The Wanganui Chronicle. "NULL DIES SINE LINEA." THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19, 3912. IMPERIAL FISCAL POLICY.

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12857, 19 December 1912, Page 4

The Wanganui Chronicle. "NULL DIES SINE LINEA." THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19, 3912. IMPERIAL FISCAL POLICY.

In view of Mr. Bonar Law's latest pro-noun-cement concerning the fiscal policy of tho Unionists, it is interesting to recall that a year or two ago the American Government sent a commUfiionor over to England to. inquire .by what Era ns, if any, the United-States millkig utrade could Tccovof- \tho British market. In his report he said: "Flour mMling 'in the United Kingdom pre-•sc--it3 features of decided interest because of the progress and growth attained by this industry in recent years, 'lhero are two quito distinct classes, tho interior or country mills, and tho port mills. Both classes have increased greatly in capacity in the past ton

years, but the most modern plants and the largest have naturally been established at ports having the best facilities. The competition which has reduced the ealo of American ftour to about one-half the volume of former years, of course, comes from these modern mills." Tho milling industry was one of Mr. Chamberlain's " ruined" industries. When he started his protectionist propaganda he spoke of '• re-establishing the milling Industry in this country^ His propaganda failed but the milling industry has succeeded. The English mills not only grind all the wheat grown in that country but only about eight per cenj:. of tho wheat imports are ibroflght in as flour. American and Canadian wheat is ground up into Hour and the product sold to the consumer at less than half the prico paid for bread in Canada or the United States. This looks as if the industry were established on a pretty ; firm basis, when they can take/ the wheat from Canada, and sell the loat ! at less than half of what is charged the ' Canadian consum-er fov home grown wheat. At tho time of -Cobden, while tho American workman had wheaten bread, tho British workman had often to use inferior foods, and Cobd-en, in ,jne of his speeches, looked forward to every British workman having, wheaten bread on his table-like an American workman as something to hope for and j work for. The British ■workman has (hat now —at less than half the cost. Free trade gives him the best and cheapest 6iip,piies the world has to offer at any given time. If the world's liar, vest is good, then the loaf is cheap, and'there is" no tax to make it artifi■cially dear. If the world's harvest is poor, and bread is-dear from natural causes, then there is no tax to make it dearer still. A tax on bread and on •'•natural products is the most indefensible of sail taxes, a fact which the Unionist leader seems to recognise when ho says that X in dealing with food duties an essential condition . should bo that the 'burden of the poorer classes should not be increased." Germany has recently been placing increased taxes on corn imports. The German workman navev war, a consumer of wheat. He is in the stags out of which the British workman emerged through Cobden free trade. In protectionist Germany- the -bread of the workman is made chiefly of rye-, which, of course,, is a cereal much cheaper than wheat. But the price of the rye j loaf has been steadily going ivp during I recent years, until'-at present he pays considerably more for his .rye loaf than the British workman ipays for his wheaten loaf. When British workers see a protective country charging its j workers twice as much for/black bread as is paid in free trade countries for . the wheaten leaf is it not surprising to find them in opposition to the policy of the Unionists, however much that poMcy may find favour in the overi seas dominions. *'■