PREFERENTIAL TRADE.

Evening Star, Issue 14185, 9 October 1909, Page 8

PREFERENTIAL TRADE.

XO THE EDITOR.

Sir, —A very large contract for railway rolling stock was secured recently by an English firm for Argentina. The railway is owned by a British corporation in London, and operating some 1,400 miles of grain-producing area. The interest on this British capital will be paid in kind—wheat—and not in coin. Our railways in New Zealand are built, too, with British capital. Will some economic student of preferential cult explain why our Dominion wheat should be admitted in London (England) with preference and Argentina’s taxed more? Talking platitudes is not facts. Mr Balfour’s scheme is to put a tax of 2s a quarter on foreign wheat, and to let in colonial wheat at Is. Will this discourage the foreign producer? Certainly not; but it null raise the price of wheat all round, because artificial encouragement to producer and consumer is an economic fallacy. Mr Patten could not have gambled as he did had American ports been open for all the wheat the world had to sell. When Mr Leiter sent np the price of wheat to 60s there were bread riots in Italy and disturbances in France and Germany, but there were none in England. In a milder way we in New Zealand know how the price of bread can be raised through not having open ports for wheat and flour.—l am, etc., . F.M. October 9,