ADDRESS BY MR. C. J. WARD

Evening Post, Volume CII, Issue 113, 9 November 1921, Page 9

ADDRESS BY MR. C. J. WARD

THE FARMERS FAVOURED

PEELING REGARDING AUSTRALIA

Protest against the new Tariff.; was made by Mr. C. J. Ward, president of the New Zealand Industrial Corporation, in the course of an address at the close of the Industrial Exhibition last night. The views of the executive of the Industrial Corporation of New Zealand, said Mr. 'Ward, were that the Taril'E could be classed as indifferent if .hot bad. They said as manufacturers 4hat if the Tariff was approved by financial authorities, merchants, and some ohambers of commerce, it dfd not mean that it -was a good Tariff in respect to the greatest amount of good for New Zealand. Manufacturers must be protectionists, for it was only through protection that the industries and works could extend; and if there was no protection other countries could send us their surplus goods and at any time swamp New Zealand, with them. Protection was also necessary for the security of capital, and as regards labour there must be protection to ensure security of employment. If the industries were so poorly protected that they ceased to be, the better men —the skilled men —would soon- be found drifting' away to other parts of the world. One only had to refer to Australia and Canada to see^ what prosperity could come to youiig countries under a pratective tariff. They wanted that prosperity to come to New Zealand. (Hear, hear.)' During the war I manufacturers had risen to the emergency, and had met practically every demand made upon them. THE TARD7F COMMISSION. Discussing the constitution of the Tariff Commission, Mr. Ward said that manufacturers had imagined that intelligent forces in the manufacturing world, scientists, etc., would be brought in to formulate' a scientific tariff based on sound' economics, which would be for the benefit of the whole of the country, but that was not so. He did not wish to say that the Government made any promises, for it did not, but it appointed a Commission which consisted largely of Government servants in the Customs Department. If the Tariff represented its actual recommendations, which person- | j ally he doubted, it had certainly chosen a Commission it could depend upon. There was no doubt about that. Still, the manufacturers opened their hearts and their works to the Commission, and showed how thoroughly the latter were equipped, and there was no doubt that the Commissioners were satisfied with what they saw. He believed that the manufacturers had put up a good case. The Minister also visited the various works and factories, and ,the result was that they felt they would be given a square deal. At the opening of the Exhibition, the Minister of Customs had rather damped | them. The Prime Minister had generalised in a speech that did not amount to I anything definite; others were non-com-mittal, but the Minister or Customs was certainly reserved. Then the Tariff came before the House. It was divided into three schedules, No. 1 to apply to British possessions, proteptorates, and mandated countries. They were under the impression that this would apply to the British Isles only. No manufacturer hadc any difference with the Tariff on that score, but Australia was also included in No. 1 schedule, which had aroused a great deal of feeling, for that favour had : been granted whilst Australia had, in her Tariff, put New Zealand in the same category as Japan and othei foreign countries. It had been explained and enlarged upon that if Australia did not reciprocate she could be shifted to' another schedule, but havingdone so how they could deal with the country he failed to see, for after being treated as a foreign country they had put the other, fellow on the best of terms. Had Australia been put in No. 3 (foreign) schedule, and a reciprocal agreement warranted a removal to No. 2, New Zea- J land would have been in a much stronger position than she was at present. ■ , GOVERNEDIBY FARMERS. The other point on which there was a strong opinion growing in the Industrial Corporation and associations was th^t they had a country governed by farmers. It had been said that what the Farmers' Conference thought to-day was put into operation to-morrow, and certainly on every article which came from the farmer protection had been increased, whilst on the magnificent agricultural implements and the machinery which had been developed for the dairying industry not a single sixpenny worth of protection had been given. As instancing the effect of this lack of protection, there was one Australian machine being sold in New Zealand for £15 less than in Australia. He wanted to give another example. The conditions of Australia'and the Argentine were similar, in that they reaped shortgrown grain. To meet that what was called a stripper harvester was devised in Australia, a machine which cut off the heads of the wheat only, and left the stalk. That machine was copied, part by part, by the International Harvester Company, of America.—so nearly, that it was called a Chinese imitation—and whilst it was sold in Australia for £250, the same machine was disposed of in Freetrade Argentine for £385. " Let me say in conclusion," said Mr. Ward, "that if the industries of New Zealand are brought to an end by this Tariff, other countries will be able to step in and set their own price for them—we .1 will be served as they are serving the Argentine." , .