WHITE AUSTRALIA.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume LXV, Issue 11754, 18 August 1913, Page 4

WHITE AUSTRALIA.

Mr H. E. Pratten, president of the New South Wales Chamber of Manufacturers, stated at Sydney a few days ago that the Eastr-rn peoples did not object to a White Australia. According to a report of his remarks in the Lyttelton Times, they had their own corresponding ideals, such as China for the Chinese, Si am for the Siamese, and Java for the; Javanese. He mentioned when describing his experiences in the East that in Calcutta thousands of educated Babus spoke universally English and dressed in the latest Bond Street style. The use of English was responsible for curious epistles sometimes. A Babu's mother had died, and in reporting the death to the authorities a native official wrote: "I regret to report that the hand that rocked the cradle has now kicked tho bucket.'' In China the pigtail had disappeared, and tailor-made clothing of European-cut, tan shoes, coloured socks, felt hats, starched collars and fashionable ties were in groat demand. Increased wages were being paid, and the prohibition of opium had caused a great demand for cheap American cigarettes. This new spirit in tho East meant the opening of great markets for trade, added Mr Pratten. The requirements of hundreds of millions of people would need to be met, and he urged that Australia should realise the immense possibilities of."t_3 Eastern trade. In Java Australian butter and meat always commanded high prices, and the shipments were looked forward to with eagerness. An immediate and profitable trade could be done in canned fruits, timber, biscuits and all kinds of

eatables. Mr" Pratten suggested that the Federal Government should appoint agents' in Calcutta and Shanghai, and should also subsidise regular steamers with ample cold Storage. Corroboration that Australian trade with the East is growing rapidly was afforded two days later, when the Japanese liner Inaba Ataru left Sydney with 7000 tons of cargo, a record shipment for the East from the Commonwealth. Wool, Hour and lead were the chief articles on the ship's manifest, and many tons of miscellaneous cargo were left lying on the wharf, as the vessel was loaded to the hatches.