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A.—s

376

Eleventh Day. 6 May 1907.

Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Yes, I certainly take the miner. The miner is beter paid and his hours of labour are better. Mr. DEAKIN : Better than in America ? Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Not better than in the United States of America. I freely admit that wages in the United States of America are considerably higher than here. Sir WILFRID LAURIER : In everything. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE ; Yes, substantially. lam perfectly certain they must be. Mr. DEAKIN : That is why I asked. You mentioned the United States at the time. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : I mentioned the United States of America merely as to hours of labour. I freely admit that wages in the United States of America are much higher than here, and infinitely higher than in Germany, France, or any other country, but I am comparing our old country with another old country simply because the conditions are so different in a country like the United States. If the United States became a Free Trade country to-morrow, she might pay higher wages —I even think she would— but at any rate the money would go further. Mr. Moor said : " What about your purchasing power ?" and I agree that is the real test. Food is cheaper here than in any country in the world. Mr. DEAKIN: The Old World. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Yes, I ought to limit it to that perhaps. I can give the figures with regard to the price of wheat. I forget whether it was Dr. Smartt or Sir William Lyne who said that if you put your duty on corn, it will make no difference at all to the price. Mr. F. R. MOOR : I think he quoted the Is. you had here during the war, and argued that it made no difference. Whether that is a fact or not, I do not know. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : I should not be a bit surprised if it were the fact. At any rate, I have not gone into the matter. I will accept this from Sir William Lyne. Mr. WINSTON CHURCHILL : That the Is. duty made no difference? Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : No, he said when the Is. duty was put on, the price of wheat fell, and when it was taken off, the price of wheat went up. That is very likely, but that is due tp the fluctuations of the market. What I wish to point out is the difference it makes as regards comparison with the markets of other countries. That is the real difference. There is a difference between 1901 and 1902 of Is. Ad. in the price of wheat, There is a difference between 1898 and 1902 of 6s. in the price of wheat. Of course, that Is. or 2s. will not bridge the difference between those two figures, but the difference

Preferential Trade.

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