WELLINGTON NEWS

Hokitika Guardian, 27 January 1932, Page 2

WELLINGTON NEWS

UNITED STATES INDIVIDUALISM. Special Correspondent. WELLINGTON, January 25. It is the gnat boast of American statesmen that their country is indeed realistic and r. : it-contained, and so they believe in isoL tion, or rather in abstaining from taking part with other nations in world affairs. It is inevitable that this isolation must soon come w <u* end, for all th: mam currents to-day are sweeping towards nationalisation. An American con rib’..tor t.o the ‘‘Sydney Morning Herald" illustrates the internationalism i i quite a simple way. He says; "The boot on my foot is a study in world neighbourhood. The sole from Australia, leather tanned with German potash 'and Paraguay bark; sides sewn ■with thread from Ireland ; cement and asphalt from Trinidad and rubber from Malay ; the metal portions of manganese from Russia, tin from Wales, nickie from Canada and zinc from Australia, enamel of materials from Persia, Africa and the Far East and gain arabic from India. - " The average American man in the street observes. “What a pity to send so much money out of America.” Tins is just where America is wrong. A million dollars -sent to Australia m exchange for wool is r.ot all lost to (America. A large part comes back again in business to motor ear factories ; some 'goes to India for tea, enabling India to give large orders for manufacturing goods; most of the ■money goes to England, and so Hritain is able to buy mode bmv rmfterisfls from the United States and keep her (Shipping

■employed. Thrs America does not lose the million dollars, it has started current after current of trade that goes all round the world to the infinite advantage of the whole world. The writer of the article asks: ‘"How long are we to continue such trade policy, and also huge war debt payments levies, in a neighbourhood world where we (Americans) have billion s of dollars out on loan, how long are we to hold one-half of the world's gold in our vaults and about that proportion of the world’s industrial unemployed P The answer is that we are already beginning to face the alternative—either two-way traffic loans in international trade, or cancellation of war debts. And this palpable fact gets under the skill of the common man, lie is in for a very rude shock indeed." In maintaining a high protective tariff and at the same time insisting on the payment of war debts the United States lia iS set the debtor nations an impossible task and at the same time has seriously jeopardised her own economic conditions. It is a generally admitted fuel that Ameiica is suffering from the effects 01 tin depression, as rprionsly, if not more so, than the nations in Europe. Debts between nations are settled in goods and services. VVe sell to and buy from one another, and then* is a constant interchange of visits, and services must be rendered those vi-iters. Trade debts and war rk*bt,s should he settled m this manner, and the transfer of gold .should he. a rare necessity. The United Stales tar iff almost prohibits the entry of foreign goods into the country, consequently • t In* debt ora cannot obtain a sufficiency of dollars with which to pay the war deld-s, and i must therefore resort to gold shipment to plot ide the balance To meet flu*

situation as best they can other countries have raised tariffs against the United States to the detriment of tnat country, even England has had to abandon the traditional policy of free trade and come into line with others. The writer already quoted says: "However necessary high tariffs may be for some countries, it must be evident to all that we simply cannot go on presenting with one hand a tremendous bill to foreign powers, and then making it impossible with the other tor th-m U* discharge it.” How long America win keep floundering in its present econom.c bog none can say, but it looks as >i American tariff barriers must conic dot'll and freer channels of trade opened for the whole world.