COMMERCIAL WAIL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 16022, 14 September 1915, Page 4

COMMERCIAL WAIL.

TRADE WITH GERMANY. DUTY OF THE EMPIRE. [BT TEIXGKAPH.—rEESS ASSOCIATION] Wellixgtox, Monday.' --' A pxtbijc meeting was held at tie Town Hall to-night in furtherance of the cam" paign inaugurated by the New ZealandFederation of Chambers of Commerce to develop inter-Imperial trade. Tje Mayor" ' Mr. J. P. Luke, presided. .'•--- Sir Joseph Ward dwelt on the import- ''" ance of developing and protecting the""?country's trade. During the last eignt- :? months before the -war imports into X ew - Zealand from Germany were valued at " £1,116,000, though actual German goods to ' -" imported were valued at only £620 000 2 That illustrated the importance' of "~: the new system 0 showing not- f only the port of shipment bat V also the place of origin of goods. Aus- V-, trian goods imported were valued a* £49,000, and Turkish goods at about the—''" same. New Zealanders should determine "1 not to trade again with enemy countries. Their policy should be preference to the Mother Country, preference to the sister Dominions, and preference to the Empire's allies—(applause)— he wag ij clined to say, also, to America. He was not prepared to condemn the present - attitude of the United States. America " had supplied Britain and her allies with ' £175,000,000 worth of munitions, and if she had been at war she could not haw - v * done this. America, too, had thrown" - open her ports to some of New Zealand'* " ; most important products- -. Ss -;. The Hon. A. L. Hexdman said our first • duty to-day was to kill our enemies, and"*' j the second was to do our utmost to* give '"" j the British Empire a new leas* 0 ~- ! life. . They must see Germany crushed - j and trodden under foot, and the German ' . people wrecked politically, socially and — | commercially. The interests of * inter- - national justice demanded such a sentence, '~ and justice would not be satisfied until that sentence had been carried out. * (Applause.) The meeting carried resolutions urgimr V the diversion of all import and export trade M formerly carried on with Germanv to l§f countries within the Empire or to Sdlied countries, and urging the Government -to -" impose a snrtax, after the war is over, en goods from present enemv countries.''V*^

WANGASrm PROFOSAL.

IMPERIAL CONFERENCE URGED. EST TKT.TXiV.KTB. PRESS ASSOCTAHDJC.] — * Waxgakci, Monday. " : A meeting of Wanganui citizens dis- s"» cussed the question of protection, of-:, British trade, and passed the following resolution :''That this meeting urges i. the Government to make temporary provision so that from the termination of tieV war the operation of the present Trading With Enemy Act i«hall still con tinned and that during such period of the continuance • -"" of this Act tie Government use the utmost k endeavour in urging the Imperial authori- " ties to promptly arrange that an Imperial Conference, fully representative of the Empire, decide the best methods of consolidating • and extending Empire trade, with provisional preference to our alHee, so as to, as far as possible, prevent trading with the present enemy countries. "-