AN EMPIRE HIGHWAY

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 168, 9 April 1908, Page 7

AN EMPIRE HIGHWAY

m CANAL CHARGES.

THE QUESTION ACAIN RAISED. MR. DEAKIN ACTIVE. IV TELEGftAm —rnESS ASSOCIATION—COPi'EIfiTIT Melbourne, April 8. Mr. Deakin, Federal Prime Minister, in reply to a question, said representations had been mado to the British Government that tho timo had arrived when a reduction in tho ( Suez Canal rates should bo made. When tho communication,'which was now on its way Homo, reached its destination, a copy would bo laid on tho table. BOTH SIDES OF THE CASE. V. THE PANAMA CANAL. \ By the purchase of tho Khedive's Suez Canal Shares in 1875, at a cost of nearly ,£'1,000,000, the British Government secured a property which now yields it, even if judged from the mere revenue point of view, a very handsome return. The dividend for 180G-7 was j£s Is. -Id. per share.. Of the' 32 n\embers of. the Administrative Council, ten are British, three being nominated by the Government.. The. matter of tho'xanal rates'was brought up at the Imperial Conference by Mr. Denkm and Sir Joseph Ward, who urged, in effect, that a usurious profit was being made by the Continental' and British shareholders' (including the' British Government) at the cost of exorbitant rates to sMpoing. using the canal. Sir Joseph Ward has said that such a usurious profit, if dorived. in the colonies, would provoke prohibitory legislation.. Ho has been very active in urging reduction of. the canal rates, particularly in the interest of the colonial prodnco trade. . . The caso' tor the other side is comprised in a reply by the English directors of,tho canal to a similar demand made by the Commonwealth Government. ' It reads' in part as follows"'Lord Nortlicote's. Ministers adduce four reasons in support of: the reduction of the tariff. Firstly, that : ship-owner!) are deferred from the shorter' route on account of very heavy charges; secondly, that (ho dividends now paid amount to 23 per cent.'; •thirdly, that inter-Empire trade would be beneficially affected; fourthly, that the volumo .of traffic through the caiial would be increased." . ' . With'' regard to the ; first statement, the statistics of tho navigation ;by the canal route present incontrovertible evidence that during tlio 30 years in .which it has been in existence tlio number of, ships, which liavo mado use of. it ha.s greatly, and, with the exception- of minor 'fluctuations, steadily ' increased, viz., from 2,000.000 tons net in 187G to 13,000,000 tons in ,1000. • "'Although it be ('supposed, that this sixfold increase was in main' duo 'to reductions which have. been made in. tonnage .rates, littlo or no relation in tho, way :of ,causo and effect ( cap bo traced between them, while the increased traffic appears to bo proportionate to tho' growth .of the maritime commerce of tho world in a very exact measure. " paradoxical lis it may appear, we. are assured by many large- shipowners that,. although: tlie-reductions'in the tariff are wel-, corned by them, 1 these reductions- have practically no effect iii .increasing canal traffic, or in diverting -from ( the Cape to the canal routo ..any. material amount of tonnagq... Par moro importanco' is attached by. them to. tlio widening and deepening of tho canal than' to any reduction in tho charges for its use.. ■"While the present dividend of 23 per cent., on the 500 francs share is an undoubted sign of great prosperity of the ;enterprise,' we cannot'regard'it as proof that it;s profits are; exorbitant. " Prom the formation of the com-, pany. to the present ! date .tho average of dividends litis only amounted, in' round figures, to 12J per cent., and, owing to the largo increase iii market value of shares, the.-return to purchasers -for. somo years past lias !ranged between 3. and 1 per cont .It is. manifest, that i the body of shareholders is interested in maintaining the growth o,f dividend. • Wo are, however, still hopeful'that a method of adjusting a partition :of the surplus revenue, more acceptable-to clients of'the company, may . be eventually arrived at. . ' "It inust'not be forgotten that the'company spends every■ i year ' very largo sums on the improvement of tho canal,-aiul: that, a scheme, ' ofrimooi'tant works is'being tarried out, with the view,,- on one hand,; to widen • the : canal; which will enable tho passage to bo : mado moro-quickly;' and ■oh , the othor- hand; -, to deepen it;-'which' would enable a-'largo' number of vessels to carry .more, cargo;, and- thus, in!crease ,their: freight-carrying capacity... . " That inter-Empire trado would! be bene-' flciallyaffected- is no doubt a very valid rea- , son- for both tho Home and Colonial .Governments to, press ,for further reductions,' but these; would' obviously have precisely an opposite effect upon 1 foreign rivals of our ,maritime. commerce through/:.tho- canal,. and, it would be. futile •to urge , this argument upon our Continental colleagues: • ■ " While we ; cordially, agree in tho general, aspirations of tlio Australian Government, Wo, have,vas ''representatives of the finnueinl interests of' His Majesty's' Government; to; pro-tect-the largo . revenue which now-, accrues to the. Exchequer, and. we.submit that.any- further reductions of tho tariff 1 would practically amount to a'-subsidy-to ships using the caiial, at. a cost, to'a great extent, of pecuniary loss to His Majesty's Government." , • In a recent speech (February 27) Sir .Joseph Ward again l referred to "tho.exorbitant rates farmer?'and travellers had .to.pay through the 3f per cent, the 'French; Were making out' of the Suez Canal shares.-.. .' .' At_tlio Imperial Conference lie had urged that Australia'anil New, Zealand should have a representative on the .Suez Canal Board "to' stir .the members of it up to the fact of the injustice being done to producers." But the representations of Mr. Deakin and Sir Joseph Ward at the .'Conference' failed to move-Mr. Asnuith (tlio Prime' Minister to b?) to action. In reply to; a question iir the Honso of Commons on June 19 lastvear, Mr. Asquith, without mentioning tho'question pf reduction of rates, said that the Government "had not considered the desirability of offering vSuez Caniil • shares to tlio Governments of Australia, \ Now Zealand, India, and Natal, at'the market rate in .proportion to their- interest in the canal.' llo' did not think:'the suggestion practicable." The Panama, Canal has been urged by Sir Joseph.' Ward as a coming factor. In the speech partly; quoted above he' said:—"He considered it was a grand stroke of policy on thb -part. of Disraeli when ho secured these shares, but witli tho revolution, that had gone on in the Old World,' what was all right 25 ' years ago was not nil, right to-day. In a few years tlio Panama Canal would be opened by tho ' United ■ States with a high protective tariff, making: the journey Homo- for cargo steamers four days shorter. Was it likely that Americans wore going to drive • their * trade away to Suez by excessive terms? . Though this, fact,was impressed upon the British Government, they stood at ease in tho matter. Tlie imposition that was affecting their trado in res'peet of rates at Suez should bo withdrawn." ! , '