AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1511, 14 February 1901, Page 39

AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION

THE NEW ZEALAND COMMISSION

DUNEDIN, February 9

The Fed.erat.iou Commission commenced its sittings this, mbrning, all the Commissioners being present. - = - .... . Alexander S. Paterson, import and export merchant, thought the advantage of federation would be that it wotnd give New Zealand four million additional people to trade with upon the basis of a home market. He did not think,it would, in the long run, injuriously affect the commercial industries of New Zealand', as he thought New Zealand industries would be able toi successfully compete with those of Australia. 'lt would give a clearer and freer market for our produc© than other countries. New Zealand would, commercially, be just as well off if six© had a freetrade market with Australia as she would be if in the federation. He thought her nearness to Australia would give New Zealand a big advantage over America, and be did not think it had yet been proved that it cost more to produce in New Zealand than in America.. He thou grit there must be large markets m

the future, but at present, shut out of the Australian markets, New Zealand would, of course, he confined t-o the Home market. One of the best ways of opening np fresh markets would be the giving of assistance to those markets. He saw no reason why we should be at a disadvantage with Australia m regard to the manufacture of boots, even at present. Federation would certainly tend to the levelling of wages between Australia and New Zealand, but in the long run he did not think the effect would be serious. He did not think the cost of living was dearer in New Zealand. His exports went principally to Sydney. He saw no reason why, :n the manufacture of agricultural implements, New Zealand, with federation and inter-State freetrade, should not fairly well hold its own against Australia. The question was, if New Zealand was able to do business with Victoria and New South Wales in face of the tariffs now ciiargect, what would she be able to do with a free entry r Mr A. W. Watten, President of the Trades an* Labour Council, said the Council bad passed a resolution to tie effect That it would not support federation, unless an Arbitration and Conciliation Act wer« “enforced. His owii view was that it would not pay New Zealand to be federated with Australia. One tendency would be t-o reduce the living wage, for which in ew Zealand had been fighting for some time. lie effect of federation on the local manuf lures of the colony would also be delrirnental._ Manufacturers in New Zealand could, m his opinion, successfully compete with the large manufacturers of Australia. If we joined the Australian Commonwealth we would ultimately be reduced to a low level, in view of the coicured. labour engaged in some parts of Australia. He considered the cultivation of sugar could not be carried on by white labour. Coloured labour, he thought, would eventually become a political power in the Commonwealth, unless a large portion of Australia were allowed to lie waste.. If we joined the Commonwealth the tariff would be lower than the tariff now ruling. Under the existing tariff there was considerable competition from America and other places, and if the tariff were further reduced this competition would be increased, tending to reduce wages in the colony. Another effect would be that the better-equippqd factories in Victoria would be able to send their surplus supplies over here. He thought that under equal conditions New Zealand couldcompete with the Commonwealth. He considered there was a probability of Chinese and other foreigners also becoming a permanent portion of the population in Australia, unless provided against, and under federation many of those foreigners would no doubt come to New Zealand to reside here. If federation came about, equal wages for equal work might be established. He did not know if there was a Minimum Wages Act in Victoria. DUNEDIN, February 11. Frederick Revans Chapman, solicitor, and chairman of the Conciliation Board, was the first _ witness examined before the Federation Commission to-day. Speaking generally, as an ideal to be obtained he was in favour of federation, but he. saw difficulties in the present Australian constitution which seemed to debar New Zealand from entering the Commonwealth. He had tire opinion that had New Zealand! from the first shown extreme anxiety to go in with the rest of the colonies it "would not have advanced the scheme, for Victoria, which was mainly responsible for the ultimate federation, would have seen in New Zealand! a competitor, whereas Victoria’s object was the extension of the protective area for her goods. Referring to the constitution, be thought that the treatment of the native races would put a stigma on our Maoris, which! would be a great drawback. That, however, was remediable, as the Commonwealth had the power to alter its constitution in some ways. In . answer to the chairman, Mr Chapman said he had considered the question of the establishment of a Federal Court of - Appeal, and personally h© disagreed (with, what had been done, for it practically did away with appeal to the Privy Council. That might do all right in the case of Australia, but in the case of New Zealand it meant that an appeal from our Supreme Court wouldl be an appeal to Australia, and it would be better if th!e Privy Council were retained as the final Court of Appeal, seeing that the appeal had to go out of the country in any case. Replying to Captain Russell, he said the question of defence alone made federation desirable.. The power given to Australia .in the new constitution to acquir© territory in the Pacific would! not debar New Zealand from federating with Fiji or other islands; but of course nil such actions must receive the approval of the Imperial Government. As . a whole, Mr Chapman did not think manufacturing andi agricultural interests would suffer by federation, but he thought it undeniable that some classes of manufactures would suffer.

