MR. IZARD'S TRIP.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 685, 9 December 1909, Page 3

MR. IZARD'S TRIP.

POLITICS AND BUSINESS. MOTORING IN ENGLAND. Mr. C. 11. Izard, cx-M.P., who went awny from Wellington last March, and returned tithe Marania yesterday, spent most of the timo of li|s absence among his friends in tho south of England, but he also took a run over to America,- and visited New York, Philadelphia, arid Chicago. lie went to tho States in the Lusitania, and returned in the Mauretnnia, on her first run to Fishguard. "One can't help being struck with tho immense activity ot business in America," said ivvin to a Dominion reporter yesterday. Iliere is very much more vim in business there than in England, and England will have to wako up if she is going to keep in tho lorefront ot commerce. Germany hns an enormous hold on Britain commercially, and so has the United States. There is no'getting, away from that.". Mr. Izard mentioned that his visit '.to. America was in connection with the starting of a branch of his brother's business of manufacturing railway material, the object being to. get inside of the United States tariff wall. Naturally, therefore, he had studied the out- < mi°f the tariff reform movement in England. .The prospects of tariff-reform are brighter than ever before," ho remarked. "I discussed it, not only with city men, but also. with'producers in the country districts, nnd' I found "'"t /hey are more and more coming into line. The hop-grower, for instance, used to say there should be a duty on hops, but not on corn, but now you find him admitting that if his hops are to be protected his neighbour will bo entitled to a little duty on corn. Tariff reform will get a lift forward at tho nest general election, I am sure of it."

' The Budget, in Mr. Izard's opinion, is more popular thnii is generally supposed. Tho graduated income tax proposals were generally regarded as fair, but the land proposals were less popular because so many people appreciated the difficulty of ascertaining tho amount of increase in tho unimproved value.'' .'. "I had several conversations with Suffragettes,", said, Mr. Izard, "but I could not get them to see how, in,-my humble opinion, they were going about their task in the wrong way. I saw that they were alienating many of their own sex by : what might bo. called .their unreasonable tactics. One Suffragette, as soon as we had been introduced, exclaimed: 'I suppose you want to know why we slapped the inspector's face.' I replied, 'Oh, no, I don't; I am only sorry you- did it.'" As an enthusiastic automobilist, Mr. Izard, while in. England, naturally had a great deal of motoring. Ho keenly appreciated the excellence of the country roads. Nearly all tho main roads in Kent and Surrey were tarred, and wore therefore' free from 'dust. He noticed that.people who have motor-cars hardly go anywhere by train. Every where, the roads were decorated with signals for motorists—discs to mark the speed limits, triangles at dangerous corners, marks to indicate tho proximity of schools, notice boards in the 'villages requesting motorists to keep a moderate paccj Such requests Were observed'by all-but the "road hogs." The speed;limit was 20 miles an hour in the country, and 10 miles an hour in most of tho towns. In London thero was no fixed speed limit, but tho traffic made it impossible to. break away.. Mr. " Izard thought a proper l speed limit for motoring should be introduced in New Zealand. As a protection against "police traps," the motorists' organisations send out scouts to givo warning to their members. Mr. Izard was stopped, once by a scout just outside Godaliming and told that there was a trap ahead of him arid 25 had been caught in it that.dav.'