337

A.—s

wheat without the expense of handling, and when it gets to its destination to place it in mills or storage without handling again. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE ; 400 miles for Ad. in Australia, Sir William ? Sir WILLIAM LYNE : Yes, I think it is a little over 400 miles, but I know it is about 400 miles for 4<i. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : This is over a State railway ? Sir WILLIAM LYNE : Yes. As I say, this would find employment for at least 200,000 more men — Britons, 1 hope — who with their wives and families would consume the manufactured products of Great Britain, and thus increase employment in the Old Country. The same may be said of dairying, meat, and many other industries, preference to the Colonies would mean the employment e>f millions more Britons in your Colonies, and increased markets for British manufactures. And let me remind you of another reason why this trifling duty of Brf. per bushel would not fall upon the consumer; it would be encouraging the growth of wheats sue-h as the strong wheats of Canada (I presume that I should be supported in this by Sir Wilfrid. Laurier), and the full-floured wheats of Australia. Do you know that a bag of these wheats will make more flour, and that flour, on account of its greater strength and nutriment, will make more loaves per sack than the weak-floured wheats of the Argentine, Russia, or anywhere else. In fact a 200-lb. sack of Canadian and Australian stronger-floured varieties will make 10 to 20 per cent, more bread than the same quantity of Russian flour. On these points, far more than on a trifling duty, depends the price of bread. Of course, unless some sort of preferential arrangement is arrived at, it is not by any means certain, for reasons already pointed out by Mr. Deakin, that Britain or the Colonies can retain even their present place in the British or foreign markets. Australia, like the rest of the Empire, loses much in foreign markets through not having behind her the voice of the vast purchasing power of the Empire as a whole. On all sides Britain's export trade is being restricted by ever-increasing barriers erected by foreign countries. And yet the solution of the danger is at hand in the system of preferential duties and tariff retaliation; and in answer to that little indication from Mr. Lloyd George T will tell him that if he will be fair and not talk of totals, but talk of proportions as between Great Britain and foreign trade, he must admit it is only a question of time before what I say comes about. - Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : That little interjection of mine had reference rather to the statement you made, Sir William, about the export trade of Britain being restricted more and more owing to the tariff barriers, and I could not repress the exclamation. Sir WILLIAM LYNE : That is exactly what I thought it did, and I say in answer to that that your trade is becoming more restricted in proportion to foreign trade. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : In proportion to foreign trade ? Sir WILLIAM LYNE : Yes, that although you supply us with a very large proportion, what we receive from the foreigner is catching you up and beating you in the race. Some fear that if we enter into this bond of union other nations will permanently retaliate and injure us. That they will permanently do so Ido not believe, for nearly 60.000,000/. worth of German exports go to British Possessions. Tf all British countries were united, I do not believe that Germany, for example, would retaliate and risk losing this vast purchasing

44—A. 5.

Tenth Day. 2 May 1907.

Preferential Trade. (Sir W. Lyne.)