TRADE WITH CANADA.

Colonist, Volume LV, Issue 13613, 3 January 1913, Page 4

TRADE WITH CANADA.

In referring to tho "Sydney Morning Herald's" comments on the progress of New Zealand'B trade with Canada under tho preferential tariff, the "Lyttelton Times" remarks that the Sydney journal's article is another tribute,to" the statesmanship of Mr Seddon and Sir Joseph Ward. Our contemporary recalls that when the Preferential and Reciprocal Trade Bill was before the House'«f Representatives in 1903 tlia leading spirits of the Opposition jeered at tho idea of encouraging trade between the Dominion and the other portions of the Empiro by granting preference through the Customs tariff to j the products and manufactures of British, countries, and six of the present Ministers supported a proposal by Mr Massey to postpone consideration of the measure "until a future date." Mr Herries' and Mr Rhodes afterwards repented of their hostile attitude and voted for tho third reading of the Bill, but Mr Massey and Mr James^Allen remained obdurate to the. end and maintained that Mr Seddon was merely making a laughing stock of tho Dominion by offering a preference which really amounted to no preference at all. The complaint of the "Sydney Morning Herald" that Australia is being elbowed out of the Canadian trade by New Zealand, the "Lyttelton Times" continues, though a somewhat oxaggorated statement of the position,: shows, that -tho Liberal leader understood a great deal bettor than his critics did what he was about. A dozen years ago our imports from foreign countries wore rapidly increasing, and by 1902 they had reached in value*' no less than 16.71 per cent of our total imports. The preference to British products and manufactures not only stopped the increase but actually reduced the -foreign imports by 1909 to 13.53 per cent of the tqtal. There has been a slight increase in these imports since that date, the proportion they bore to tho total in 1911 l;di>.g 15.60 per cent, but, as our contemporary points out, it must bo romembeivd that all Mr Seddon claimed for the tariff was that it would prevent foreign .countries making further inroads upon British trade so far as New Zealand was concerned, and this it has effectually accomplished, despite the efforts of foreign competitors to defeat the object of the tariff.