The Franklin Times PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOON. FRIDAY, AUGUST 5, 1932. THE EMPIRE CONFERENCE.

Franklin Times, Volume XXII, Issue 91, 5 August 1932, Page 4

The Franklin Times PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY, WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOON.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 5, 1932. THE EMPIRE CONFERENCE.

Office and Works: ROULSTON STREET, PUKEKOIIE. 'Phone No. 2. )' 0. Box 14 "We notning extenuate nor augnt set down in malice."

NOTWITHSTANDING many doubts frequently heard as to any practical value likely to come Out of the present conference we remain confirmed optimists. Our optimism is based on the simple fact thai the average man in New Zealand can see at once that the trade of the Empire could be immediately and vastly improved if every part of it made its purchases from some other part of it whenever that was possible. This is a simple truism which is not in want of proof. If, therefore, it is so obvious is it likely that the keen brains assembled in Ottawa are going to miss it? Such a thought is impossible, and hence we are convinced that though we may have hoped too much from the conference there. is no warranty for pessimism. A very common error is to suppose that those.parts, of the Empire which have a considerable development of secondary industries will be •at variance with Britain on the question of imports. For such a supposition there is no ground whatever. Britain does not wish the Dominions to scrap anything, Canada may still continue to produce motor cars and agricultural machinery and rubber goods, and anything else which she can make at competitive prices. And the same will apply to Australia, and to a very much less degree to Africa and New Zealand, since their secondary industries are comparatively small. What Britain will nail to the counter at once as spurious coin, however, will be the imposition of an impassable barrier against herself with some further increase of impassability

for the foreigner., : Mr Thomas has

already given this class of "preference" its proper name in clubbing it "humbug." The Dominions know well enough that Britain can pay for the enormous volume of foodstuffs she

buys from them only in. more-goods or in gold. They also know that there is not enough gold in all ; the world to pay for what Britain buys from the Dominions in only a very few years,, but each hopes that somehow she may manage to be lucky enough to get more than Her share of what there is. If we take New Zealand for ah example; we, know that we have stored away.in our bank vaults some £G,OOO,OQO worth of.gold, belonging, not to the banks., which hold it onlyin trust,. but to the people. This is all the purchasing power we. have. in.g'6ld; just, about enough to buy some six weeks' purchases on the basis oP a normal, year's trading. In other words, we could; last about six weeks if \ve had to pay for everything in gold.

That is the great important truth so many people ignore when they assert that we pay more for imports and interest when our rate of exchange rises above par. We do nothing of the kind, of course, because we pay for everything in goods, which are entirely independent of, a rate of (exchange. As we, have seen, we could continue to trade for about six weeks arid then we should have to close down for good if we had to pay for our purchases in gold. But Britain's position is no different. As we have said, there is not enough gold in the world let alone in Britain, to pay for long for the great amount of produce she buys from her Dominions. Hence, nothing is more certain nor less clear of befogging argument than that we must all contrive to buy from Britain a volume of goods of a value approximating what she buys from us. ;It will be useless to chatter of our need of this or that class of manufacture. The simple truth cannot be gainsaid. If we want to sell we must buy.

11 must not be thought that we shall not he able to make any, or even a great, quantity of goods for ourselves. We shall find Britain, because she is a great creditor nation, will be able buy very much more from us than we buy from her, but buy from her we must all the things we need to get. from abroad, so Jong, that is, as she is a supplier of them. We may spin our own wool, and make leather of our own skins and turn to good account all the natural produce of our pastures. But the things that we cannot make we must buy from Britain or we must go under. Ireland is just now trying an experiment voluntarily, which is full of interest to every other Dominion. And Ireland is in a much better position to attempt it than is any other part of the Empire, and for two reasons. The difference between her sales to and her purchases from Britain is much smaller than that of the

other Dominions, and she is-.nearer- the great centres of population and so has better facilities for finding new customers. But even Ireland will not succeed without enormous privations and years of toil and sorrow, and she may not succeed at all. Really there is no lesson to learn, because the facts'

are simply irresistible. Britain is at present our only great market, and we: must.act accordingly.