Imperial Commercial Union.

Thames Star, Volume XXX, Issue 9112, 5 July 1898, Page 4

Imperial Commercial Union.

There was an item in Mr Rhodes speech to the shareholders of the British South African Company (says the London Times; which has received perhaps less than the attention which it deserves. For the first time British •South Africa makes a step towards commercial union with the Empire, and although, owing to the development of events in Canada. South Africa now takes a second place in the list of colonies which have given their active adhesion to this principle, it is fair to remember that,under the inspiration of Mr Rhodes, the concession wsts offered three years ago. It only failed at that time to become one of the conditions of the Rhodesian constitution because it was rejected by the Imperial Administration then in power. The condition is that in Rhodesia the duty to be charged on British goods shall never exceed the duty at present levied by the Cape Colocy, The duty at the Cape is a duty for revenue only, and at the present moment averages about 9 per cent. The clause is to be introduced into the new Order in Council, by which other changes in the administration of Rhodesia are to be brought into legal existence, and the constitution of Rhodesia will henceforth vary from that of other British colonies in the important particular that the colony had surrendered the right to erect a barrier of protective tariffs between itself and the remainder of the Empire. Every other British colony ha? enjoyed and has used in its self-governing stage the power of protecting itself from the competition of British manufactures and of levying high duties at will upon British trade. The clause, the acceptance of which Mr Khodes has urged upon successive Imperial Governments, will take effect not only in the new and at present sparsely inhabited area of 800,000 square miles in extent, which is in- } eluded under the name of Rhodesia, but also of necessity in any colonies which shall enter into customs union with Rhodesia. If, as Mr Rhodes and the Progressive party at the Cape are confident in hoping, the federation of the Cape Colony, Natal, and Rhodesia becomes an accomplished fact within five years the condition applying to one part must extend to the other contracting members of the Union, and the whole of British South Africa will enter upon a new phase of colonial history. Commercial union with the Empire will be one of the fundamental conditions of its constitution, and it will be for subsequent electorates, if they so please, to render the union more absolute by the abolition of all customs duties whatever. The present level of the duty levied by the Cape has been adopted instead of complete freetrade simply as a measure of expediency. The actual tariff of Natal is lower still; therefore the two South African colonies could, in the event of federation with Rhodesia, accept the condition without any dislocation of their finances. It will always be curious and interesting to remember that this endeavor to establish the doctrine of Imperial freetrade as a constitutional principle in a British co 1 any was opposed by a Liberal and freetrading Imperial Administration, and the offer rejected, on the ground that the proposal which it conveyed aimed only at the establishment of Imperial and not of universal freetrade. To the restrictions imposed upon Imperial unity by the Belgian and German treaties there would have been added, but for the determined persistence of Mr Rhodes, a constitutional impediment creating equal rights for all 1( imported" goods in the colony of Rhodesia. Mr Rhodes refused at the time to accept the Bechuanaland railway subsidy if the application of the tariff clause in the constitution were to be extended as a condition to all imported goods. The clause was left out; but, under a Government which has denounced the German and Belgian treaties Mr Rhodes has renewed his proposal on behalf of the country which bears his name, and he has now the satisfaction of seeing that, to use his own words, '" the trade of the new territory is practically secured for ever to Great Britain." That half a loaf in the matter of freetrade is better than no bread is a doctrine which the present freetrade Administration in Canada has not for a moment hesitated to accept and to apply within the limits of its possibilities. Universal freetrade is for the moment impossible of attainment. In the meantime, coupled with the spirit of Imperial union, Imperial freetrade may be aimed at, and the " preferential " policy so loudly criticised, but so steadily and successfully carried into operation, has be^n the result. Last year, as a result of Canadian action, the German and Belgian treaties— which provided for an extension to those countries, and consequently to all countries which had negotiated a most-favoured nation clause with Great Britain, of every advantage given to British trade—were denounced. Mr Fielding's Budget speech made in the Dominion Parliament affords an ad- > mirable illustration of the manner in which one step leads to another in the path of union. It will be remembered that the Canadian tariff of last year provided for a further reduction of 12£ per cent, to be granted on July 1 of this year to all goods having the right to claim the reduction given last year to British imports, the whole amounting to a reduction of 25 per cent, upon the ordinary Canadian tariff. It was found that the i eduction intended for British goods could be legitimately claimed, until the expiration of the denounced Belgian and German treaties, by foreign countries also. The treaties will expire on August 1. A short Act will therefore postpone the application of the further reduction until that date, and then, unhampered by foreign treaties, a fuller measure of preferential trade will be adopted. The reduction of 25 per cent., limited of necessity under the old restrictions to such countries as gave equally good conditions to Canadian trade, will now be given not only to the United Kingdom, to British India, to New South Wales, and all other British colonies and possessions, the " Customs tariff of which, on the whole, is as favourable to Canada as the British preferential tariff is to such colouy or possession." but also to the British West Indies, which are unable to respond by granting equally favourable terms to Canada. This concession is proposed to be made on purely Imperial grounds, and the pottion of Mr Fielding's speech which deals with the West Indies marks a most interesting departure of the Dominion Government. After sketching the circumstances which have brought about the prevailing conditions of depression in the West Indian colonies, and the measures which have been taken by the Imperial Government with a view of affording some relief, Mr Fielding continued :—' Knowing as we do that her Majesty's Government are follow ing this question very closely knew ing that they are dealing with a diffi ■ cult problem in the face of many difficulties, it has occurred to us that as the West Indies are our natural

market, as they are British colonies, and though far away in one respect colonies with which we have close relation, and that we have Imperial responsibilities in this matter—it has occurred to us that we should be willing in a small way to lend a hespirig hand to those colonies in the Sunny South " On this ground, and this ground alone, the proposal is based for an extension of tariff facilities to the West Indies. Not only ia West Indian sugar to receive the reduction of 25 per cent as a sign of Imperial goodwill, but as, in consequence of the liberal scale of reductions introduced into the Canadian tariff towards British goods, some slight increase for purposes of revenue is required, it has been decided to make a small increase in the item of foreign sugar. The present quantity of West Indian sugar used in Canada is 25,500,0001b out of a total Canadian consumption of 330,000,0001b. With the advantage which will be in the future extended to West Indian sugar it should rest with the West Indies to draw to themselves a much larger proportion of the trade.