OUR FAVOURED DOMINION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19351, 11 December 1924, Page 7

OUR FAVOURED DOMINION.

PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN NEEDED. INFORMATION EAGERLY SOUGHT. INTERESTING IMPRESSIONS ABROAD. Mr Oswald M. Smith, indent agent, of this city, returned to Dunedin at the end of last week from a five months’ trip to the Old Country. Mr Smith has covered much ground in the comparatively short time he has been away; and a conversation with him makes it clear that he is a shrewd and observant traveller. In a brief interview with an Otago Daily Times reporter yesterday, he had much that was interesting to say about his trip. APPALLING LACK OF KNOWLEDGE. Mr Smith went Home, via ’Frisco, Chicago, Montreal, and Liverpool to London. In the course of his business he had occasion to interview and address about 40 boards of directors of leading British manufacturing concerns. What he considers is specially wanted is more publicity regarding the dominion. He found still quite an appalling lack of knowledge about it and its potentialities among leading business organisations of Great Britain. One would have thought that the High Commissioner would have been well alive to the necessity for more active propaganda. It seemed to Mr Smith that the “AIT Blacks” were about the best advertisement New Zealand ever had. “Our exhibit at Wembley was not any particular advertisement for us,” said Mr Smith, “more especially when you saw the wonderful exhibits of South Africa, Canada, and Australia. It seemed to have been put up hurriedly and not a great deal of discrimination shown with a view to displaying in the most attractive manner what this country is capable of doing. It was not an impressive exhibit, and a colonial came away from it quite disappointed. I believe tHe commissioners we serit home have made the best of a rather bad job. It occurs to me that our commissioners should have been Home four or five months before the Exhibition opened. Then we might have got an attractive exhibit put up. As it was I almost think it would have been better if New Zealand had stood out.” MANUFACTURERS CHANGED ATTITUDE. Mr Smith came before the boards of firms he represents out here and of others who were very anxious to get all the information , they could relative to the dominion. Four years ago on a visit Home Mr Smith found that the average British manufacturer was quite apathetic regarding the dominions. They were in the flush of business and had more orders than they could execute in the Home market. They were told that the day would come when they would be anxious to have relations with the dominions, but they did not heed the warning. Now they have wakened up to the fact that the dominions are the safest and soundest market for Great Britain, and the British manufacturer is anxious to learn all he can about them. As a result, after Mr Srrlith had addressed one board he was asked to address others desiring first-hand information as to the prospects for their manufactures out here. It would probably be a good idea if the New Zealand Year Book or some publication of the kind were distributed wholesale among the manufacturers of Great Britain.

An excellent opportunity exists for the New Zealand Government to display in manufacturing centres good moving pictures of the dominion. The pictures at the Wembley Exhibition were very poor indeed, though New Zealand, has so many wonderful scenic resorts that it could offer a great programme that would hold people’s interest and at the same time be educational. ' PREFERENCE ISSUE GAINING GROUND.

Another thing Mr Smith found was that the idea of colonial preference is becoming more popular particularly among manufacturers even in the free trade areas like Manchester. Manufacturers and shippers are beginning to realise that while free trade might have been a good. thing for England at one time conditions economically and otherwise have now changed. Mr Smith thinks it will not be long before Great Britain realises the necessity of adopting some form of preference, not only for the sake of her overseas dominions. but to protect her own industries. This conviction will not be brought home without a very vigorous educational campaign. In discussing this matter with leaders of the Conservative Party, Mr Smith found that they realised the necessity for an educational campaign throughout Great Britain. During the last election campaign they enlisted the services of speakers who had first-hand colonial knowledge to put before the people what preference would mean to the dominions. Mr Smith was asked to.be one of the speakers,' but he -was unable to accept the opportunity. Among those he met while in England were Messrs Austen and Neville,Chamberlain, but he thought the greatest mind with which he came in contact in England was that of Dr Levenstein, late chairman of directors of the British Dyestuffs Corporation, and one pf the foremost scientific minds in the world. He is a pillar ot the Conservative Party in Manchester, and is very keen for colonial preference and for everything that would develop colonial relations. Most of the big minds at Home, indeed, are anxious to cement closer relationship, and he found that the name of New Zealand ranked high throughout Great Britain, and that people were honestly athirst for more and more information about it. If this were given many English capitalists would be prepared to consider greater investments in New Zealand. In London he saw quite a number of leading financial men who seemed very favourably impressed with Nov; Zealand, and anxious to learn of attractive propositions in which they could recommend investors to take an interest. LABOUR PARTYS DEFEAT.

