Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1874.] THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1895. RECIPROCITY LIMITED.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 4941, 14 February 1895, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1874.] THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1895. RECIPROCITY LIMITED.

New Zealand and South Australia stand in the same relation to the rest of the world, as the guinea pig docs to medical science. Tho latter is made the subject of every experiment by expects, and by quacks, and science is supposed to be benefitted by tho results. The two Colonies named, in like manner, are the happy hunting grounds of every political quack buoyed with a desire to bring about the millcnium. Every fad, every fancy, every nostrum expounded by magazine writers, is seized upon and applied, These zealous political innovators, search tho world over for something new, but invariably wind up by accepting some brand new theory of Yankee origin. In Now Zealand, wo have in recent years developed several cliques of faddists and theorists who, with the coolest indifference, set aside the teachings of history, in order that their ptst schemes may be tried. The scanty' population and the isolated character of the country, admirably adapt themselves to the necessities of the political faddist and niilleniummongers. Female franchise, factory, acta, half-holidays by Acts of Parliament, Jfojik legislation, arbitration mid conciliation fpr lab,our disputes, undesirable immigrants prevention, and a number of other light-headed, commercial vitality* killing experiments, are projected and tried, The most amazing thing i» ( (,)iat New Zealand survives the ordeal, ml allows these hare-brained theorists to .exjst.

I The latest fira/.e is reciprocity; this is supposed to fee s/jpfliing really good, ftud worthy of pur ij.esf. efforts to attain, liudprocity 4 best, is a bastard term for Jty.optrade, for if correctly applied, it f) |p free interchangeof commodities [by jfcho contracting parties, If this interpro;tasoii ipld be given to the proposed .treaty which the Hon. <J. G. Ward Is imported to have flPgotiiited jvijth the Premier of South AtfsMia, there would be ample reasons for lawfe' jtion, but this reciprocity treaty CAjt'pjps in its tail a sting full of venom.. sew Zealand aud South Australia,whij/2 prepared to embrace each other iii a union,desire to hold aloof from the fM/bpf the Colonies, The population of two faddistfridden countries just exceeds a million, and they are to sot up in opposition to a population of over three millions, T<? put it in

another form, New Zealand, with an estimated population of a little over 700,000 souls, is to maintain customs barriers as against three million people, and admits duty free the produce of under4oo.ooo people. This is the new experiment, and a more stupid and harmful scheme could not be conceived. Let us have reciprocity with South Australia, but let us not hamper ourselves with an unprofitable obligation, If reciprocity is desirable with South Australia with its handful of people, hov much more so is it with New South Wales and Victoria, whose respective populations are more than three times as great,

The erection of custom house barriers jipniust each other is the slui'on self Government in the colonies. Fortunately for the signatories to the experimental reciprocity treaty, the scheme is ultra vires, and may it remain so, It is one of the missions of the London bound Colonial Treasurer to endeavour to impress the Statesmen of England of the immense value of "reciprocity treaties limited," and so bring about an amendment of tho existing Act, which prevents such dangerous experiments being tried, Tho sum total of the benefits to lie derived by the new arrangement will be to llood the country with cheap wine, a country that has shown a strong disposition towards "prohibition"; the Union Steamship Company will bo able, to extend its trade by running steamers direct to Adelaide, and carrying the cereals of Southland farmers.