AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6935, 26 October 1900, Page 1

AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION.

ITS ; EFFECT ON NEW ZEALAND. ;SOME PREDICTIONS. A commercial gentleman who lias just returned, from a business trip to Sydney, was persuaded yesterday afternoon to confide, to a, representative of 'this journal tihe opinions lie had formed during his stay in the New South Wales capital concerning Axistralian ' Federation and its probable 1 effecb on New Zealand. "The only condition I impose," he -said," as he finally submitted to the ■; operation .of interviewing, "is that my mame shall not be paraded before the public as a self-constituted authority on a . great Imperial question. I kept my eyes and ears open during my trip, . and for what my opinions are. worth you are welcome to. them, ;tmb Ivdo not- profess to know any more about the subject thaaiany other observant man who has had the same opportunities of gaining inf ormation." With this understanding the • reporter proceeded to ply his victim with questions. "■My.-: main object! in going "to Sydney,*' the latter explained, "was -to ascertain how my own business would-be affected by Federation, and I soon discovered that, like every other business dealing in colonial produce, it would be seriously handicapped by t<he imposition, of a protective tariff in $cV South" Wales. Hitherto, Sydney, has been our best market,- bub,' by, the end^ of nest year if; will probably be' no better than Melbourne and '•' Adelaide; and then we shall have to find other outlets for our surplus products. This is mot, as many people appear to imagine, merely a . matter of potatoes ; there are many other things that will be affected by the new tariff. Take malt, for instance. The manufacture of this article has kept up the price of barley,- and given constant employment to scores of de« sirable colonists ; but with a high duty in Australia it cannot be continued on its present scale /vyith any prospect of success. Then there are oats and cheese and ji. dozen other things that will suffer in the same way." ••■ \ _ ■• "Yes, -I think it will be- nearly another year before the Federal tariff is brought into operation j ' but the delay will" not, bft long enough to enable the farmers to change their whole system of cultivation. It is all very well for our politicians to say that if our produce is excluded from Australia it will find a market elsewhere. Malt and potatoes cannot be sent to England, and at present there does not seem much prospect of their being taken in large quantities in South Africa." "Of course the appointment of a Royal Commission to .inquire into the whole subject is a very admirable idea, but why was not it appointed two or three years ago j when there was some chance of its report influencing / public opinion here and in Aus« tralia? It seems rather late to begin to I make inquiries after we have refused to join the Federation, and when we have lost the opportunity to preserve our markets." " No^ I have not forgotten that one- of the objects of the Commission is to discover the basis of a reciprocal tariff. But you must remember that the position has materially changed sinoa our neighbours invited us to join the Commonwealth. It 1 is no longer a matter of sentiment. They will j require from us at least as much as wei re.-^ ceivefroin them. If they admit our potatoes and oats free of duty, we 1 shall have to take their wines and coal on the same terms, and as we want a reciprocal tariff and they do not, or at amy rate do not want it as badly as we do, the balance will probably be in their favour." " As far as I can .gather there is no disposition in Sydney to treat New Zealand with any special consideration. In fact, there seemed to be a pretty general feeling that this colony had behaved rather foolishly in its own interests and rather badly towards its neighbours. It has lost its opportunity to join the Commonwealth on equal terms with the other States, and has tried to obstruct the union of the other colonies. The Australians feel very keenly about Mr Seddon's interference with the Bill as it was passing through the British Parliament, and still more keenly about ■his attempt to grab the South Pacific trade. It will require all the Premier's tact to remove the impression that he was anxious to- ma-pnify- himself at the expense of tie Australian politicians. The suspicion may be quite unjust, but there it is." " I don't care to discires the political aspect of the question, but I confess that I can't follow the drift of all I read about i the danger Federation presents to our 'legislative independence.' It seems to me ■that in purely loonl affairs we should have just as much independence under Federation as we have in our present isolation, and that in Imperial affairs we should be far better off than we are now. This may be a mistaken view, but ifc is the one generally held in Australia, and I have not seen it disproved. The, notion that the working classes have everything to lose by joining the Commonwealth i? certainly not borne out by my observations in Sydney. The workmen there appear to be quite as well paid as those in New Zealand, and many of them are a great deal more independent. You may be quite sure that they will take pood enre tl\at the colonies are not flooded with cheap labour. Th« black and yellow horrors are only some of the bogies that have been raised by our local j)otitic : ans." " Yes, you nwy say that distinctly my firm opinion, quite apart from nnv personal interest, is that Fpderation would be an excellent tihin? for New Zealand, and that it will be impossible for us to continue to progress with the Australian markets iclosed a.wain! J t us. We nny,' as My friends tell me. hnve lost our opportunity to join on equal terms with the other States, but we ouijht to do our best to repair our error. There is no time to lose, nnrll if the public only knew the importance of the question they would insist upon it being settled without another moment's delay."