385

A.—s

the United Kingdom' is 10,700,000 tons. Germany, which is our only real competitor, has 2,500,000 tons; so ours is just four times as much as what she has got with all her subsidies and through transit rates. Mr. DEAKIN : That is only the Mercantile Marine ? Mr. LLOYD GEORGE: Yes. France has 1,400,000 tons, and the United States of America have barely 1,000,000 tons, exclusive of vessels not registered for oversea trade. Do not forget that at one time the United States of America divided the trade of the Atlantic with us. Mr. DEAKIN : Before the war ? Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : Before" she became a high tariff country. I know the war drove her undoubtedly into high tariffs and into bad ways. Mr. DEAKIN : War destroyed her shipping. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : As Mr. Deakin says, it destroyed her shipping. Mr. DEAKIN : The " Alabama " helped to destroy her shipping. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : The " Alabama " and McKinley between them destroyed her shipping. Mr. DEAKIN : That is a matter of opinion as to McKinley. Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : If I were interested in British shipping financially, I would say, long may she (America) remain protectionist! With regard to the Colonies, Sir William Lyne was very disturbed when he left Sydney Harbour at the spectacle of half the shipping there flying a foreign flag. Well, Ido not think he need be very disturbed about our shipping trade with the Colonies. The British tonnage, sailing anel steam, in the inter-Colonial trade amounts to 20,500,000 tons. Mr. DEAKIN : Does that include Australian shipping—local steamers ? • Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : No, this is our shipping. Mr. DEAKIN : Ours is your shipping, too. Mr. GEORGE : I mean now our United Kingdom shipping. Mr. DEAKIN : All the world over ! Mr. LLOYD GEORCK . In all euir Colonies. Mr. DEAKIN : I thought you might refer only to those owned in Australia? Mr. LLOYD GEORGE : No. The foreign tonnage is 3,200,000. That is between one-sixth and one-seventh of ours. That is keeping a good distance ahead. I have the figures for Australia, if Mr. Deakin likes to

50—A. 5.

BSeyenth Day. 6 May 1907.

Preferential Trade. (Mr. Lloyd <