WORKERS' EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

Northern Advocate, 13 August 1919, Page 3

WORKERS' EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

'(Dr. Mcllraith, D.Litt., F.R.E.S,

Continues his Economic Lectures.)

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

The 13th lecture of the session was devoted to a preliminary discussion of the mechanism of international trade. International or foreign trade, said the lecturer (Dr. Mcllraith), is trade not only between what are generally called nations, but also trade between any two parts of the same nation if those two parts have different customs tariffs. Thus trade between Australia and New Zealand is as much foreign trade as trade between New Zealand and Germany. Such trade arose whenever any country was civilised enough to recognise that other countries produced desirable articles which it could not produce, or could at least produce them cheaper than it could, after allowing for cost of carriage between the two countries. FREE TRADE.

Opinions differ greatly as to how this trade should be carried on. . The Free Trader argues that no duty should be placed on a foreign article unless a similar excise duty is placed "♦ on the same article if produced at home. Thus up to this year, the United Kingdom was the only free trade country in the world: it raised several millions by customs duties but it always put an equal duty on those articles (beer, spirits, tobacco, etc.,) when produced by British manufacturers. Thus by giving no preference to either side it left trade free. FAIR TRADE. On the other hand the Protectionist argues that wherever possible a preference should be given to the home producer. Of late years the Free Trader has been disposed to agree with him on two points: Should the article be a vitally important one in war-time, say wheat, the free trader admits that if a duty on foreign wheat would encourage the home farmer to devote much land to wheat, then it would be wise to impose that duty. Bread would cost a little more, but that small extra price would merely be like payment made to insure us against a flour famine should war occur.

ISSUES DISCUSSED. The free trader also admits that if an industry is only in its infancy it ought to be protected against older and better organised foreign rivals for a time at least. But it has been shrewdly remarked that many of thesa infant industries once protected have a peculiar habit of never growing up.

Under complete free trade the world would be divided into a number of areas each producing what nature has best fitted it to produce. New Zealand therefore would produce wool, meat and dairy produce, but not boots, nor even wheat. Now the protectionist urges that though it may be financially profitable to devote a nation's energies to the production only of those goods it has a special natural advantage in producing,; yet such a course is not to its social and intellectual advantage. PLEA FOR VERSATILITY. He avers that a people devoted, say to sheep and cattle rearing only, can never be as socially and intellectually advanced as a nation with a much greater variety of industries. And history seems to prove this. The more aspects of life a nation or even a district presents, the more wit clashes with wit, the brighter the sparks-of truth obtained. This he claims is worth sacrificing a little material comfort for. TYPES OF PROTECTIONISTS. Free traders are all one kind; of Protectionists there is a considerable variety. We have fir_t the man Who would protect home industries against all comers even against those of ,nia own nation; for instance, the New Zealander who protects his own market against even his English brother. Then we have the party who would give preference to people of his own Empire, but to no others. This preference takes the form either •f free trade with the other parts of th 6 Empire, or (and more generally), of lower duties against such goods than against goods from mother parts of the world; Next cornea those who advocates reciprocity} in other words, those who are willing to reduce duties (in part or in whole), on certain goods imported from any country, if such country reciprocates by reducing in a similar way the duty on certain goods imported from the first country. SUPERFICIAL PHRASES. Finally we have the fair trader; but what he stands for it is very difficult to say. Probably he does not exactly know himself. But like another similar vague phrase, "A Fair Day's Pay for a Fair Day's Work," Fair Trade is a very powerful platform cry. What large audience can resist cheering when a good speaker shouts, "Gentlemen, I don't believe in Free Trade; I believe in FAIR TRADE." The bigger the audience, the more easily it is carried off its feet by such clap-trap. Possibly the idea at the back of fair trade is, tax every country that taxes you—a very crude idea, indeed. WHO PAYS THE TAX? However, before judgment can be passed on these various and conflicting ideas it is necessary to study the incidence or the effect of taxation, especially the question "Who pays the tax?" and this declared the lecturer is one of the most difficult of economic questions.