383

A—s

Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : It has increased, but it does not account certainly for all that enormous increase, and if it does, what of France, and what of Germany, and what of the United States of America 1 Mr. F. R. MOOR : It does not affect the proposition. They have all to pay the same price for their raw material. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : I agree, but I want to point out that the increase in the value of the products exported from Germany during those five years is only one million pounds, and that is to cover not merely the increase of quantity but the increase of price. The increase here is 20 million pounds. As far as I can see, Mr. Moor would suggest that Germany has rather gone back than otherwise, and, if so, we have gone on enormously. I am not sure that the million would cover the difference in the price of the raw material in Germany, but certainly the difference would be covered two or three times over in our country. But I also have the figures here in yards. The figure I gave was for 1901. This will reassure Mr. Moor. In 1901, we exported 5,364 million yards of cotton piece goods from this country. Last year we exported 6,261 millions. That is an increase of nearly 900 million yards of cotton piece goods in the course of five years. That seems to me to be a very satisfactory state of things, so far as cotton is concerned. Dr. JAMESON : It may be. It would be very interesting to have the statistics. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : They are very interesting to us. We have to live on them. They represent bread and meat from Australia and Canada, They represent our purchasing capacity, and you really ought to rejoice. Dr. JAMESON : I do, and I hope you are always going to have that prosperity. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Because there is not one single yard of it that does not mean a threepenny chop of Australian mutton, or something of that sort. Dr. JAMESON : But how many or how few years ago is it that Germany, France, efec., were exporting none, and now they are exporting seven million pounds' worth. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Really, if you are not capable of being satisfied by figures of this sort, you are the most insatiable of men. Nothing will satisfy you. An increase of business in four years of 20 million pounds is as nothing in your sight. Really, I cannot do better than that. Mr. DEAKIN : He wants to keep it. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : You are not merely keeping it, but improving upon it, Really, I thought you were more reasonable, Mr. Deakin. Mr. DEAKIN : That explains his anxiety. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : We have increased our business in cotton alone by 20 million pounds in four years —more than the whole of our trade with Australia.

Eleventh Day. 6 May 1907.

Preferenti m Trade.