TUBE WITH IN THE EMPIRE

Evening Star, Issue 18047, 15 August 1922, Page 7

TUBE WITH IN THE EMPIRE

KEEP OUT FOREIGN GOODS. AN APPEAL AND WARNING. A paper entitled ‘Trading Within the Empire’ was road by a merchant from another centre before members of tie Dunedin Chamber of Commerce last night. The visitor explained that when visiting Napier recently tho question of trading within the Empire was brought up, and at the suggestion of several leading merchants a circular was issued to illustrate and bring home to the users of fencing wire ’and other such wares the emcidal policy of purchasing their requirements outside the Empire. The visitor said that according to the Joint Industrial Council for the'iron and steel wire manufacturing industry oi Urea. Britain, it was estimated that the production of a ton of common wire gave a week’s employment to the following ; One and a-half men in the wire mid. s man in tho steel works, 1 man m the collieries, and £ man in the rolling mill. It will bo seen, therefore, that many classes of labor were affected, mid that men lost work by tho purchase of even a ton of foreign wire, quit© apart from the labor employed in transport. Therefore, taking that each family on an average consisted oi a father, mother, and two children, each ton of English wire used found subsistence for fourteen of out kindred. In normal times they needed m Now Zealand between 20,000 and 30,000 tons of fencing and other wire annually, of which 40 per cent, to 45 per cent, imported was American. If the importations reached 25,000 tons, of which 40 per cent, was American, tho quantity would bo 10,000 tons. By placing those orders with America it was taking away employment from Britisher’s and tho means of subsistence from 140,000 of their dependents. It was not a question whether we could justify such action —each man mqst determine that question for himself but whether to do so was not the most foolish policy that could bo adopted. Nearly every nation in Europe was in a state of bankruptcy, and until the present financial chaos was overcome they could not depend on any country in Europe outside Great Britain to purchase the produce from this dominion. Therefore the only country they could look to was tho United States of America. Twelve months dgo we were supplying them with lanibj but immediately talk quantities were, sluppoi there they at once placed a prohibitive tariff not only upon our meat, but upon al our produce. The Farmers’ Party there was so strong that if th* present enor-mously-high tariff was not sufficient, to drive our produce off their market they could demand a still higher tariff. From a purely selfish standpoint it was necessary for all of them, and especially farmers, to insist on demanding British manufactured goods, if such could not be produced in this dominion, for the simple reason that Britishers could live only whilst they exported manufactured goods, and New "Zealand could live only if the Britishers could afford to purchase our produce. Tho Americans would not have our produce. Therefore, why should wo purchase their manufactures'; To do so was financial suicide. It should appeal to the merchants and storekeepers that the greatest benefit they conk! do for the farmers and their country was to refuse to stock American fencing wire and manufactured goods. By supplying British manufactured goods they ensured giving satisfaction and, good value to their clients. The average trader argued that the farmer and the public would buy (especially during these parlous financial times) whatever cost tho lesser money, almost irrespective of quality or place of origin. That argument was a stigma on his salesmanship, for a trader was no salesman if he was unable to determine and sell the most suitable and, at the same time, the best valued article for his customer’s requirements. Tho reason was rather that it was easier to sell what the public wants and asks for; hence ,the prosept suicidal policy which was spreading yftar after year. In 1913 this country purchased from tho United States to tho amount £2,108,000, and in 1920 £11,100,000, an increase in seven years of nearly £8,000,000, and in the meantime Americans were using their best endeavors to prevent our produce entering their country. They were doing more than this ; they were passing special legislation to strangle the British shipping industry as far as the United States was concerned. It was a great pleasure to all Britishers to see that the English Government was retaliating. The question was asked : “ What could a small country like New Zealand 'do against the United States? The answer was: “What did New Zealand do when the Great War came?” Last May and June, excluding coal miners who were on strike, unemployment percentages were 22.2 and 23.1 per cent, respectively; and since December, 1921, had averaged between 16 per cent., and 17 per cent., apart from the large numbers who were registered as working systematic short time in such a manner os to entitle them to unemployment benefits. When it came to fighting for the Empire we were all there, whether it was with our blood, limbs, oj’ wealth. There was no_ lagging behind to see what large countries would do; wo did not worry whether wo were too small or not to tackle the job. It was our job, and we did it, or, rather, our part of it; but was the job completed? The first round even was not completed, and would not bo until wc had found remunerative employment for every individual within the Empire that would do an honest day’s work at a fair rate of wages. This could not he done if traders shirked their responsibilities, or were so grasping that, instead of upholding the sound policy of trading within the Empire whenever possible, they sold whatever was asked for either because it was earner or more profitable to them. England wanted no charity from ns, but simply fair play. She not only gave us free access to trade with her, but also protected our produce whilst it was on the way, gave us security in our homes, found the steamers to carry our produce, and found most of the necessary finance that permitted us to get tho full market price. The only attempt made to repay these great obligations was our preferential tariff ; and was this at all adequate? Perhaps it was the best the Government could do without the aid of the trading community, and surely it was sufficient to ask them to give this matter due thought to have it righted. The argument used that Germany and tho United States must export and trade with tho rest of the world was quite true.

There were certain goods we must import from the United States that were not manufactured or produced within the Empire ; but goods that the Empire could supply should be purchased by us regardless of price. The argument that all things being equal we would give preference to the Empire’s manufactures carried no weight, because it was always evaded when a larger profit could be secured by selling foreign goods. The price of the foreign goods might be cheaper and the articles inferior, and when the difference in quality was pointed out the trader’s answer almost invariably was that it suited his customers, because he was ashamed to admit the real reason/ —that his greed was greater than his loyalty to the Empire. If Germany and the' United States wanted to build up an export trade lei them follow England s example of developing countries that needed it—Russia, for example. The argument that a trader must buy in the cheapest market irrespective of anything else was absurd, as no doubt the late war had convinced, every thinking man. Before then New Zealand and other parts of the Empire were buying frely from Germany and helping to build up' her industries, and, incidentally, her war machine. When war broke out we found there were many important necessities that wc were entirely dependent upon Germany to supply. * Yet before the first round of the fight was completed we were drifting rapidly into the same disastrous rut that was followed before the war.