip the machinery." And so wo wore consulting our spirit Of patriotism this day, the spirit of pride in our race, the spirit of comradeship and, sympathy with our lives; and in that spirit we were gripping the economic and commercial interests of the community, and saying that they must bend and be adjusted ,to the highest national aspirations and to the welfare of the nation as a whole. (Applause.) "In time, I suppose," said Mr. Cook, "you will be after that 273 million of German trade which tliey have lost and we have not yet foillidi Well, I say good luck to your efforts to get hold'of a share of it for Australia. Anything we can do in that direction we shall do with the greatest possible pleasure. Remember, tne manufacturer aiid the producer cannot stand by alone to this tremendous tasLThere will have to be a generous pi'oducef, a generous merchant, a geiierotos manufacturer, a generous workman—(applause)—and, last but not least, there wiiriiaviT'io" be a generous consumer. What is really necessary is a great cooperative effort, and now that a gteat deal of this class feeling has been iitecd in connection with our common crisis, may we hope that this co-operative effort may be much easier to-day thaii ever in the past. (Applause.). If We are going to tackle : tliis prdWoin it dali only v .be'by a united friendly attack, ain attack en masse. : Never forget the old motto—it holds good to-day-r'Britaiil expects tliat : every man this day will do his duty.' " (Loud applause.) 1

| When the Real Struggle Will Begirt. ! Mr. Wade, who also, Bptii&'lti support of the motion, vras< hardly |;16£b efitflUßl* astically received than Mrl-JJook... Ha said he was heartily' in accord With th 6 spirit of tho resolution. So far as he and those associated with his party were concerned, he could promise tllfi gathering their warm*support,'Loth by voico and ,'aotion. (Hear, hear.) They wbuld all rallyrouud the Empire flag, Which stood'for all that was frefc find ndble and for the suppression for all titne of the iron heel of the Prussian autocrat. There was one point tlicy ought riot .to overlook—Mr. Griffith had referred .to it-rand that was that when the war was ; _over,.. peace. signed, and. the ,avenues of commerce up, then would'commeMe ffie-'ifeal 'struggle to achieve its purpose. We were'fignting a nation which had claimed to be A nation of culture, but tue Germans had shown by their practices that in warfare they were barbarian?. (Applause.) Some forty years ago they had put their hand to the "scrap of paper" which guaranteed for all time the neutrality, of that heroic country. Belgium,

and now they were waging ruthless war upon;that'little nation wjiiuh had saved tlie fortuiies of.Europc. Even defenceless women and children were attacked, and to-day this nation of "culture" was waging a war of piracy in tho North Sea; It mado one's blood, boil to think of the/possibility of making any. compromise with a country which hadso stained its .hands with blood. Smallnations had: their, rights as Well-'as tlialarger had experience frould bring this home ; to tliß German people. L-ot ub hope tliit in the'* years to come', the pea£o of,, the world* wo(ild bo established on a wise founda-: tiori; but -until the principles: of right and justice , had been., re-established amohg the' Gehnau people they could be assured that all sections of the 13H-: tish' Empire .would Relentlessly and terminedly''fight to;:,maintain, the Enf-;, pire's trade. (Applause.) The toast of the chairman, proposed by the Governor, concluded tho proceedings.