Sydney Charles Brown, representing the Bootmakers' Union, said the main question was one of w'ages, and the next of conditions ef employment. Assuming we joined the Commonwealth, and the federal tariff was fifteen per cent-., there would be a greater influx into New Zealond of goods from America, Germany and other places. H. II odd a, another b ootmaker delegate, gave somewhat similar evidence. Dunedin exported boots to Victoria last year to the value of £I4OO. The condi-

tion of the workers generally would bo more rapidly improved by remaining os we are than under federation.

William Hood, president c-f the Workers’ Political Committee, thought, from a commercial point c-f view, everything was m favour -of federation; from an industrial point of view that was also true to a certain extent. If federation were entered cn at once there) would be industrial dislocation at the out-set, bub if an arrangement .was made, as in Westralia, to maintain the - present tariff _ for five) years', or sc, it would enable industries to recover. He/ advocated New' Zealand entering as an' original State, otherwise Australia would drive a hard bargain. The wages paid in Australia were less, but there was not so great a difference as was commonly made to appear. He anticipated in a few years wages in, Australia would be as high- New Zealand;'(manufacturers could hold their own with Australians, but the latter had'., the advantage of a more extended market. ' The evil of Chinese manufacturing and! under federation sending goods t-c: Mew Zealand would have to be extinguished by the Commonwealth in its -own interest. The workers would not support- federation ;a any form unless it would uphold socia legislation, such . a-s -old! age ' pensions workers’ compensation!,, conciliation an arbitration. He thought New Zealafi would _ gain a great deal by federation His views, _he- believed’, were not. hel by the majority ef the workeirs. • Donald _ Reid, a wool, and! grain me chant, -said he had been a, resident the colony for close on fifty vears. !■ had been a member of the Legislatuß and a Minister of the Crown. 'The hi pression he had formed was based maiiH on the political aspect.. • He was dofl dedly against _ -federation, but had! rfl gene- largely into the commercial viH of it. We had 'hex©' a' country by a grand race of settlers with a c(l mon history, and identity ef intereH a country with 'great institutions liberal constitution. We.had the pol of moulding the country, .as we fit. The ultimate result .of union be to dwarf the minds of the resspect to political .questions., Uifl the people felt- they had some weild the tendency was'‘to deaden efforts. Who would be.in a represent the colony in ' the federation ? Either men of large who might not always be the best sentatives, or men who devoted. attention to nothing else. He think the latter was the best cause, unfortunately, there was dency to manufacture opinions icHra| the crowd instead of being true sentatives and putting sensible views forward. Fede^^B with the Empire was, he thought,. HI t-ial. Though not in favour of tion, he was. in favour of a treaty as scon as possible. Peter Barr, secretary of the of Commercel. favoured ly because of opening up- a- largeVHß kef. He thought we -ought to- wHH| til we learned the attitude of th<fl monwealth. Any injury to incHHR would be overbalanced! by the largest market. - .Robert Slater, secretary of theH and Labour Council, said .the vievß[|||J majority of that- foody was that Hl|l| Zealand were in the federation, Barton’s statement that one Act for the Commonwealth carried, it would foe taking a step, and put New Zealand years. It would take that- timeH' other colonies to catch up in lation. He considered the efficH ■ the New. Zealand worker to than that of the Australian, had still reason to fear cause of the longer hours aifl wages in Australia.