Federation Commission.

Thames Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 9879, 26 February 1901, Page 4

Federation Commission.

(Per Press Association).

WELLINGTON, February 25. Before the Federation Commission Mr Kennedy: said federation would have a disastrous effuot on manufactures, because manufactures in Austialia were mox'e de-

veloped, and New Zealand would be the dumping ground for their surplus stock. Mr T. G. MacAi-thy, brewer, would prefer New Zealand to remain as it was, at any rate until "the question of Freetrade

or. Protection and the racial difficulty in

Northern Australia were settled. Mr Samuel Brown, coal dealer and produ'co merchant and President of the Wellington Industrial' Association, had no opinion ona way or the other, whether New Zealand should federate-. The workers of New Zealand would, in his opinion, bo affected less by Australian competition than by that*, of Germans; atKl America. From an industrial point of view Now Zealand needed Australia than > Australia needed New Zealand. In the ' not distant future we would want the • help of Australia if our workmen were to maintain the present standard of comfort ivb'.o living, ■_ and New Zealand manufacturers would suffer from the 'effects of federafcirtn at first. Mr Martin Kennedy said ho had commercial connections with Australia for 20 years, and in his opinion dt would be better lor New Zealnnd not to federate. Our present constitution was sufficiently■, 5 elastic to develop our resources.