FREE TRADE.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume 1, Issue 40, 20 January 1844, Page 2

FREE TRADE.

In our last we endeavoured to meet some of the objections to free trade, and also to show that the revenue from indirect taxation was pressing heavily and unequally upon one portion of the community, upon that portion in fact which ought to be taxed the least. And so far as that portion of the community is concerned/ we feel quite convinced that no further arguments are necessary in order to convince them of the advantage of abolishing Customs. The labourer and the mechanic pay each as much if not more money into the Customs than the richest man in colony. This fact of itself is quite sufficient to show that the system is bad, partial, and unjust. But independent of its bearing on class interests, it is quite possible to prove that the abolition of Customs would be a general benefit. The richest as well as the poorest man in the colony would bo equally gainers by a just and impartial system of taxation. That policy or that Government which levies its taxes upon the poor alone, is based upon a wrong principle, and is certain to end in ruin, in all the old countries of Europe the evil effects of this system are being now perceived, and will in a few years hence be much more severely felt. — Indirect taxation, "whether in the shape of protective duties on manufactures or of taxes and penalties on account of imported luxuries or necessaries of life, is alike bad in principle and injurious in its effects. It is a violation of one of the laws of our nature, an attempt to destroy that s} r stem of brotherly connexion, mutual dependence and unity of interest, by moans of which the Author of our nature would make the whole human family reciprocally and kindly bound to one another. 'Freedom of trade is in truth the breaking asunder of the bars of iron and the gates of brass which tyranny, prejudice, ignorance and self-interest have placed in the way of the moral and social improvement of our race. This is the great, the hideous and monstrous barrier in the way of converting the whole world into one great and kindly sympathizing commonwealth, a commonwealth of which every member would minister to the comfort and happiness of some other, and be minstered to in its turn. Indirect taxation is not only a physical but a social and a moral enemy. Not only creating class interests in an individual state or country, but also separating communities from one another, and not only separating them from one another, but also engendering between them feelings of the bitterest jealousy and animosity. But instead of following out the subject of indirect taxation in this its great physical and moral bearing, we shall confine ourselves to the consideration of the benefits that would be conferred on this colony generally by the abolition of customs and the establishment of free trade. ' We have unfortunately few examples to bring forward or to appeal to in confirmation of the great advantages of free trade. Custom and prejudice have permitted of the growth of only one offspring of free trade in this portion of the world, but to that solitary one we can triumphantly appeal for a confirmation of the truth of our position. Singapore is doubtless well known to most of our readers as being a great commercial and trading depot. But fhe rapid growth of Singapore is just as remarkable as its present great commercial importance. For eight years previous to 1820, Singapore was a mere fishing station,' occupied by a hundred and fifty Malays. Our Government formed an establishment there in 1820, and in 1831 the population amounted to 22,000. In the same year the imports were £1,780,994, and the exports £1,565,157. These are the effects of free trade in a small and almost barren island ; what would they be in a splendid country like New Zealand, capable of producing almost every thing that can minister to man's comforts or necessities ? — Those of our readers who have been resident in this country before the establishment of Govern-

