TRADE IN EMPIRE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15237, 26 February 1913, Page 9

TRADE IN EMPIRE.

ITHE KOYAL COMMISSION. BEGINS TAKING EVIDENCE. CHEAPER CABLE RATES. UEED FOR IMMIGRANTS. EMPIRE EXHIBITIONS. [ BT TKLEGKATH.— TV.ES.S ASSOCIATION.] DtTNEDix, Tuesday. m Dominions' Royal Commission opened ... sittings in the Town Hall this mornL. The chairman (Sir Edgar Vincent) -ead certain portions of the commission, j from this it appeared that the instrnc- ( -■■cms to the commission are to inquire into ' ffi d report upon the natural resources of Austria, New Zealand. South Africa, ■ i Newfoundland, and, further, to resort upon the development of such rejonrces, whether attained r- attainable: op on the facilities which exist- or may be created for the production, manufacture, sud distribution of all articles of comroerce in those parts of our Empire; upon the requirements of each part, and of the United Kingdom, in matters of food jnd raw materials, and available sources cfsoch; upon the trade of each part of the Empire with ot'aer parts, with the United Kingdom, and with the rest of {he. world upon the extent, if any, to Tkich the mutual trade of the several parts of the Empire has been or is being sjfected beneficially or otherwise by laws now in force other than fiscal laws; and, generally, to suggest any methods consent always with the existing fiscal policy of each part. ■of the Empire, by which the trade of each part with the others and with the United Kingdom, may be improved and extended. A Comprehensive Inquiry. The chairman added that the members of the commission were anxious to hear everything that could be put before them in the nature of information that would toad to improve the trade between the self-governinj; Dominions and the Mother CtmsCtv, a;:d to increase the already close tics of commerce which unite the Old Country with New Zealand. He felt sure'that the other members of the commission would join him in expressing to the Government of New Zealand, and to ail others who had assisted, their gratitude for the arrangements made for collecting evidence, and their recognition of the kindr.os3 and cordiality of the welcome extended to them.

Chambar of Commerce Remits. Mr. J. London, president of the Chamber of Commerce, extended a cordial welcome to the commissioners, and expressed -.the hope that the result of their labours would be for the lasting benefit of the. ', Rnpire. Mr. London then submitted the following remits from the Chamber of Commerce: — , Bureau for Empire Knowledge. - (1) The ad', isableness of establishing an Empire development and reference bureau, ■with headquarters in London, for the purpose of expanding and developing the natural resources of the various parts of the-British Empire, with the following objeris:— (a) To encourage the investment of capital and to provide, for the protective of investors, and also to examine facts and vouch for the accuracy of prospectuses: (b) that each self-governing part of tie Empire should set aside a certain sum, scfinally for the purposes of systematic prospecting and experimenting under expert and unbiassed officials; (c) that the reetSk of such research should be interchanged and made available at branches in ail parts of the Empire. . (2) With a view to increasing trade and . manufactures, immigration sl&ouid be on;~<2S&raged to younger countries of the Empire, care to be taken that correct and reliable information only is supplied to intending emigrants, and also that every effort should be made to settle each emigrant in British territory. Cable and Postage Bates. (3) That it is of importance to oversea sections of the Empire: (a) That the cost of cable communication should be reduced as low as possible, and that to this end the question of laying a new cable across the Atlantic with a view of securing a Statecontrolled cable service from Great Britain to the furthermost part of the Empire should be considered, this question necessarily to embrace an inquiry into the probable future of wireless telegraphy, both from its economic and practical standpoint*; (b) that the English Postal Department should have suggestions made to it by the Empire Trade Commission having for their object the securing of a materially sauced charge on overseas newspapers posted in the United Kingdom.

Empire National Exhibitions. 'A) With a view to expanding trade and ommerce Empire national exhibitions should be held at periods of three years alternating in different parts of the' Empire, the loss if any to be borne by the Government of that part of the Empire in which the exhibition is held. (5) To consider the question of some equitable and reciprocal arrangement to provide subsidies for shipping facilities between points of the Empire and elsewhere. toe subsidies to be for a fixed period, and Jo be granted only for the purpose of initiating or establishing trade likely to be beneficial to Britain and her dependencies. (6) That it would ho an assistance to trade and commerce if the commercial and merchant shipping laws throughout the British Empire were brought into closer conformity than at present. (7) That deration should be given Y> the question of the patent laws in the direction of (simplification and also the feasibility of establishing a national patent, office, governing all patent rights : applied for or granted within the Empire. Farm Labourers and Domestics. "\r "*•' 'J° Dn6 k> n read" a memo, on ;■. Migration," in the course of which lie ■; ; "rated that the great need is for voung «en and women who can make good use ? their hands. There has been for years .; p-eat dearth of girls and voung women ; *«> could take up the positions of domes- \'•.« and farm servants, waitresses, factory : W;rs, shop assistants, and so forth", m the same may bo said of lads and gwigmen ho are capable of doing anv jJW of farm work. Good craftsmen, such ; * masons, bricklayers, carpenters, pain- £»• plumbers, iron-workers, and cabinet""iters are also urgently required. Increased Rate of Immigration. HJ 1 . answer to the. commissioner. Mr. TOn«tono said he thought the rate of imtS°"J rom Ell g la »d should be in- : eased. The supply of domestic servants ;g 'my short of the demand. He should imttat the Government should take the |sj?"w responsibility. Men who were on ;.,jj- land were the most prosperous class in J r • minmn - Tl,i? was the most trying iff? m their experience. Thev could" not m iarm hand.'. ;'«.. Handling Frozen Meat. 'kot\ Jolra stone next read a memo, on the *&*•" ««^ eat ' !,I(3,lstrv < which stated inter W *'■ is und oubtedly a drawback, alsof^ a snl Pl ,ul point of view and -W^j, 3 * o ** 6 shipper, that steam--80 delated so Jong ij» Mew ZeaJaadoa,

