The Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY. SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 1920 MUTUAL PREFERENCE.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XLV, Issue 12082, 19 June 1920, Page 4

The Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY. SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 1920 MUTUAL PREFERENCE.

IT was satisfactory to notice from the cable news that our representative in the Motherland, Sir Thomas Mackenzie, had discharged his duties with such ability and tact as to do honor to New Zealand and win for himself the approbation and esteem of men high in the service of the Empire. That he did great service to onr trade interests is unquestionable, and we specially not9d the following passage in his reply to the toast of his health at the farewell banquet :—"The greatest consideration of the moment was 'What is this country's policy to be towards the overseas Dominions? Are we to continue open dcora to enemies? Shall those of us who stood shoulder to shoulder receive uo greater assistance than enemies who would have reduced r.s to slavery if they had won? We must not debate free trade or protection, but consider the interests of the countries constituting the Empire and frame laws to give advantage to our own people.' " We take this to be earnest advocacy of trade within "the Empire for mutual benefit, that would be genuine Imperial preference. The icl.?al of Imperial preference, however,, can never be reached unless the overseas Dominions adopt towards the Motherland a veiy different policy from that they havo practised when giving the Motherland what they call Imperial preference that is no preference at all, but simply less deadly hostility to it than to other nations, Britain cannot, in the interest of her own people, impose tariffs restricting imports from countries while allowing Empire products to enter free. She uiust admit all free, except in ao fcr as Treasury requireraents necessitate a purely revenue tariff. Long ago she abandoned, with enormous benefit to her people,

the policy of artificially increasing the coat of foreign supplies so that parasitic industries might compel the people to pay more for theirneeds. She is also a manufacturing country, and it is from the exports of her manufactures that most of her wealth is derived. Before Imperial preference can be applied to mutual advantage, therefore, the peoples in the overseas Dominions must realise, that mutual interests can best be sarved by marketing their raw products in the Motherlaud and receiving her manufactures in return. '"lt is not sufficient tc raise higher the tariff barriers against enemies or foreign rationwhile*still leaving them too high for British manufacturers to surmount Th3v must he lowered for Britain as well as for all other portions of the Empire if we are to have mutual!;, beneficial trade within the Empire. It is not sufficiently reslised by many that a hostile tariff is as injurious as open warfare to the country against whose products it is applied and equally injuriouo to the country applying it. It should indeed, as Sir Thomas Mackenzie indicated, not be a question of detrade or protection. It isone'of common sense. Britain and her dependencies can help each other to grow jn strength and gai:j in prosperity by freeing trade between;' themselves as much an pos33ble li :from";' all restrictions that have been artificially created. When that has been accomplished the Emrjire will indeed become established on a basis of mutual interest anri will stand four-square to all tha winds that blow.