THE NEW TARIFF.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 9172, 1 August 1895, Page 3

THE NEW TARIFF.

SOME LOCAL OPINIONS.

iBY OUK SPECIAL BETOSTEB.) The publication of the new tariff brought into the House by the Colonial Treasurer was only a few hours old wheu a member of the staff of the Pbess was on the wapath to ascertain the opinions of those interested in the various line* of business as to the effect of the new tariff. In some cases it was urged by those interviewed that they had not yet had an opportunity of seeing what waa proposed by the Colonial Treasurer, but in the majority of instances those seen had carefully studied the position as affecting their particular live or trade. There was, it may bo noted, a pretty unanimous expression of opinion that the new tariff was in no way in the interests of the working classes, but that in some instances—tna details of which are given below—the tariff proposals arc distinctly inimical to the working classes, who will have to pay a good deal more for the articles used by lhen>, whilst there is not any corresponding return in the shape of the encouragement of local industries. As one of the gentlemen interviewed put it, the only encouragement: to local industries is the imposition of a high duty on clothing made at Home to order, which will mean but very little, the number sending their orders tlome being but small. Appended are the opinions of several of the principal business men in the different, lines who were able to be seen yesterday : — DKAPERY, &c. As one of the lines which will affect the working classes, aud, indeed, consumers generally, the first; representative interviewed was one in the wholesale drapery business. •' Well,'' said he, on being asked his opinion of the tariff, " I have not had time to study it sufficiently to give an authoritative opinion on all the lines affecting us. But Ifshoul'l like to call your attention to one. That is flannelette, which has been fixed at 20 per cent, ad valorem. Now, if there is one thing iv the drapery trade which is purchased more largely than another by the lees wealthy classes it is this. It is used greatly, and cannot be made here. The result of this duty will simply be to increase tho price to the consumer, without in any way stimulating local industry. There are a number of other anomalies iv the tariff, but as I have said, I have not had time to go through it carefully enough to enumerate them all."

The next gentleman interviewed is at the head of a large retail drapery busiuess. He had taken pains, us cau be seen by his remark?, to make hiaiself pretty well acquainted with the matters in tho new tariff affecting his particular line. "To say that the tariff will assist local industry," said he, "is altogether wrong. The only crumb in that direction—and it ia only a crumb—a the imposition of the duty on the clothes made at Horns to order. But that i 3 a mere trifle when you come to look how the workers are made to pay extra for what they use by a Government professing to be their friends. Take fur instance, tins item in the tariff—• Cotton "piece goods (not otherwise enumerated), including shirtings, £10 per cent, ad valorem.' Now, up to the present, shirtings mentioned hero with cotton piece goods, have been admitted free. They aro charged in the new tariff 10 per cent, ad valorem. What doeethat mean ? VVhy, that there muat be an advance in price of at least 124 per cent., because wo shall not pay the increase out of our pockets, and as this is a line of goods almost exclusively purchased by artisans and mechanics, they will have to pay the increase. Then take another lino in che tariff, which is as under :—' Cotton piece goads, namely, tapestry, cretonnes, chintz, art creps, friczs, velvets, damasks, towelling, prints, moquette, Utrecht and Genoa velvets, muslins, all kinds of window nets, laces, hollauds aud biinds, diapers in the piece, cotton tick and coloured Belgian cotton tick, £20 per cent, ad valorem.' Many of the articles uoro enumerated are of everyday use in small households, aud a duty of 20 per cent, ad valorem is hard on one class of the. community—tho workers— and It ie more so when* we know- tTiab it is for revenue purposes and that only. Several or the lines have been hitherto admitted free, and these aro essentially necessities for those having only a limited income. Take, for instance, the Hue of cotton ticks, which is now 20 per cent. That is an article largely used by those persons who cannot afford linen ticks. They will now have to pay an increased price, owing to Uio duty. Then, again, there are window nsta and laces. They are never used by tho wealthier people. Such lines aro only fie for small cottage windows, and it; will be the class occupying houses of this kind who will be called upon to pay the increased price. Prints* which includes all kinds of printed dre.-<s goods, have up to now been admitted free in pari>, and part of them subject to alO per cent. duty. These are all now included in the 20 per cant, ad valorem, which means as least 25 per cent, advance in the price to the consumer. As you probably know 20 per cent, ad valorem meaus about 22£, and we must get a profit to carry on our busineea. Now I come to the. moat incongruous mixture, and at the same time the hardest knock at the workers. I allude to this item in the new tariff :— " Flannelettes, also flannel shirtings, imitation flivnuol, raieed cotton and soft spun piece goods, £20 per cent, ad valorem. Union shirtings, without distinction of value, £20 per cent, ad valorem." This duty on flannelettes is perfectly unnecessary, because it does not encourage any local industry whatever, and every item is used almost exclusively by artisans and mechanics in consequence of their cheapness. Thay cannot, as I have said, be produced here because they are almost entirely manufactured of cotton. I could nnderstand a duty of 20 or 25 per cent on flannels imported so as to aid our local manufactures, bub flannelettes and shirting 3 need no duty at all a3 they cannot be made here, and therefore it simply means that the consumer has to pay an increased price retail. Such a duty as this not being in the interests of the community it scarcely seems to mc that the Government, as ia so strongly claimed fc them, arc really looking after the interests of tho working classes. Another item in which a large advance is made is on Union shirfcings, and these hitherto have been admittsdvdufcy free, that is up to invoice cost of 7d per yard. Now without any distinction whatever all Union shirtings are placed under a'2o per cent, tariff, showing an immediate difference in cost to the consumer .of 22£ per cant. Aa with the other items I have referred to these goods arc almost exclusively purchased by the working classes, so it is on them that the increase falls." *_.

