MANAWATU EVENING STANDARD POHANGINA GAZETTE. Circulation, 3,000 Copies Daily. TUESDAY, FEB. 16th, 1904. TARIFF COMMISSION.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XL, Issue 7768, 16 February 1904, Page 4

MANAWATU EVENING STANDARD POHANGINA GAZETTE. Circulation, 3,000 Copies Daily. TUESDAY, FEB. 16th, 1904. TARIFF COMMISSION.

The Tariff Commission, which is the outcome of Mr Chamberlain's campaign for fiscal reform, will, when fully constituted, probably consist of from thirtyfive to forty members, representing all industries and all parts of the Empire, and, judging from. those' who have already accepted the invitation to serve, will include some of the best-known business experts and representatives of the most important firms in the world. A communicated memorandum published in the London morning papers recently asserts that no such 1 powerful Commission to deal with the trade and commerce of the country has ever before been constituted, and it is obvious that Mr Chamberlain, in sending out his invitations, has tried, to secure , the most efficient, and typical men of business he could find. It is premised in the memorandum as being evident that should the electorate endorse Mr Chamberlam's proposals ::for Tariff Eeform a lengthy period must needs . intervene between the . necessary investigations into the many intricate problems wbioh present themselves and the actual introduction of the Tariff. This period would tend to activity and even disorganisation in almost every trade, for business men would naturally hesitate before committing themselves to arrangame£tß which mighc prove Co have been made unwisely. Evidently, therefore, in the event of, a Government pledged to Tariff Beform coming into power, it would be of the utmost service that the preliminary investigation should.have been made, and that thus the work of inquiry should have been bo far completed us to ropder the process of arriving afc exact conclusions much less lengthy and Jess difficult. This work, it is stated, of ascerfcaining the manner in which the many conflicting interests may best be harmonised will be undertaken by the Commission, and in any eyenc the result of tae investigations of such a Commission cannot fail to be of the utmost value to business men and to the nation. The. Commission will take as the ; basis of their inquiries the proposals which have been submitted to the country by Mr Chamberlain. Members of all trades will be invited to come before the Commission and give their opinions on the" various points vrhich affect the industries in which they are engaged. . They will be asked to attend, irrespective of their views on Tariff Reform. They will be supplied at least a fortnight m advance with the mam questions which it is proposed to put,to them, in order that they may be able to prepare exact statemeuts in reply. Members of the Commission will have the opportunity of examining witnesses on their replies to the general questions they have been asked arid of raising other points or interest, and information given to the Commission by witnesses will be regarded as confidential when so required. It; i s anticipated, the .memo; 'states,; that an immense amount- of much* use-; ful information will be gathered by means/of enquiry forms. ■ Tiese will be sent out not merely to business men, whose opinions on questions affect-

ing theirtrades are considered of value but also to^ those"; engaged in commerce in .allparts.of the^Etnpire.vwnbi owing to consideration of time or''distaibice>':'cßn«: not' give ;itheif- teiiimony, p^oiiailjl There will;thus be obtained a pleteiexpressionbE:^^opinionfrom members of every ;trade on the points, which, \ affect thoseinterestedin it collectiyely.! The.;' Comniission&^vill utilise an all possible ways :trade' brganisatiohs and. institutions. Their co-operation will; be invited; and they will be asted to make recommendations as tothose who should come before thein^ ■ The Commission will elect sub-committees in cases where it seems necessary ;td do so, and will, when desirable, invite; persons who are not members of,. the Commission to join these •:• sub-committees. Thus, the memo says, it will be possible to deal with complicated issues concerning any particular trades by means of representalive sub-committees capable of oonsidering intricate questions from tho point of view of the expert. The inquiry will be ! conduoted .under the auspices of the I Tariff Reform. League, which consists of people of both political parties, who are anxious that practical results ahall accrue from the present controversy. It is hoped that the Commission will be able to devise measures of a practical nature, and also show the necessity of having hone but business experts for the organisation of trade and commerce.