AN EMPIRE TRADE MARK

Southland Times, Issue 17627, 16 April 1914, Page 7

AN EMPIRE TRADE MARK

MUCH DEBATED PROPOSAL, DISCUSSIBLE OIANT MEETING OF SITT'OIITEKS IN LONDON. Ct’KE OF ARGYLL'S TRIBUTES TO NEW ZEALAND. (From Our Lady Correspondent.) LONDON". March 6. A large audience assembled under the auspices of the British Empire League at Queen's Hall on Tuesday night to pass a resolution in favour of establishing a Mark of Origin to denote goods manufactured or produced in the British Empire, a proposal that, as New Zealanders will know, has met, both in the dominion and in England, with both enthusiastic approval and unqualified opposition front Chambers of Commerce ind individual business concerns. The Duke of Argyll occupied the thair. an imposing list of celebrities sent in their names as supporters, and the Bight Hon. F. F. Smith, K.C.. M.P.. moved the resolution, which was seconded by Sir John Cockburn. K.C.M.0.. late Agent-General for South Australia, and supported hy the Hon. Thomas Mackenzie, Dr Chappie, M.F.. late of "Wellington, and others. The attitude of the meeting in genoral, through most of its speakers, gave the impression of being on the defensive, possibly owing to the fuel That numbers cf those present (not least the London newspapers) were known to have been ■circularised by a considerable number of Chambers of Commerce of England who were against the innovation. The Duke of Argyll, in an introductory speech, emphasised the fact that the movement had absolutely nothing political about it. and said it was arranged that two or three from each side In politics should take jiart in the meeting'. Personally he had never heen a very passionate partisan of any particular trade policy, being convinced that matters of this kind were best left to take their natural course under the expert guidance of the Chambers of Commerce which represented the trade of the countries concerned. He confessed, however, great surprise that there was mot a much greater consensus of opinion than actually existed among the Chambers of Commerce of the Kingdom in "favour of an Empire trade mark. Some ■Chambers, including that of Manchester, which he himself once represented in Parliament, were so far opposed l*> it. They seemed to think that all it was possible to do had l>Cen done, hut the ordinary person was likely to think unit increased trade relation-r with England's •children overseas were likely to increase the good feeling that prevailed in the Empire. Nat only among these, but among foreigners, there was a belief that; take him all in all. an English tradesman was an honest tradesman, that the goods he produced were worth having, and that the pttrehaser would pot be cheated if he bought them. That was one reason which made him believe that their proposal would mean a natural advantage to the worlds markets for goods mad- by English men and women. The employment of the mark would be absolutely optional. He then quoted opinions in favour from such autc.orities as the late Lord Strathcona. Lord Avebury. Lord Balfour of Burleigh. Sir George Keid, Sir I'atrick Playfair, and many others. Mr F. E. Smith moved the resolution ; •‘Thiil this mooting hereby records the opinion that in the interests of the trade and industry of the British Empire a mark of origin should he established for goods manufactured or produced within the Empire, and strongly urges the Board of Trade to proceed with the registration of the mark applied for by the British Empire League.” Those who were associated in the movement, lie said, had always • been prudently careful to keep it- divorced from any party in this country, a wise stipulation, since numerous very important problems concerning the Empire had failed in solution by being associated with a particular party. Among all parties in the House of Commons there were to bo found men who were convinced adherents of the cause. Such a mark as was proposed, he maintained, would nave the effect of stimulating the interchange of trade between different parts of the Empire. There existed throughout the Empire a sentimental feeling which made the people anxious to do trade under conditions which would give some benefit to some other part of the Empire. Other things being equal, anti tie might say even at the eost of some pecuniary sacrifice, they wished to have dealings with their own kinsmen, ONE-SIDED PREFERENCE. A proof of this was the one-sided preference which had been given to this country by so many of the dominions, and of which Mr Asquith and Air Lloyd George had spoken in terms of gratitude. Ought we not. as prudent and patriotic men, to foster that sentiment He had read all the arguments that had been used against the proposal, and ho had not seen a single one that was effective. In particular, he had considered the arguments of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce a body of which he ought to speak with respect, for he himself was one of its members and he was bound to say that he was still unconverted. Sir John Cockburn heartily seconded the resolution. The object of the proposal was, he said, to help people get •what they wanted, to indulge what the Times had aptly called a wholesome Instinct, and to put an end to (he masquerading of foreign goods as British made. The measure was. he pointed out. supported by Freetraders and Tariff reformers alike, and he had no hesitation in seconding something so simple, sensible, and patriotic. The-. High Commissioner for New Zealand- -followed. Mr F. E. Smith had alluded to a sentimental readiness on the' part of the overseas dominions to chase as mm.it' as they possibly could in the-Empire, even at the cost of some flight pecuniary sacrifice. As far as the dominion he represented was concerned, it was intensely desirous of doing .ill the trade it possibly could with the British Empire, and not at some small but even at some considerable pecuniary disadvantage. New Zealand's trade with Great Britain last year was shown in cold figures to have been equal to Canada’s of five years back, and the £12.000.000 sterling value represented an expenditure, it would be seen, of something like £l2 per head for every man, woman, and child in the country. The responsibility placed in the hands of a High Commissioner was eloquent evidence of the feeling of the country that appointed him In trade as well as patently patriotic affairs. He was entrusted with the placing of many millions of pounds worth of orders State enterprises, the very mention of wnich would strike alarm Into the breasts of Conservative England and woe betide him who substituted goods of foreign origin, or the Govtjnment who received them. If goods of British manufacture could Ifave been purchased. . Apparently contrary to the principles of political economy, the New Zealand Government was prepared to give something in

