THE EMPIRE'S TRADE.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 141, 13 June 1912, Page 4

THE EMPIRE'S TRADE.

The Congress of Chambers of Commerce which opened this -week in Lon- '• don will no doubt provide valuable ' opportunities for the discussion of many important financial, commercial, and Imperial questions. But it has already been marked by a feature of great significance, which will be appreciated particularly by all who have advocated the policy of Preferential Trade, or in any way committed themselves to the cause of Tariff Reform. Mr. Asquith formally welcomed the delegates, on behalf of 1 the Imperial Government, and in referring to the purposes of the Congress, he remarked that "one of the most convincing proofs, and one of the surest safeguards of our Imperial loyalty, unity, and strength was that for several years past a-quarter of the Motherland's imports had come from the Overseas Dominions, while over a third of the British exports went to the Dominions, the aggregate trade amounting to £400,000,000." 'We desire to draw the attention of our readers more especially to this statement because we believe that this is tbe first time that the Prime Minister of England or any professed Pree Trader of eminence has publicly admitted that the colonial markets are of enormous value to England. When Mr. Chamberlaia opened his Tariff Reform campaign some ten years back, the reply ordinarily made by the average Cobdenite to the colonial request for preferential treatment was that the colonial markets were not worth troubling about. Why, it was asked, contemptuously, should England run the risk of quarrelling with, good customers, like Germany and Prance and America, for the sake of securing such markets as her oversea dependencies could offer? Lord Rosebery and many others pointed out at the time that, per head of population, the colonies were even then by far England's best c__nn_s, and that 12 million British subjects in Australasia, Canada and Africa even then bought more from England -than her 250 -million customers in A_«_ca and Europe. The Cobdenites laughed these facts to scorn; but, apparently, Mr. Asquith is coming to appreciate their meaning. And the inference that Mr. Asquith was not prepared to draw was elaborated for him later on by Lord Desborough: "Great' Britain, a generation ago, was supreme in commerce and first in arms, but the progress of other countries had more than threatened her supremacy in commerce. We must look to the Empire to maintain the position that Great Britain had previously held alone." These are indeed far-reaching and significant words, and as a preface to the discussions of this important Congress they are certainly calculated to give heart of grace to all enthusiasts for Tariff Beform and Preferential Trade.