Untitled

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 561, 26 November 1915, Page 6

Amongst the many, revel.ations of which this war has been the cause, nothing was more remarkable than that which showed hcw v British, industry was gradually being sacrificed to profits. The condition of the metal industries in particular shaved that the fetish of Freetradeliad caused it to be more profitable to a few groups of men to have their essential metals, obtained in Britain and in British Dominions,'io be treated in Germany and Belgium, and often with Welsh coal exported Tor the purpose. Profits were paramount, and if did not matter that British workers were deprived of employment, or that Britain was being placed in a position of dependence upon foreign industry. But there is hope; yesterday's cable messages stated that a deputation representing the London Chamber of Commerce and Australian merchants received a very favourable reply to their request for State assistance to keep the smelting industry within the Empire. Because this matter has a moral for New Zealand, with its valuable mineral deposits all untouched, some of the facts given in evidence when the British Courts decided in favour of the Zinc Corporation against Aron Hirsch and Sohn are here mentioned. This case arose out of the action of the Australian Government in annulling the contracts entered into before the war between the Zinc Corporation (a Broken Hill concern) and German firms with headquarters in London. Britain, suddenly finding that she required spelter in large quantities, was amazed to find that she had to pay £lls per ton for it, while [ Germany paid £3O. Then* it was discovered that a once flourishing. British industry had almost disappeared,, that of the total quantity of spelter (or zinc) concentrates mined 'in; Australia about 2i per cent, was treated in Australia, 2£ per cent, in Britain, and 195! per. cent, in : Germany. After the war commenced schemes were prepared for building great smelting works and supplying England's needs in England—and then came the additional revelation that the Australian supply was being hung up by contracts binding the Broken Hill companies to sell all their ores to the German firm until 1919. It was these contracts which the Federal Government and British Courts declared void. The moral for British business men is that Freetrade is a snare and a delusion, the moral for Australia is that it should deyelop its own resources, and for New Zealand the obvious lesson is that it should lose no time in doing likewise.