The Dominion. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1917. A BOLD PROGRAMME

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3013, 26 February 1917, Page 6

The Dominion. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1917. A BOLD PROGRAMME

The co/irrage and ehergy whicl ware expected ot the L{,'6h> Qeorgi viovermr/ent wben it assumed ofEtt arc exhibited to a ra'avked degree it tuo programme ot National economj Buwrntted by Imperial Prism Aunistor to iiio House of Commons i* , ls t'b-s blosfc ambitious ef< iwv: kind that has been mad< „*> 1- itain since the war bt> ga'a is correspondingly entitlec 10 f'.'spoot. Thero could "be ,nc g fR 3/et' mistake than to read ir comprehensive proposals anj sijgb of weakness, Anyone who read; Llqyd George's speech wil /■realise that he and his colleague: are determined to provide agains' overy possible contingency and ar< looking well ahead, it is'true thai be lays emphasis upon the activities the, enemy submarines, but at th< Same time he makes it quite clear that, many things besides the depri-flSra-jns of these raiders make it that Britain should take caroful stock of her resources and turn them the best possible ae count. For instance the heavy re ; duction in the amount of shipping entering British ports—a reduction from 50,000,000 tons per annum, before the war, to 30,000,000 tons—is almost exclusively due to the fact tliat #l very large proportion of the British mercantile tonnage hss been allocated to the Allies. The sub- / Marines up to the present lave af > most aggravated and accentuated problems which would exist if not a single submarine were praying oil seaborne commerce, and tho measure; outlined by Me. Lloyd George aim i much more than the defeat of the , enemy _ submarine campaign. The immediate position calls for drastic aotion. As a result of the shipping shortage and a bad harvest last year stocky of food are lower in Great , Britain than they have been within . recollection. There is no serious danger of famine, but as Mr. Lloyd George states the position, unless the home production of food is increased this year, the nation may . have to choose between a diminishing military effort or underfeeding the population. The measures taken to stimulate agricultural production are to an extent experimental, but seem likely to produce results, and this is the only consideration that counts for tho time being. Tho proposed economies and limitations upon imports by which it is hoped ; f to release over 900,000 tons of shipping are backed by irresistible arguments. _ The shipping economy in itself is of vital importance and generally speaking the limitations will have the effect of eliminating luxuries which tho nation can very well do without and ensuring an adequate supply of necessaries. The ' fact that the Lloyd ®eorge Government has made a bold departure from the temporising policy of the Coalition. Ministry appears in nothing more_ clearly than in the proposals relating to liquor. Quito apart from any question of temperance reform the liquor trade is obviously one of those that could riot expect to escape State restrictions where such restrictions were necessary in the interests of war efficiency. Mr. Lloyd George points out that 36,000,000 barrels of beer were brewed in Groat Britain in 1914, while in 1916 the quantity had been reduced to 26,000,000 barrels. This reduction was largely accounted for by several million adults leaving Britain and by the reduction of exports. It ia now proposed to reduce' the amount to 10,000,000 barrels, and at the same time to heavily reduce th Q m,f put of spirits. A highly important economy will undoubtedly result. The reduction of the liquor output will release a large body of labour, it will ease the demand on shipping tonnage- and on railway transport, and it will make available as foodstuffs a considerable amount of material now used in the production of liquor. How far these economies and restrictions in Great Britain will affect the Dominions is not yet clear. Increased difficulty will no doubt be experienced in obtaining certain manufactured goods, and further shipping restrictions may conceivably be enforced which would be heavily felt in this part of the world. At most, however, our hardships will be less serious that those the people of' Great Britain are called upon to bear, and even if it were otherwise measures which are so obviously calculated to enable the nation to make tho most of its resources and bring its whole weight efficiently to bear, could not be met in any other spirit than one of loyal acceptance.