INTERCOLONIAL COMMER CE CONFERENCE.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 443, 5 February 1890, Page 5

INTERCOLONIAL COMMER CE CONFERENCE.

ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT. Dunedin, February 1. Mr Ritchie, President of the Chamber of Commerce, in his address at the opening of the Intercolonial Chamber of Commerce Conference, read letters of apology for nonattendance from Mr Reid, President of the Melbourne Chamber, and Messrs Inglis and Joseph, the Sydney delegates. Messrs Sargood, Hem and Harper, the Melbourne delegates, will attend later,' Papers will be contributed by Mr Cowderly, of Melbourne ; Mr Pulsford, of Sydney; Mr Stead, of Christchurch; and Mr James Allen Davies, of Tasmania. 1 Referring to federation, Mr Ritchie went on to say that he believed the impetus that made this subject a living, and almost a burning one both at home and in the colony, proceeded largely from the discussion at the Congress of Chambers of Commerce in Melbourne in November, 1888. Whatever opinions might be held about the present policy to be pursued, or the final outcome, the questions discussed had done this much good: they had shown how ignorant in many respects various colonies are of one another’s affairs, and how necessary it is that they should not continue to be so. This ignorance among politicians was notorious. Mr McMillan, the Colonial Treasurer, of New, South Wales, had told them the other day that he did not know Mr DSakin. He (Mr Ritchie) believed that several Premiers did not know each other, and next to nothing of any other colony but his. own. Probably it was but fair to say there .were advantages in this, while ” concentration was necessary and the building-up' process was going on ; but however this might be, there' could be no possible advantage, but very great disadvantages, in a similar insularity of knowledge about the trade and commerce of each colony. We were very apt to fall into harmful ignorance, even in New Zealand, in which, from its geographical conditions, there was almost as much diversity of production as there was between some of the colonies of Australasia. This ought to be avoided, and may be avoided by a more frank and frequent communication of such 1 bodies as the s Chambers of Commerce. It was idle to let small feelings of jealousy create stiffness and alarm • for New Zealand certainly, and for his part ! he would say all Australasia, ought to have no inclination to remain in ignorance of the capacities and possibilities of one part of its territory as; compared with another, nor of' the conditions and tendencies of trade as between one place and another. At present knowledge was largely confined to restricted and constant grooves. Surely the trade is important enough to induce" attempts at* ’ more wide and general information , through more public and official channels, between this colony and Australia. The 1 imports and' exports for the year ending 30th 1 September last reached £3,236,614, a. large part of, which had to ’ find 'its way I ;oyer '/various. '“China walls,” which ;have been talked, about so much lately; and which we are all ’ so fontl of building round us so that'we m'ay I work i dhietiy; and in comfort among durTs&ves within ’their friendly shelter. But

such a volume of trade, constituting one-fifth of our total, and occurring in spite of certain restrictions, is surely a very distinct evidence that it is ihtended by nature that each- colony group should be more or less dependent on the other, and argues, at any rate, for'the freest . intercourse,! knowledge, and acquaintance one with the other. On this point the most rigid free' traders can agree with those who believe firmly in the benefits of a‘protective tariff. He rather thought that both of these are coming bo believe alike in the advantage of free intercourse in products as well as in knowledge. He hoped that this modest attempt to bring together the representative business men of Australasia, although it had met with very partial success, might at least tend to keep alive the idea of the necessity and advantage of doing this, which was so distinctly evidenced by the Melbourne Congress.