EMPIRE'S TRADE.

Auckland Star, Volume LII, Issue 168, 16 July 1921, Page 7

EMPIRE'S TRADE.

NEED FOR ENCOURAGEMENT. € MR. MASSEY'S VIEWS. (By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright.) t . LONDON', July 15. Lord Sydenham, presiding at a luncheon tendered by Empire producers to .Mr. W. J'*. Massey at the Hotel Victoria, eaid thai no Dominion was more to Imperial unity than- New Zealand. He iioped that Mt. Massey would not find the terms of the mandate for Samoa, which New Zealand had been called upon tv administer, intolerable, though frankly he feared he would. He cordially welcomed Mr. Massey as one | of the strong fellow? of the Empire, j Mr. Massey, replying, advocated the | adoption of a well-thought-out policy of Empire preference which would encourage production, bring waste places under cultivation, provide remunerative employment, and assist to keep British citizens under tiicir own flag. It was equally necessary that Britain should recover her old as a creditor nation. Air. Massey suggested that the Empire producers shoiHd adopt the slogan: good? for Rritish citizens, British citizens for British goods." The sheep statistics of the world, continued Mr. Massey, snowed a decline of 20 per cent, in the last decade, which foreshadowed that the wool supply would soon he inadequate:*o the demand. The same conclusion applied to the mutton supply. Thus producers might expect higher prices in,the near future. ' Referring to the chairman's allusion to mandates, Mr. Massey said that New Zealand intended to rto its duty by the Samoans and to accord them treatment similar to that enjoyed by the Maori population of New Zealand. He hoped that Mr. Harding's conference on the limitation of armaments would be thoroughly successful. Mr. Massey emphasised that the .Empire's ynrv existence was based on sea power. We could not allow ourselves to live on \ the sufferance of any other nation. The | British Navy must be second to none in the world. Nevertheless, he would welcome any arrangement between the Great Powers that would not the safety of the Empire. ■ \ Mr. Massey stated that the confereneo of Prime Ministers had decided, in favour of the establishment of an Kmpire wireless chain.—(A. and N.Z. Cable.).