“A BUSY WATERFRONT”

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 122, 21 February 1928, Page 11

“A BUSY WATERFRONT”

Sir,—Under this heading you announce in The Dominion of February 15 that work is unusually plentiful at the Wellington waterfront just now, by reason of the large number of overseas vessels in port. This information is surely somewhat of a commentary on tho sustained and unscrupulous protecti r *'ist propaganda which culminated last session in a substantial increase of the tariff burden on the people of this country. With practically no criticism or correction of any kind the Press of New Zealand allowed itself to be used as the vehicle for disseminating the most pernicious nonsense regarding the importation of goods, with the result that, notwithstanding the fact that 55 per centum of the tax revenue of this country was levied through tho Customs, our trade and industry have been further hampered by additional indirect taxation. Despite all the nonsense uttered by certain wiseacres about "the flood of imports” and the alleged disastrous effects thereof on local industry, the truth stands out clear. Our export trade is the brealli of life to us, but it could not exist but for the vessels coming to our shores. No sane parson imagines, however, that vessels can come here empty. It follows, accordingly, that we must import—first, because exports are paid for by imports; and secondly, for the patent reason that ships cannot visit us without cargo. Moreover, it is equally clear that anything which hampers our import trade reacts disastrously on our exports. Plain and obvious as these facts are, however, they are violated in practice by our politicians—the mon whom their friends would have us believe are statesmen. The increase of the tariff burden notwithstanding, importations are still arriving, and are inevitable. The net result is that the earnings of tho people are filched from them, and their purchasing power seriously diminished. Small wonder, therefore, that wo are unable to emerge from the nightmare of depression. Yet the politicians keep telling us, ns it were, to shout in order to keep up our courage, and all will be well! “Don't grouch,” says the Hon. A. D. McLeod, while his chief is at pains to convince us that “things (ire not what they seem.” Does it ever occur to these gentlemen that their chief title to fame is that they violate every known principle of political economy? It is a humiliating fact that, educated mon like the Rollestons and the Downie Stewarts are parties Io such a disastrous exemplification of the protectionist heresy.—l am, etc., P. J. O’R.EGiAN. Wellington, February 18.