account of the many loading ports they have to visit, but owing to the configuration of the country it does not appear that much can be done to improve this state of things. The remedy, if there is one, would seem to be in the direction of the companies interested having some reciprocal arrangement whereby duplication of visits might be avoided. A matter that calls for attention is the multiplicity of marks on each ship's manifest. If a remedy could be found it would benefit both shipper and buyer, apart from reducing expense. In answer to Sir Rider Haggard, Mr. Johnstone said the greatest trouble was at London docks. Meat did not get fair play when it left the ship's hold. Cables and Closer Union. Mr. Johnstone then read a memo, on the subject of cable communication, which included the following clauses :— I am stronglv of opinion that it would bo of greatest advantage to the Empire to complete tho All Red cable communication ! scheme between Britain and Australasia by laying down a lino from Britain to Canad. Apart from the strategic advantages it would, in my opinion, be of benefit to the Mother Country and the Dominion to have a thorough service in relation to which we would be independent of the existing trans-Atlantic line. 1 . Weekly Market Reports, Weekly market, reports should be received bv all the producing countries from those countries which need their products. The cablegrams containing these reports could perhaps be despatched on Sundays, and accepted at a reduced rate of, say, sixpence per word in the case of New Zealand. In answer to questions, Mr. Johnstone said he did not think there should be much difference between the rates for code and plain word messages. He thought the cables should be used to bring all parts of the Empire closer together commercially and socially, and that- this tie should be in the hands of our own people, Mr. T- Garnet* (Great Britain) re- i marked that in London the big commercial exchanges quoted market movements most accurately, and the High Commissioner possessed those sources of information. The Chairman: It is largely a_ matter between you and your High Commissioner. Deferred Cables Not Enough. Mr. Loudon read a memo, by Mr. G. Fenwick, in which the following passages occurred: "It is a matter for some measure of satisfaction that the cost of commercial and public cables has been cheapened through the inauguration of a system of deferred cables, ftr which an appreciably lower rate is charged. The concession" is welcome, but it can only be regarded as an instalment of a reform. The competition of other nations is being felt more and more keenly by British manufacturers, and if by cheapened cable facilities anv help can be secured to merchants and tradesmen of the Empire, then surely the question is one well within the scope of the commission's duty. Another matter probablv worthy of attention is the question of English postal rates on overseas newspapers sent to Great Britain and reposted there to friends and subscribers throughout the Kingdom. The practically prohibitive rates imposed on overseas newspapers posted in England can be viewed as a chock on that knowledge of the affairs of distant parts of the"Empire, which is unquestionably one of the means of promoting trade intercourse and development of far distant colonies by immigration and in other WOi"S.

Exhibitions Every Three Years. Mr. Loudon presented a memo, in support of a remit on the subject of Empire rational exhibitions. It was stated that the holding of such a series of exhibitions as proposed in, say, London, Canada, Australia. South Africa, New Zealand, and possibly India, at intervals of three years, would lead to an extensive and mutual exchange of visitors from one part of the Empire to another, most of whom would be business men with families. The beneficial influence of closer acquaintanceship thus induced should prove important factors in promoting the unification and i solidarity of the Empire. Such exhibitions would be solely for advertising the Empire, riot to bring together the products of other competing nations. He dii not think the colonial government* would shrink from the expense. He did not- admit that the exhibitions would email a loss.

Mr. J. Inglis Wright said the main idea was to create a means of bringing the people of the Empire closer together, each country preparing for show whatever it had as specialties. ' Patents and Trade Marks. Mr. Loudon took up the subject of patents and trade marks, advocating uniformity throughout the Empire. The form of application prescribed for ordinary cases in the United Kingdom was admirably simple, requiring only the signatures of 'the applicant in two places, and if the same form were prescribed throughout the Empire many petitions, declarations, and other useless documents at present required in some States would be abolished. The question of establishing a national patents and trade marks office in London was worthy of the most careful consideration. To conserve the revenues of individual States, the Empire could be divided into sections, and a sliding scale of fees prescribed. Validity to the patent as regards each State could be independent and capable of cancellation, if required, without affecting the validity in other States. Th© registration of trade marks could be carried out with a central office in London, and a sub-office in each State.

Mr. R. Park, patent agent, said he had been, established in Dunedin. about 20 years. The new patent law pissed in "New Zealand in 1911, was expressly moulded on the English Act. It would be desirable to have an Empire patent law, so that instead! of men having 20 or 30 laws to comply with they would have only one. Mr. W. E. Reynolds read a memorandum on the commercial and merchant shipping laws, advocating a closer conformity than at present existed. Mr. Arber, secretary of the Dunedin Expansion League, read a memorandum on the subject of immigration. The commission will sit again to-mor-row.