A representative of one of the largest retail drapery establishments here states that the new tariff will increase the price of soft goods to a very great extent. Flannelette in particular will be much dearor, as much, iv fact, as 33£ per ceat. Thi3 will fall heavily on ,the poorer classes, aa this article is largely consumed by them. BOOTS AND SHOES. The next important item of the new tariff is one which we in Canterbury manufacture largely, viz., boots and shoes. In connection with this one retail dealer was spoken to on the subject. He said,- , " Well, my opinion is that ib will do no good, nor will it increase the price at present to the consumer, until the stocks now in hand of imported articles are exhausted. Then there will be a rise in the prices, but not sufficient, I think, to appreciably assist the local manufacturer."

A large wholesale manufacturer said, '.'"With regard to the tariff proposals in connection with boots and shoes, the increase to 25 per ceiit. will have little or no effect iv promoting local manufacture. I say co because or the £150,000 valae imported, the average is about 4s per pair, so the increase of dnty—say 2d per pair on the averagewill have little or no effect. Tha trade in New Zealand, as it at present exists, manufactures about three-fourths of the consumption of the whole colony. The alteration of the tariff in connection with leather has no particular bearing on the manufacturers, except that it may cause a slight increase in some special lines, such as Indian kip, &c. The remaining fourth now imported will probably continue to be imported, except chat some colonial manufacturers may be enabled to add a few lines from time to, time to what they now make. But the proposed increase of duty will most certainly not produce any special growth of our local manufacture's in the particular line

