BRITISH TRADE WITH NEW ZEALAND.

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14759, 1 September 1913, Page 4

BRITISH TRADE WITH NEW ZEALAND.

9 TO TIIE EDITOR OF "TUB TRESS-' . Sir, —I must confess to Wing somewhat disappointed at tho tono of your leading article headed "Trado and Commerce," in your iasu© of August -Bth, which deals with my address to tho Canterbury Chamber of Commerce. Tho line of argument which you infer to hare been taken by mc is certain'y uot apparent in the long precis of my speech, which appears on page 5 of that issue, and it certainly was not in fho speech as delivered. I stated that I did not nsk for increased tariff preference, but that I did want people to know wlwt preference i hey were giving, and on what goods. I certainly never suggested that peoplo. should buy what they do not want, or pny more than they need. I gave an outline of the organisation of trade and industry peculiar to the United Kingdom in order to prove (1) that general statements as to the lack of adaptability of the British manufacturer at the present time ami in the past are not justified in fact, (2) tluit it the most they are based on single instances as to individual firms, asid are therefore most unfairly applied to the many thousands of British manufacturers; (3) that if more trouble wore taken to investigate facta it would l>e found that the refusal] by individual firms to make new goods or modify their manufactures, were, in the case of thoso firms, perfectly reasonable and justifiable. I showed that thousands of manufacturers in England Who, owing to -tho British system of industry, can exist and thrive as specialists by the side of big firms, cannot afford to have their own selling organisation, and must continue to rely as they hare done in the past on another sot of specialists, the wholesale merchants, for finding a market and for learning what is wanted. Hundreds of small manufacturers have been forced to appoint agents in foreign countries because the merchants did not tel thorn what was wanted. You use the phrase "moro adaptable American and German suppliers." I asked in my address for facts and coiir crete instances. I asked, and I still ask for a single instance of an article not mado for the homo market, but specially made by America for export. 1 can give you instances of British goods so made; I said on Wednesday night, aad I repeat, that people are so ready to criticise the old Mother Country and admire foreigners, that they mako sweeping assertions and wholesale condemnatory statements out of imperfectly underetood single instances in the former case, while they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to more flagrant instances and more reasoned criticism of foreign shortcomings.— Yours, etc., W. G. WICKHAif, . H.M. Trade Con__i__c_sr. Wellington, August 29th. '