excess lor apparently equal quality, and lie maintained that there was underlying this a great deal of shrewd Scottish intelligence that recognised that England presented the only market free for export of raw materials. NEW ZEALAND MUTTON BARBED, Tlte speaker then recounted his experiences when some years ago lie resigned his seal in Parliament to come, over to England as a representative of the Farmers' Co-operative Association, when, owing to tlte difference in prices, such goods as axes, then required in vast numbers for tlte clearing of primeval forests, seeds, fencing wire, etc., were purchased abroad. Fencing wire alone cost £2 more per ton in England titan in America or on the Continent, and for every ton of Britisli material something like a hundred tons were ordered abroad. Agriculturalists, however. speedily discovered the enormous superiority of British over foreign-made goods, with the result recorded by last year's statistics. New Zealand had given preference to Great Britain with unhesitating readiness because the Mother Country had been so good to iter, but not yet was the dominion obtaining benefits that should come to her. The latest army contracts showed that New Zealand frozen mutton and lamb was Sharped from the supplies for the troops. Dr Chappie spoke next, emphasising the prevailing loyalty that he had found in itis travels amongst all the colonies, 'and the sense of kinship, a common ideal and share In the glorious traditions of the Anglo-Saxon people. This loyalty expressed itself in trade as in other things, and wherever lie had been tie had heard nothing but praise for the quality of English goods and the integrity that distinguished Britisli trade. England hart given free and open markets, policed the seas, supplied cheap and abundant capital, and sent out to found her dominions the finest race of people that history (tad ever known. Anti with those people had gone, ho thought it was very evident to all who knew them, the same spirit of honour in commerce. The flag should indicate not only the I’nited Kingdom hut the great and growing Empire and should he an emblem of unity not only of sentiment but of material interest also. Lord Chelmsford (late Governor of New South Wales) made a graceful speech of tnanks to the Duke of Argyll for presiding, and in his reply the distinguished chairman acknowledged that lie had come in some trepidation to tlte meeting, having seen in an evening paper the considerable force of opposition to the proposed innovation, but found ttiat his timidity was ungrounded. He would like to record the fact that it had given him the very’ greatest possible pleasure to have, come, across that day iu tlie persons of a late Governor of New Zealand. Minister of Defence, and the present High Commissioner, what lie knew to be the spirit of New Zealand and a more delightful spirit bearing he liked to think the true mark of origin could nowhere be met. He would like again respectfully to acknowledge the debt that the Old Country owed to this new one for the noble spirit and sol f-sacrificing loyalty with which the latter had identified herself witli the Empire's Army and Navy. In the interest of the Army he hoped, lie said amidst continued laughter, compulsory lamb-eating would soon be placed on the army regulations : in the meantime all who were fortunate enough to know its qualities would be anxious to have it upon their tables. in a leader this morning the Times comments on the difficulty of pronouncing upon the merits of a case in which experts differ so widely. "We all prefer, and rightly prefer," it says. " to tiny goods produced by our fellow-countrymen. whether in ttiis country or in the dominions, provided that they compare reasonably with foreign goods in price and quality. The mischief of it is that, as things are at present, it is often difficult to distinguish between British and foreign goods, But the idea of an Empire trade mark, admirable at first sight, seems to involve certain technical difficulties which may not be so easy to get over in practice. Its opponents maintain that Britisli goods are quite able to hold their own in the markets of the world, and that the addition of an Empire mark would detract from the value of private marks which have become world-famous. They argue, too, that, even though tlte use of the Empire mark were optional and carried no guarantee, of quality. Vint only of origin, it might give a loophole for attacks upon tlte quality of tne goods produced hy firms which declined to use it.”