The Waikato Argus [PUBLISHED DAILY.] A Guaranteed Circulation of Over 6000 Weekly. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1903.

Waikato Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1476, 7 February 1903, Page 2

The Waikato Argus [PUBLISHED DAILY.] A Guaranteed Circulation of Over 6000 Weekly. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1903.

It has been a matter for anxious speculation for some years now as to the food supply of Great Britain in the case of war with one or more maritime nations. The statement that the British navy is sufficiently strong to keep open the grain trade routes has been accepted, and no precaution beyond the maintenance of the navy has been taken. It will be seen by a cablegram in another column that an association has been formed to bring pressure upon the Government to make a searching enquiry into the matter, with a view to the adoption of every possible means to avert the risk of famine amongst the teeming population of the British Isles. Some twelve months back it was urged in the House of Commons that a Commission should bo appointed to investigate and report upon the question. Mr Gerald Balfour, speaking- on behalf of the Government, 'saw nothing to inquire into.' From this reply, by a man with such high responsibility, it is fair to assume that a plan of action in the event of war, which the experts in the service of the Government deem sufficient, is decided upon. To the unofficial mind, however, not in possession of details, it cannot fail to appear that sufficient has not been done till there is a storage of surplus grain within the United Kingdom sufficient to feed the population for a month or two, in the case of unforeseen circumstances cutting off the supply. The results which would accrue from the cutting off of supplies are so momentous that no Government is justified in not taking every precaution which suggests itself. Surely, when there is a chance, no matter how remote, that a supply of any essential article may be cut off temporarily, the obvious remedy is to keep a stock in hand. The starting of the scheme would no doubt disorganise the grain markets of the world for a time, but a normal state of affairs would be established after the first season, as the quantity of wheat for consumption would be the same as if the store did not exist. We presume that the stock would be replenished every year, the last season's grain being put on the market and replaced in the granaries by the new crop. The only possible objection the Government can have to enquiry is that the Commission would, of necessity, have to be informed of the plans of tho Government, otherwise they could not form an opinion as to their adequacy. It appears to our mind that, no matter how theoretically sound may bo the Government scheme, there can be no justification for not adopting a precaution which is manifestly the only specific.