under discussion. The consumer will not be benefited by the imposition of the duty in any way, and I look upou is that goods now imported will still continue to be so, plus 5 per cent, additional duty, which means that ib costs 7i- In fact, the position shortly stated as regards the boot trade >3 that the Treasurer will simoly mulct the boot trado in some £5000 or £7000 per annum, and will do no good to anyone except the revenue." We learn from some of the officials that the Ne «• Zealaud Federated Boot Trade Council are very much dissatisSad with the cew tariff. They state that the duty is not sufficient. I» the evidence given before the Tariff Commission tho Council were strongly opposed to any ad valorem tariff, as j it admitted ths commonsr work for almost nothing. The present tariff leaves them where they were, as about ten per cant, has been put on common leathers and there is barely fi"e per cent, on the made-up articles (ad valorem). There was a feeling of dissatisfaction among the rusmbsr3 of the Council when the proposed tariff was published The Council have advocated all along a fixed duty per pair, and they complain that the proposals submitted by them to the Tariff Commission, though eudorsed by Wellington and Dunedio, have been ignored by tbe Government. A prominent retail bootmaker, who was asked for his opinion, did not think the tariff will have any visible effect on the retail boot manufacture, either on the seller or the purchaser. Most of the poorer cliJi.es wear colonially made articles, and those who do not will nob feel the duty to any appreciable extent, as the increase in price wonld be inconsiderable, while, on the other baud, those who buy the dearer article could afford the extra expense which would result from the tariff. • The following telegram was sent yesterday to the members for Curistchurch by the New Zealand Federated Boot Trade Council:—"Boot Trade Council disgusted with new tariff. Our evidence before the Commission not considered.—H. RinvLiGAV, Secretary." A copy of the telegram woe sent to Messrs Pinker ton aud Kelly, the Labour members. , TEA, RICE, &c. A merchant, in the course of a conversation on the subject of tho tariff, said— " The reduction of the duty ou matches ia a great mistake, for two reasons—bhero.will be loss of revenue by it, aud ib interferes with the local factory established at> Wellington, which should become an important industry. The tax on matches ia very little felt, and they are, I think, a fair subject I for revenue duty. The reduction is ao small that ib is nob at all likely to be felt by tiie consumer. In connection with the duty on rice, it is strange that tapioj;-. and sago are left entirely free. It, is a peculiar anomaly that such should be ths case, seeing that ou a matter of principle these articles, in their nature for the purpose of taxation are exactly the earns as rice. They are imported as a cheap article of food, have' fallen in their fust cost, aud a tax would be little felt. The 4a duty on rice is quite enough. In this connection I might say that germina is being manufactured in Auckland and semolina here. To some extent these are used for purposes similar to those for which tapioca and sago are us&d. A slight duty on these last-named articles would no doubt act as a protective duty to the mills engaged in the making of the germina and semolina, and not be felt. The reduction on tea and kerosene is so small that I donbb if the consumer is likely to benefit by it and the profit will go to the trader. The public might, however, receive a benefit over tho kerosene, seeing that grocers cut prices ss much. The \ieduction of Id on coffee won't make any difference to the consumer. The tax on candied peel and confectionery isn't likely to produce much as these hues are seldom imported and then only in very small quantities—iv feet, I doubt if there is any of that kind of peel imported at all. I fcnink ib was right to take the duty off woolpacks in order to remove the anomaly that existed when there was a duty on them and not on cornsacks. The reductions in fencing wire, &c, are in tho interests of the fanning classes aud desirable, while it is nob in the iuterests either of the farmers or a clasa closely allied to them that the duty on traction engines should be increased. Ib 13 difficult to see wHy this tax is" imposed, since its canudt be in the interests of agriculture, and it will seriously handicap men of small means. Instead of £550, an engine will cost £650, and as many men cannot pay for their oaginea until years after they receive them, their trouble seems to be increased. What appears to have been dove is that the tariff has been adjusted to assist manufacturing industries to a large extent by making free the materials used ia local industries. I think ib is a 'mistake to have made such I small alterations, because the general public are not likely to reap any advantage. There seems to be no radical difference made in the articles in which my firm trades, and I cannot see the logic of some of the alterations, especially as jregarda rice, traction engines, &c. Besides this, there has been an increase in mauy cases where there cannot possibly be any revenue, while the differences by way of reduction are, as I have said, so small i that the consumer will reap no benefit." % SPIRITS, &o.

In conversation on the Tariff proposals of Ibo Treasurer as to the duties oa spirits, &a, a large wholesale wine and spirit merchant said :—" I look upou the proposals of the Treasurer as simply meaning a direct charge on the hotelkeeper, inasmuch as he has gob to pay the increased duty, and is unable to obtain anything in return from the consumer. He caunos charge any, more for the liquor supplied. Now what does lhatmeau? Well, simply this, the reduction in the quality of the liquor sold. The publican will be tempted to purchase an inferior quality, in fact low- class spirits, because tha increased duty will not permit of hie making a profit out of the better and higher class owing to the price he has to paj, piue the increase of duty. Competition naturally makes the hotelkeeper sell the beat he can at a liviug profit. Now the duty haa to be paid on a higher scale, and if he sold the better class liquor hie proiib would all be gone. In that case you see the temptation exists to buy inferior quality. To put it shortly the increase of duty means taking Is per gallon off the quality of the spirits gold." DRUGS. A local cbemist iuformed us that the tariff must increase the price of druga. Ingredients that could be imported at. a trifling amount would coat a very much larger earn to make up here; consequently^the prices of drugs will be largely increased,, Y\ STATIONARY. A leading manufacturing stationer informs us thai, in his opinion, there- is not any material alteration so far as the stationery trade is concerned. Those alterations that have taken place have been made in the direction of increasing soma few items slightly, bat more particularly the advantage baa been in the abolition of any duty on paper in its natural state before it is made up. The buyers will not be worse off, as the goods will be supplied at the aaine rates as before. The abolition of duty on the raw material will enable the manufacturers to compete with anything imported from outside.