MOON AND TIDES Patea & Waverley Press MONDAY, MARCH, 2, 1931 A MATTER OF COMMON SENSE.

Patea Mail, Volume LII, 2 March 1931, Page 2

MOON AND TIDES

Patea & Waverley Press MONDAY, MARCH, 2, 1931 A MATTER OF COMMON SENSE.

C'Di CIiALNTJS l)ui ii loud and •mep arc being heard on every side with .regard to the slate o:t: .rude and the low prices being paid for the country s staple products. In all probability it has never occurred to the average producer to ask himself the question, “What have 1 done to help the man who buys my goods to pay a higher pi-ice for them?” Cveryone knows that prosperity begets prosperity and a prosperous people can afford to purchase more and pay a higher price than would otherwise be the ease, and thus help to make others prosperous as well as themselves. Conversely, depression begets depression, and a country whose industries arc languishing for lack of support cannot be expected to be able to pay high prices for goods, and as a result other countries fall into a depressed state. To get down to bed-rock, producers in the British Dominions Overseas cannot expect Britain to flourish if they will persist in ignoring the British manufacturers and spend their money with the manufacturers in foreign countries. It would be far belter to pay more for the goods and help Britain to build up her industries, do away with unemployment, and enable her vast population to pay the highest prices for Dominion goods.. Mr. A. AY. Hawley, the New Zealand representative of the British Manufacturers’ Association in a recent interview said: “There is to-day a war in existence as hitter and vital as was the Great War. The difference to-day, however, is that the battlefields are the world’s markets and the ammunition goods and money. During 19.14 when Great Britain sent an appeal to the Dominions for assistance both as regards men and money, New Zealand responded nobly. To-day let it be realised that Great Britain needs assistance as vitally as she needed it in 1914, and whereas during 1.914-1 S only the physically (it men could answer the call, to-day every man, woman, and child can. play their part in the great battle of commerce which is being waged. Just as during 1914-18, had it not been fur the wonderful British Navy. New Zealand would have probably been blown to smithereens by enemy ships, so to-day unless we support Great Britain and thus play onr part in safeguarding British trade and commerce, we will imperil our own very existence because that market will surely be lost to us. It has frequently been slated by authorities who have made a study of the whole situation and who arc fully conversant with actual facts that in return for the many invisible, and to the multitude, unknown respects in which Great Britain guards the interests of us in New Zealand, we would be thoroughly justified in paying from 10 to 15 per cent, more for a Britisli article Hum for a similar article of foreign manufacture —we would then be receiving full value for our monev. During the period July 1. 1929, to June 30. 1930, New Zealand exported goods to the total value of €47,588,213. Of this amount €36,141.295 went to the United Kingdom and £2,626,235 to U.S.A. Of

Aew Zealand’.s-national income 5 per c('iit. is derived from her exported primary products. Dur•ng the period above-mentioned, dreat Britain purchased more ban two-thirds of our total exports. Many countries have aised tariff walls against outproduce by their nationals. This drectly results in a restricted market for our produce, that marnet being practically only Great Britain. Think what would happen to us in New Zealand if for any reason that wonderful market were closed to us. At the present time many of us are suffering anxieties and worries because of the fall in prices of our primary products. This fall in prices has to a certain extent been brought about by the fact that our production is increasing on the one hand but our markets arc decreasing on the other hand, therefore, temporarily, supply has exceeded demand on the only market available to us, consequently prices must fall. We can all play our part in developing and increasing our one and only market by buying the products of Great Britain and thus assist to keep British workmen in employment. Obviously unemployed workmen cannot purchase the goods wo produce, and every foreign article purchased means that a foreign workman is kept employed and a British workman is kept on the dole. The Avis tl am, therefore, of developing the wonderful spirit of reciprocity seems obvious, and it is hoped that avo in Ncav Zealand will more generally realise that we are helping ourselves by helping England and if avo do not help ourselves, then avc cannot expect, and do not deserve, anybody to help us.” It is, in fact, a matter of plain common-sense and nothing else.