ment, will be well able to answer this qucs- ! tion— they havo had an opportunity of judging of the effects of Customs regulations. By a referenpe to tho Shipping List of the Bay of Islands, they will find that the establishment of Customs, notwithstanding the establishment of Government, has had a most injurious effect upon the commerce of that once flourishing Fort. During the half year ending 31st December, 1839, the number of American ships at the Bay of Islands was. 25 ships, 7.G03 tons, value of cargo 523,025 dollars. During the half year ending 1841 the returns of American ships are, 9 ships, 2,619 tons, value of cargo 196,126 dollars. We need not for a moment dwell j upon the injury which the Bay of Islands has sustained in consequence of this decrease of shipping, neither is it necessary that wo should endeavour to prove that the good Government, of which Customs form a part, has had the effect of making up for the loss thus sustained by the Bay of Islands in tho decrease of its shipping. Were we to assert the latter, -we know we would not bo believed, for it is not true. Independent of the facilities afforded by free trade for procuring at a cheap rate all the productions of other countries, it would also have tho decided effect of giving a value to our own. How many branches of profitable industry, are at the present moment suspended or unattempted in New Zealand because of the restrictions upon Commerce and the consequent desertion of shipping from our Ports, and the inability of our Merchants to open communications with foreign markets ? Our farmers complain that there is no market for their surplus produce, that they have in fact no inducements to cultivate their lands — why is this the case ? Just because the ships have abandoned our ports. Had New Zealand, as in former years, been the resort of all the whalers in the Pacific, our farmers- would have little cause to complain of the difficulty of obtaining a market for the surplus produce of their farms, the shipping would at good remunerating prices purchase more than all the farmers in New Zealand could grow for the next twenty years. A very profitable trade might also be carried on in the curing of fish in New Zealand. But no person will now attempt it, because no person has the means of exporting the fish to a proper market. This however -would not be the case if we had no Customs regulations, for tho vessels would readily como and readily purchase any and every article that could be disposed of in i their own countries. — Although our forests are abounding with the finest spars and the finest timber in the world, we derive no benefit whatever from that circumstance, because customs regulations have driven away the shipping from our country. — Our flax fields are covered with valuable material for the manufacture of cordage and sails, and our solitary manufacturer of ropes cannot find a market for the very limited quantity which he is able to prepare. Were we to go over overy other branch of past, present, or prospective industry in the colony, we would find that the same one cause has paralized the whole of them. It is in vain to say that our Port regulations are light and that our import duties are not heavy — they exist, and that is quite enough to drive the shipping from our harbours. It is almost as bad to havo a bad name as it is to be in reality bad. And so it is with our Customs and their effects upon our commerce. Captains of vessels aro not frightened from our ports merely because of duties, but much more because of the trouble and annoyance of attending to tho Customs regulations, the necessity and consequent delay of making entries inwards and outwards when they arrive at or depart from our ports. The main difficulty however in the way of abolishing customs and establishing free trade is the necessity of obtaining some other means of supplying the deficiency in revenue that would follow the abolition of customs. We are quite awaro that this and this only is the reason why the Governor would not at once remove all restrictions upon commerce. He knows that a certain amount of revenue over and above the expense of collection is annually derived from Customs, and he has not yet had sufficient time to judge how this amount could otherwise be mado up. We are not prepared to say how much has been received on account of Customs for 1843, but whatever it may have been in 1842 and 1843, we are perfectly convinced that it will be much less in 1844 than in either of the preceding years. Smuggling, distillation and economy will reduce it pretty considerably, indeed will leave little more than a sufficiency to defray the expense of the Customs establishment. The whole of the ordinary revenue of the colony in 1842 amounted to something about £18,000, including Customs, Licences, Fines, Fees, &c. Supposing that Customs were abolished, the chief consideration of the Government will be, as to the means of raising by any other fair method, an equal amount

of revenue, and this we can very easily demonstrate to them : By means of fair and direct taxation, we would undertake to raise a revenue amounting to about £28,000 if necessary, and that without taxing our population more than about 365. per head, which, with free trade, there could be very little difficulty in paying, indeed we are certain that some of the very poorest of the peoplo pay indirectly at present five times that amount, without any benefit whatever. The sources of our revenue would be a poll tax, which, at the rate of ten shillings on every adult person, say about 7,000 persons, would amount to £3,500, A proporty tax, on country lands alone, at the rate of a penny j per acre, would give £6,000. In this land j would of course be included the million or more acres of the Port Nicholson Company, the lands awarded to Claimants, and the lands sold by Government. Town lands and houses, rated according to their value, would give about £4,000 for , all the settlements. I Horses, cattle, dogs, and other property, would afford to pay about £1,000. Auctioneers and Publicans' Licenses, fees, &c, would give £6,000 more, and an ordinary and fair income tax would amount to something approaching to 567,500. The whole, as we said before, would amount to about £28,000 ; but with a good efficient Government, and such as is really required for New Zealand : A Government not intended solely for the use and benefit of favorites, but adapted to the real wants and requirements of the colony ; a sum less than £15,000 would bo quite sufficient. The Home Government supply the half of that sum, and we apprehend there would be very little difficulty (in the manner we have stated) in the way of raising that sum, and even four times the amount, but in order to do this, it would be requisite that the people should be made to feel that the Government was good, and really a benefit to the colony. Wo trust our friends at Port Nicholson and Nelson will seriously take up the subject of Free Trade. In no part of tho colony are Customs restrictions and regulations more seriously felt than at Cook's Straits. The free admission of oil and whale-bone £0 Port Nicholson would be a certain means of raising the port of Wellington to a place of the greatest commercial importance. Singapore itself is scarcely better situated for the emporium of Free Trade than many of the harbours in Cook's Straits. Free trade is a subject upon which we are certain our Southern contemporaries will entertain precisely the same views as we havo expressed, and wo trust they will not allow His Excellency to leave their settlement without repeating to them the pledge which he has already given to tho people of Auckland.