“I was fortunate enough,” Mr Smith remarked, “to be in the House of Commons on the night of tho fateful division in which the Bab our Party was defeated. 1 had to leave England a few days before tho election. The consensus of opinion then was that the Labour Party would be defeated, more particularly as they had signally failed to accomplish very much during their period of office, even admitting that they did not have very long to bring about any reforms. They seem to have made a muddle of tho housing problem, and this coquetting with the Soviet Government did the Labour Party an immense amount of harm. The average Englishman’s contention is that English money should be invested in safe and sound colonies rather than in tho land of Bolshevists and others who seem to nave no scruple as regards repayment. In this respect the English business man is scathing in his condemnation of the French, who won’t even repay interest on loans let alone consider the principal.” There are about one and a-half million unemployed in England, and the levy on the taxpayer through having to provide doles is very heavy; so that it looks as if the time was opportune for the introduction of preference, which would ensure that industry would absorb unemployment. The average Englishman thinks it would be far better to have some measure of protection absorbing the unemployed than to pay out millions per annum in doles. Tho Conservative party, in Mr Smith’s view, appears to be awakening to the necessities of the time. Many of their old hard and fast policies are going by the board, and they are adopting new measures befitting the present situation in England. With the tremendous majority that the electors have given them it is safe to say that they will inaugurate reforms and grapple with Britain’s many serious problems; and in a year or two we will find that Great Britain will be

