The Evening Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo. FRIDAY, AUGUST 31, 1894.

Auckland Star, Volume XXV, Issue 208, 31 August 1894, Page 2

The Evening Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 31, 1894.

For tb.p cause that lacis assistancs, For the wrong; that needs resistance, For the future in the rtistanoß. ■ And the good that -wo can do.

Although we believe that protective duties, judiciously applied, may be of great benefit to a young country, we are by no means satisfied that the imposition of an additional duty upon wheat would be a wise step. New Zealand is a wheat-exporting country, and must find markets for its surplus in other colonies. There is reason to believe that the imposition of the existing tax of jQi per ton on flour and 9d per ioolb on wheat, adopted some years ago, was the cause of equivalent duties being imposed in New South Wales and Queensland, where our produce had previously been admitted free. If the tax is increased, as some holders of grain are urging the Government to do because of an exceptional scarcity of wheat resulting from the bad harvest of last year, a temporary gain for a few persons who have stocks on hand may be secured at the cost of a present loss to the consumer and a permanent loss to the farmer, because we may depend upon it that the neighbouring colonies, which still take a large amount of New Zealand produce, will retaliate.

The Colonial Treasurer, in the following extract from his Budget speech, laid down very clearly the principles which should guide our fiscal relations with the neighbouring colonies :—

I would direct the attention of honourable members to the policy which has so prominently characterised the neighbouring colonies for some years past ; I refer to the policy of raisins; their tariffs. These increased' tariffs have bad the effect'of limiting the outward trade of this colony. I believe that a colonial reciprocal tariff entered into would confer greater benefits upon Australia than upon New Zealand. But, in order to enable friendly comniorcia! relations to exist betwixt tho colonies I would, at all events, favour a tariff treaty being entered into with any of tho colonies that would agree to exchange their products with us. I do not believe in a policy of retaliation, but at the samo time I am of opinion that ib is unwise to stand by and allow the present"state of affaire to continue without looking to our own interests and conserving our own industries. If tho gold and specie which was exported from New Zealand to Australia, is not taken into consideration, the balance of trade laßb year was greatly in favour of the other colonies. Thoir importations ,to New "Zealand during the year 1893 exceeded our exports to them by the sum of £422,734, exclusive of gold and specie.

The pros and cons of the question were very fairly thrashed out in the

course of the debate which took place last night upon the proposal to place an import duty on coal. Mr Ward again struck the right keynote when he said that we should await the result of the recent political changes in New South Wales and Victoria. There is a strong revival in the adjacent colonies of the federal spirit and a desire for the mitigation ot intercolonial tariff dues. We may not see our way to any sort of political union, but there should be nothing, on our part at any rate, to exclude us from the benefits of commercial federation, secured by means of a reciprocal treaty. There are circumstances under which retaliation would be perfectly justifiable and expedient, but it is the old question of strike and lock-out in another form ; conciliation and arbitration are very much better.

In the course of the debate on Wednesday night, Mr O'Regan is reported to have said that the duty on wheat,and flour if imposed would be exclusively for the benefit of the Auckland Roller Mills. We have the best of evidence that the contrary is the case, and that while some Southern millers are clamouring for an increase in the duty, the management of the Auckland mills would prefer that things should remain as they; are. Before New South Wales and Queensland levied a tax on flour a considerable export trade, was springing up between Auckland and those colonies. Hostile tariffs have partially checked this, but an increased tax would doubtless put an end to it altogether, and probably deliver the trade of the South Sea Islands, which require a very dry flour, over completely into the hands of Australian and Caliiornian millers.

The objection offered to a tax upon " the staff of life" on the ground that it will tend to make bread dear, and play into the hands of speculators and rings in seasons of scarcity, cannot be summarily dismissed. An impost upon bread represents taxation in its most obnoxious form. We do not believe that the tax would seriously affect the price of bread, because New Zealand is bound to be an exporter of grain, but for the same reason it could do the farmer very little good.

It would be wise, we think, for the Government to postpone anything in shape of retaliatory legislation affecting our trade with Australia until they have gone carefully into the question of the existing trade relations, and have tried by friendly negotiations to bring about a satisfactory understanding.