BRITISH POLITICS.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXIII, Issue 9119, 11 April 1908, Page 5

BRITISH POLITICS.

LORD gurzon takes the

FIELD

per Press .Association.— Copyright. “London, April 10, Lord Gurzon,- presiding at a •Unionist mass meeting at Basingstoke, said it marked a decade since j ]o had addressed any political gathering in England. Mr Balfour’s ' fiscal platform was one whereon all 60 ctions of the party could well unite an( j whereon an ultimate reunion, besides being possible, was certain. jj 0 did not envy either the commongonse or political foresight of the : man declaring that no change in the fiscal policy was required, or likely to occur. A change of some sort was necessary and inevitable, but possibly vfould not take precisely the shapethe authors of the movement anticipated. Perhaps it would not fulfil all the ambitions and desires of its warmest partisans, and he disclaimed sufficient knowledge to enable him to dogmatise. The Daily News claims authoritatively to announce that Mr Morley will go to the House of Lords while retaining his present office. Mr Asquith has submitted to the King the proposed Ministerial changes. Nothing will be announced till after his return to London tonight.. It is considered more than probable that Mr Winston Ohurohhill will be given the Presidency of the Board of Trade, ratlier than the Secretaryship of the Colonies. Lord Tweedmouth, speaking at a dinner at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, again emphasised the necessiity for maintaining our comamnd of the seas. Our ideal ghould be to make the army and navy work together and into one another’s hands.

TARIFF REFORM,

IP ONLY THE PARTY CAN AGREE.

Received April 11, 8.8 a.m

Lord Curzon said that with regard to India, which might conceivably suffer more from retaliation than it could gain from preference, it was our interest that her interests should not be sacrificed in any coming change. Her revenue tariff was so useful and lucrative, that no party in India would consent to part with so useful a means of negotiation. It has been used more than once to threaten reprisals on foreign nations. The Liberal Government had events in train to disturb many things, but had not shown any tendency to upset the tariff in India.

Such a tariff must and ought to come in England. The Radicals were driving them thereto in the future which Unionists muff redeem. The Liberal party were acting as wet nurses to the off spring, whom they affected to repudiate and disown. “If we got such a tariff for revenue purposes and I cannot for the life of me see why we should not make such a tariff after consultation with Colonial Governments, for the purpose of strengthening the ties of Imperial connection, |we could also utilise it to improve trade, and secure better employment for workers.” The money question was probed more by those sections of the party which at present supported tariff reform, and though they were mutually separate they would be drawn together. “Whatever we ’do” Lord Curzon added, let us not adopt proscription. We are unable to afford to estrange rsuch men as Lord Salisbury’s two sons. That would he unthinkable. Our policy should be one of reconciliation not of reprisals. ’ ’ ’