The Ensign. GORE: THURSDAY, MAY 22. THE EMPIRE IN DANGER.

Mataura Ensign, Issue 1036, 22 May 1902, Page 2

The Ensign. GORE: THURSDAY, MAY 22. THE EMPIRE IN DANGER.

Little by little the commercial supremacy of Britain is being undermined. Little by little commercial power is being filched from her, until now the nation is confronted with the problem : Shall we remain supreme or shall we allow our greatness to be devastated by the greedy plunderers with which we are surrounded ? The occasion of the Premiers' conference in London during the Coronation festivities is most opportune for a vigorous policy to be inaugurated ; the time for the birth of a new British commercial era which shall place the danger of successful foreign aggression beyond all possibility. That ground Britain has already lost and is still losing cannot be regained without sacrifices, and these the Empire will no doubt cheerfully make seeing that the existence of Britain as a dominant power is the issue. It is a fact that American adaptibility to needs and circumstances, and the ability of Germany to manufacture goods under cheap labor conditions have produced commercial complications which menace the industrial trade of Britain. In the colonies today more American and German goods are sold than ever before, and the foreigner is gradually overtaking England in the race for our markets. This very disturbing state of matters has been brought to pass first through the prime evil of the age—the insensate demand for cheap goods—and second, because the Mother Country has not inculcated principles of commercial patriotism by her indiscriminating Freetrade policy. It must be confessed that as a manufacturing nation England is pitifully conservative. There is too little elasticity of methods. Manufacturers fashion their goods on the patterns laid down by their grandfathers, and a deviation of a hair's breadth from the beaten track of usage, custom and conventionality is possible only after years of laborious contention. The Americans on the other hand are quick to anticipate every change brought about by altered circumstances or environment. They are content with small profits, have the faculty of extracting the maximum of labor from their

operatives, are supremely enterprising, and recognise the value of the little things of the commercial world. Thuß armed they are enabled to fight the British manufacturer on bis own ground, being armed with a formidable battery of natural and cultivated advantages. The adaptability of the American is found in the German manufacturer. What the latter lacks in enterprise and pushfulness he makes up by his command oE abundant and cheap labor. Not content with fighting Britain for commercial supremacy abroad, the Americans have inaugurated a commercial invasion of England itself. The most serious aspect of the contest, of 'course, is the absorption by American capital of British-controlled shipping lines. This is the boldest stroke of all, and as the grave menace of it to British interest! is most easily appreciated, probably its effect will be to awaken the Empire to a sense of its danger much more quickly than would the insidious oncoming of the tide of hostile commercial influences, had it overwhelmed smaller British interests first. The Tobaceo Trußt, for instance —an American contrivance to capture the whole of the English tobacco trade—have not so far impressed the majority of the English people with the true inwardness of the situation. No doubt they are at this moment invoking blessings on the philanthropic Americans whose efforts have resulted in cheaper tobacco than ever being made available. The community fails to realise that its support of the Trust is extinguishing valuable home industries, and that once the American monopoly is victorious tobacco will mount amazingly in price, and another stone from the fabric of Britain's commercial greatness will have been caat down. England is harassed on all sides, but her fate is still in the hands of her own people to decide. Although at the present time the success of Ptjsbfont Mobqan's colossal shipping deal appears to be complete, England cannot for long allow her mercan-

tile marine service to be snatched from her grasp. Supremacy of the sea is her life blood. Deprived of it she must die. It is not for a moment possible that the machinations of a single individual should prevail against the most powerful and wealthy nation under the sun, and in the natural order of events Britain will raise up fleets of merchantmen which will render abortive the deep laid schemes of Mr PiEiiroiiT Mokgan and leave hinf with so much scrap iron on his hands as representing his fabulous outlay of forty-one millions sterling. The only danger to be feared is that of delay in calling the new British fleets into being. The signs of the times all tend to show the bitterness of the commercial struggle in which the Empire must fight to retain supremacy. The new Empire has dawned, and it remains far its responsible representatives, shortly to meet in London, to evolve a policy which will make for commercial expansion from within. The establishment of an Imperial Zollverein appears the only possible solution of the difficulty, and would ensure for British trade for all time that preeminence that our forefathers fought and died for, and which, alas, we of a later day and generation regard as a something to be juggled with and bartered away for the gilded baits of foreign rivals whose one aim and ambition is to force Britain to her knees and bring her to rank among the back street com--mercial countries of Europe.