Federation.

Bush Advocate, Volume XII, Issue 1756, 5 October 1899, Page 4

Federation.

0 Mr E. M. Barraud, of Messrs Barraud and Abraham, lias been visiting Sydney and collecting some valuable information with respect to federation for the Palmerstan North Chamber of Commerce The Times is indebted to Mr Hirscb, the secretary of the \ Chamber,' for the following extract from Mr Barraud's last letter : — ' I met a sub-committee of the Sydney j Chamber of Commerce, consisting of the President and other leading merchants interested in Now Zealand business. The secretary of the Chamber, who was present, promised to send you direct a report of what took place. I need only add to what be may have written that the subcommittee were unanimously of the opinion that from every point of view it was desirable that New Zealand should join the Australian Commonwealth. Presuming that the report will contain the nub-committee's answers to your specific questions, I may say that whilst the Spdney merchants are ready to recognise that New Zealand is' quite able te take an independent stand, ana look after her own interests, the opinion was freely expressed that, commercially, we should have every-

t&TBs 'to gain" aria" notYfng to" ftj|i by becoming one of the federateor colonies. If we stand aloof we shall be treated as aliens, and our produce subjected to the same duties aa that of othor countries outsida the Commonwealth. It was als» ptinted out that Canada, the United States of America and Japan all send produce to Australia similar to ours ; and if we were in the union our goods would escape the duties, as of course will the produce frsm Victoria and Tasmania, which also competes with our own,' Mr Hirsch is also adTued of a consignment of books, etc., received by Mr Barraud from the Chief Secretary of N»w South Wnles for the Palmerston North Chamber of Conimerce — all on the subject of Federation. The following note will be of special interest to New Zealand growers of onions : Air Barraud mentions that ho noticed n large shipment^of onions in cases landing out of a "steamer just arrived from Japan, and apparently in \ splendid condition, whilst there were lurge parcels of New Zealand onions, both in cases and gunnies, lying on the wharves in an almost unsaleable state.