POLITICAL POINTS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIII, Issue 129, 1 June 1907, Page 12

POLITICAL POINTS.

Mr. Asquith fsa>b the British Weekly) is fortiwte among Chancellors of the' Exchequer in linding himself vith two surpluses. Tho revenuo ir> larger and tho expenditure less than n ras cetimi'ted in tho Budget statement of 1906. • The levenue for tho year is £2,000,000 more than was expected, whilst the savings of tho last twelve months amount to over £3,000,000 Thus the total surplus reaches the large figure of £5,400,000. It is hoped that Sir. A&quith will not lose the opportunity of lowering tho income tax. This would bring popularity to the Government, and the relief is overdue. It has been pointed out that tho realised surplus must bo used for the reduction of the national debt, and tho Westminster Gazette hns nuggested that the low price of Consols has induced Mr. Asquith to use the money before tho end cf the financial year. With Consols at £85, it costs only a little ovtr £5,000,000 to cancel £6,000,000 of debt. Concerning "Mr. Deakin'e Indiscretion," the Sydney Daily Telegraph says: —On no public platform did Mr. Ds.ikin spoak so frankly about bis Labour allies as ho did in this £30,000,000 meeting of capitalists. Apparently the basis of hifi assurances to investors was his expressed belief that tho Labour Party would not by itself capture tha control of both Houses of any State Parliament in Australia. A cynical critic might remark that ai> long as the Labour Party can get men like Mr. Deakin to do its will in tho Australian Parliaments, it need not distress itself about securing majoiities. Still it was indiscreet of Mr. Deakin to say, in however involved a way, in a, privato meeting of capital.sts (£30,000,000) that tho Labour Party in this country has no future which could possibly excite apprehension in an English investor—that there will bo no nationalisation of monopolies or other entorprises—tint Labour will novur be able to ■embody its legislation. Mr. Deakin is old enough by this time to know that Australian Labour cspects to inaugurate the millennium in the Commonwealth. It is UGing him tempoTdrily with that end in view. But it "will not tolorato him in office- if ho speaks contemptuously of its fuluie -nhen he i- in capitalist company. So much nonsense (says the Spcctitor) has been talked about freetraders caring mors ior the foreigner than for their own flesh and bleed that it may ba V 3 well to point out that freetrr.deis who hold out views do not in the least support the retention of our pre-enl srstsm out of any dt«ire to btr.efit the forc-iraer. If it were merely a. crco of hsiping the coloiml tra-Jcr and injuring the foreigner -nithout injuring ourselves ue rhould he tho fi:s^ to assant to rolojiial prcfc"snce, for wo have no sort oi difficulty in say in r that we prefer our o-.vn flesh and b!ord to outsiders, und, other things he ing equal, would be infinitely more p!::'r-cd to 3te the colon! il trade icturns go up than thee v ilh foicign countries. Unfortunately, ho-.icvcr, oiperieuc-j cs well as ab-.tn<t TPasonir.^ show beyond a doubt thit it is imr-os'ible to n>\c a prcfeircce to colonial good.* without doins; an injury to that complete ficcdom of conimerca wliich k the very lifc-Kowl of the Mother Country, and *,>hL-h enables her to bsar the huiJrti of jJmplr.j. It is upon tha principle of thi free n.iiiket, upon the principle of cncouiajinj,' and fo/tcrinq tiio greatest j-0.-«ib!e«niiP!ber ct esctmnqos, instp\d of cUtomptin-r to forbid nr harnps. 1 them, that tl<- liihhh i'j.ipiro ir in the la.it rcscrt built r.p. If, ir, oir adlnrcr.cc to tho prinnirle of freat'on of cxehnnye that has given us not only oni overyth poiscs^ions, but th" lord-lip of il'.j ocean, belli from Jho miLiarv and the <omir<rrcir.l point of view. It ii,, f Ot exsmplt, not bca'\:e wo are r.itunllj- boltov s ..- m:n. or lnvo aro-te.- f.;t.iiitita for fhipuuurjin^, or are richer 01" more ontsrpris>in:; than the Ejitfish-sphaking pcoplt of the United States, thi f we net' they, hold the -"mpirp ot tho sin, b;;t because we ore freetraders and they are protectionists. Referring to a numbsr of "undcirablss" included among Australians ro-p-.tviatc-J by the Btnto from {South Africa, tho Ar^i-.s "saya:— "Wo have no intention of bhn-inq the Ministry for the step they too!:. Tho repatriation of th? exiles wa.j undertaken with open (.yes, in the faco of obvious rLiks. It wan a humano and generous impulse which induced the xreasurer and hi 3 colleagues to stretch "hands ncros3 ths SDa ' to our kinsmen fallen on evil days on account of tho troubles which havo temporarily interrupted (and, wo hope, only lomnoinrily) * iho pior.pEiiiy of South Africa. It was a little cruel to .that country to tdvertise ro widely our own flourishing condition as compared with her urhappy depression, but wo could plead an honest .pxcuijc —"Not that wo loved South Af/iea Icm, but that we loved Austialiuns more." For the effect upon our own community, wo pray that the returned adventurers may contain unrepentant prodigal sons in ao wnall a percentage as possible Tho percentage will probably not bo grrat. Among the .eleven hundred who v. ill bo repatriated thoro will bo a vast pioponderance of industrious artisans, who will find in Australia a hearty wekorr.o homo and m;ny chrncts of profitable employment. Their cases will pnt bo prejudiced because of the doubtful company forced upon them. All tho same, it would bo foolish to be blind to facts which wero apparont btforo tho Geclong biought her cargo of "mixed Australionl?." If tho Imperial Conference (soya the* Australasian) wero to bo measured by the_ actual work done and resolutions arrived at, it could not be accounted a success. Wo havo gained tho doubtful right to cancel the naval agreement and the privilege of coining our own silver nt an estimated profit of about £30,000 a year. The British Ministry has promised to give favourable) consideration to schemes for^ facilitating cable nnd postal communication throughout tho empire. Thero may be also somo concession in r«spoct to Suez Canal dues. In addition, the means of more regular communication between the Premiers has been adopted in the establishment of a secretariat, which will devote its time exclusively to intcr-Imporial nffairs. That statement pretty well summarises the wholo of the tangible results achieved by the conference, and from those results 60m© discount must bo taken, the value of the proposed secretariat, for instance., being problematical. But the actual value of tho conferonco cannot bo arrived at by any such debtor and creditor accountancy. An Immense stop in ndvanco is indicated by the very /act that the outlying parts of the empire are now considered of sufficient importanco to be n subject of warm party dispnten. Twenty or thirty years ago the colonies could gain no inoro attontion in tho Imperial Parliament than was coinprissd in eomo dinner-hour debate in an empty House. Now all parties in Groat Britain are inoro or less Imperialists.

The most heavily injured man in the world is probably Mr. L. ltodinan Wanamaker, of Philr.ddplua, who carries -8400j000 in ono company, in addition to nmurjiiio in other companies. Mr. Wunantokut- first innurcd for £40,000, at tho ago of 34. At 36 lip increased it by two additi'inil policies of £20,000 and £100,000. l-*ivo yearo later, ut 41, ho took two additional politics, on<* of £200,000 und the other of £40,000. This mykes his total humane* in the company £400,000, on which ho pi»y» a y«arlx_.Pi-pHuum pf. £12L645.