regaining her old place in the world markets and will one again become the financial centre of the world. Mr Smith considers that the two great problems lire, firstly the housing problem, and secondly the finding of employment for the hundreds of thousands at present existing on the dole. At the moment there seems to be among investors a lack of confidence in industrial concerns, with the result that an enormous amount of money is being put into gilt-edged securities, such as colonial loans and leading British securities. One industry that seems to have suffered more than any other in Great Britain is the iron and steel industry. Many concerns- with millions of capital find it necessary owing to keen Continental competition to reconstruct, and even now the outlook for the British iron and steel industry is not over-promising and will not be so until some measure of preference is given by the Imperial Government NEW SPIRIT IN CONSERVATIVE PARTY. As indicative of the new spirit which has imbued the Conservative party Mr Smith mentioned that at the last election for the first time in the party’s history they selected a large number of Conservative working men candidates, and these candidates seemed to have the happy faculty of addressing the working-class electors in a language they thoroughly understood. The wisdom of this policy was seen in the return of a large number of these working men candidates. “ I do not think,” said Mr Smith, “ there is any gainsaying the fact that a big Conservative majority will ensure more stable conditions in Great Britain. It will give capital greater confidence, and with the preference being introduced, even in a modified form at the outset, it will greatly assist British industry and at the same time be a measure of encouragement for the colonies.” CARDIFF AND NEWPORT DOCKS. “ I covered the greater part of England by rail and motor car, and had an opportunity of inspecting most of the docks, seeing their loading and unloading facilities, and I was asked by the Cardiff and Newport dock authorities if possible to further their interests in this _ country. They pointed out that direct shipment to these ports would be a big saving to the New Zealand shipper, inasmuch as they have a population to serve within a short radius of about 15,000,000. Sir Felix Pole, ■ general manager of the Great Western Railway Co., which controls the Cardiff and Newport docks, and Mr Maynard their dock superintendent, by the interest they evinced in colonial matters indicated that they were anxious to assist the colonial shippers in every direction possible. They nave adopted a live progressive policy at the ports of Cardiff and Newport, and provided the docks with the most modern equipment so that ships can be given speedy discharge and cargo can be very carefully handled.” Mr Smith had the opportunity of interviewing many leading financial men in London, and all expressed the opinion that the dominion, from the information they had, was progressing on sound lines. Our Prime Minister, Mr j\lassey, seems to have created a great impression on each visit ' to the Old Country; but even here many of the leading financiers admitted that their knowledge of the dominion was superficial. So that an opportunity exists, and it seems to be the Government’s duty to undertake to conduct throughout Great Britain a great advertising campaign on, behalf of New Zealand. Even if it cost £50,000 the money would 'be well spent, and an adequate return would come back within quite a short time. MEXICO’S NEW PRESIDENT. Mr Smith went across to France and had a look at Amiens and Paris, and returned to New Zealand by New York from where he went right down to New Orleans on the Gulf of Mexico. He travelled across Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, and while in the train to- El Paso had the privilege of meeting General Callas, president elect of Mexico, who was returning from Paris to be installed as President. He is a Spaniard, but speaks English, well, and Mr Smith found him remarkably well informed on European, British,; and colonial matters.- In fact his knowledge of New Zealand seemed to be greater than that possessed by a, large number of Englishmen. From his conversation it appeared that Mexico was not quite the wild country depicted in much that is written about- it. General Callas said that his country had yet tremendous mineral resources to be developed, and indicated that one of his policies would be the introduction of a greater measure of education in Mexico. He admitted that there was a large Japanese population in Mexico, but stated that they were good settlers. Asked whether he thought this would have any bearing on the JapaneseAmerican situation, he said he would not like to express an opinion. While in New York, Mr Smith met two eminent American professors, Professor Crempton, of Columbia University, and Dr Lichtcnberger, of Pennsylvania University, Philadelphia. Both indicated that they would be likely to visit New Zealand next year, and they were very anxious to obtain first-hand knowledge of New Zealand’s educational facilities. In America Mr Smith admitted that he : found that New Zealand was not very well known. It seemed to him that there was an excellent opportunity for an advertising campaign in the United States. There is no doubt that, the American is a great traveller. Three or four hundred thousand Americans go to Europe every year, and there is no doubt that a considerable proportion of these could be induced to come to New Zealand if we were to advertise our scenic resorts, fishing grounds, and so on, and also perhaps provide on the San Francisco-Weliington run better steamer accommodation. The American when travelling likes comfort and does not mind paying for it. THOUGHTS ON PROHIBITION. Most colonials when visiting the United States naturally interest themselves in the Prohibition question, and Mr Smith is no exception. He went from here, he says, with an open mind about it, but from inquiries made among business men and from his own observation he was inclined to think that Prohibition is not altogether the best thing in the United States. There seemed to be millions of gallons of liquor pouring in from Mexico, from the Atlantic and Pacific seaboards, and over the Canadian border and from all reports the quality of it is very doubtful. Tho consensus of opinion among leading Americans seems to be that there will have to be some modification of the Volsted Act permitting light wines and beers. At the present time it is costing America millions of dollars to try and keep liquor out. The average American thinks it would be better for the State to do something in the safe and sane distribution of liquor and get some revenue out of it. Prohibition seems to have created a lawless element in the “bootlegger” and the “high jacker.” The “bootlegger” is robbing the State, and the "high-jacker" is robbing tho “bootlegger,” and seems to bo immune from prosecution as when the “bootlegger” is robbed he cannot complain to the police. WIRELESS DEVELOPMENTS. Mr Smith was in tho United States for a couple of days prior to the presidential election, and while at dinner in a friend’s house in San Francisco on the eve of tho election heard by medium of a wireless cabinet President Calvin Coolidge’s preelection speech, in which he did not ask for votes for himself, but drew attention to tho necessity for voting and, and exhorted all Americans to exercise their sacred, God-given privilege at the polls, and cast their vote. The wonderful development of wireless in America greatly impressed Mr Smith. He heard this speech from a little ornamental cabinet like a gramophone box with no aerials at all.. It was an instrument that could be introduced very cheaply .into New Zealand. OPPORTUNITIES FOR NEW ZEALANDERS ABROAD. Coming back from America among Mr Smith’s fellow passengers were the Hon. D. Mackinnon, of Melbourne, who had been the Australian Commissioner in New York for the last two years, and the Hon. R. D. Meagher, ex-Speaker of the New South Wales Parliament. Both these gentlemen expressed the opinion that Australia and New Zealand should do all possible to advertise in the United States, lire Hon. Mr Mackinnon especially was

very much struck with the fact that a large number of Australians and New Zealanders are making a big name for themselves throughout the United States. There seems to be a great future for young Australian and Now Zealand business men, not only in the United States, but in Great Britain —perhaps more especially in Great Britain, where a large number of big business executives, who are anxious to develop colonial trade, admitted that they could find openings for young New Zealand or Australian Business men who have a thorough knowledge of these markets.