EMPIRE TRADE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10601, 6 April 1912, Page 5

EMPIRE TRADE.

COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED. STATEMENT BY MR HARCOURT. (Received April 4, 1 p.m.) LONDON, April 3. Mr Lewis Harcourt, Secretary of j State for the Colonies, announced in the House of Commons the personnel j of the Trade of the Empire Commission. It is as follows: — Sir James Inchcape, partner in the' merchant firms of MacKinnon, • Mackenzie, and Co., Calcutta, Bombay, and Kurrachee; and of Gray, Dawes, and Co., London, j Sir James will be chairman of the j Commission. i Sir Edgar Vincent, ex-Governor of i The Imperial Ottoman Bank and | one time M.P. for Exeter. Sir Charles Owens, general manager . of the London and South Western Railway. Mr Rider Haggard, the novelist, who has sat on several Commissions. Mr T. Garnett, of Manchester. Mr W. Lorimer, of Glasgow. | The Hon. G. E. Foster, Canadian Minister of Trade and Com-, merce. Mr Bowring, to represent New-. found land. . i Baron de Villiers, Chief Justice of i the Supreme Court of South | Africa. Sir Joseph Ward, ex-Prime Minister of New Zealand. Sir David de V. Graaf, Minister for Public Works and Posts and Telegraphs, South Africa. Mr I). Campbell. The Secretary to tho Commission; will be Mr W. A. Robinson, of the Colonial Office. —• Mr Harcourt said he hoped the commission's enquiry would be concluded before the next Imperial Conference. THE OPPOSITION SURPRISED. . (Received Last Night, 5.5 o'clock.) LONDON, April 4. Tho "Times" states that the Opposition is surprised at the composition of the Imperial Commission. The Opposition, considers that the Government- has not complied with the understanding that the personnel of the Commission should be of the first importance, and that it should be impartial. It complaiins that such statesmen as Sir Edward Grey and Lord Balfour of Burleigh were not asked to join the Commission. Several of those appointed are fiscal extremists, or are insufficiently trained to be Trado Commissioners. STATEMENT BY THE PREMIER. \ MOST IMPORTANT COMMISSION. Interviewed by a Post reporter, the Prime Minister (tho Hon. T. Mackenzie)" said that his Cabinet asked Sir Joseph Ward to allow himself to be "nominated, and ho was pleased to saj ' Sir Joseph consented, with the result "that New Zealand would have for that ( special work its most highly qualified i and experienced man on the most important Commission that had ever been held in the interests of the Empire. Tlie position carried no salary for any of the representatives, expenses only being paid. Mr Mackenzie said he felt confident that the tiade of the Empire would be enormously benefited by its work, and New Zealand would, he felt sure, be proud to have so distinguished-and capable a representative on it. SIR. JOSEPH WARD WILL NOT RETIRE. " When I decided to accept the position," said Sir Joseph Ward to a Post reporter, "I felt that there was vc y . important work that could bo dom. bj , the commission in the general interests of the Empire. It will not in- " terfere with my position as a member ! of the House of representatives, it ' is not my intention, as a result ot ' tlie appointment, to retire from public lite in, New Zealand. I that it is very .probable that the Co - mission will sit in New Zealand and Australia first," , In reply to a quest-ion, Sir Joseph said he thought the work wouki take about, two years.