The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1870-11-19
THE PACIFIC
Commercial Abbertiser,
SATURDAY. NOVEMBER 10.
Reciprocity Treaties, Anncxa-
ton and Federation.

4 ny dcclUc1l6 vi icSo lupOEG Ihdu CAbhCh A~fhHS
l~egislated upon the principle of commercial re-
s~triction, and upon the view that each section
should produce for itself whatever it required,
rather than receive anything from another in ex-
change for its own products, and each, often see
ing demonstrated the practical loss and inconye-
nience of carrying out such principles in the case
of their immediate neighbors, invoke to their aid
reciprocity treaties or analogous devices to escape
the injurious effect of such Legislation. In these
cases, proximity, each at the same time possessing
certain products in excess which the other has
not, renders the advantage to the public OLA
free exchange of such products, too obvious for
interested or prejudiced classes to conceal or con-
trovert. Every commercial reciprocity treaty
that has been made is an admission that more
free trade is a good thing. f
If the advantages of mutually admitting each
others products duty free, or at a low duty, in
the case of next-door neighbors, be so obvious, it
would be difficult to show why the application of
the same principle would not be advantageous in
the case of next-door but one neighbors, and ad-
hitting this. there is no line to be drawn
universal free trade would result.
We notice some instructive events developing
themselves of late in this regard in the Austria
liam Colonies. As lie well known, different sec
tons of Australia are independently governed.
They have, moreover, universal or nearly universal
suffrage. Z" Protection to native industry was
too captivating a term not to be warmly espoused
by the masses, and they sent to represent them
men who adhered to. this policy. The practical
result has become almost too preposterous to be
borne. Up aud dowL their rivers, and along
thair r-rrr4ss. hou,I-.;oa kLo,o No.. Io;.-
parallel Of latitude or longitude, they have GUS
tom house officers pretending to watch that the
production or manufactures which happen to be
found more cheaply on one side of a certain
parallel shall not be taken over on to the other
side, without paying duty. This has become
scch a nuisance and SO palpably absurd that an
active agitation for a Federation of all the Aus
tralian Colonies has been started as the only
remedy for such a state of affairs. 1t is merely
a question of time when this Federation will take
place. Still the greater portion of the people
and press remain protectionists, and we find one
of the late Melbourne papers giving advice to
the people of California, who, it found, were
lamenting the competition from the Eastern
States since the completion of the Pacific Rail-
way, and suggesting as a remedy, protection by
duties on imports from the East. This remedy is
logically dedueed, the principle of protection be-
ing once admitted.
For a long time it was hoped that the United
States would make a reciprocity treaty with us
that is to say, they were expected to give up in
our favor certain duties on our products, and
amongst others q duty equal to about one huDd-
red per cent. on our sugars, (but which it was
supposed they were to retain on all other foreign
sugars) in return for our taking some ten per
Cent duty off certain articles which we imported
from them. No one ever questioned the advan-
tage to this kingdom of such an arrangement lift
could be effected but We may now admit that
the advantage to the United States of breaking in
upon a great principle of their legislation in our
favor was not so obYious-unless, and this was
the main argument used in the United States, it
was with the object of binding this country SO
closely to them that separation would become i'm
possible. 1t was TO have been a " bears hugh
and the argument was openly advanced in favor
Of it, that such a treaty must lead to annexation.
The benefit of getting the immense market of
the United States opened to our main product,
sugar, with the enormous advantage of having
three to four cents per pound duty on all other
foreign sugar. was 60 obvious that we may well
NC CACAcC4 " ONCLAOOAAnS ~ buDcCQucQE ucSLlnY
that was in store for us-nay, we may almost be
excused for having a hankering after annexation
itself to secure so enormous a subsidy, as that of
doubling at one stroke the ~value7of our main
product. Although the hopes of those who
look for either the one or the other are for the
present destroyed, we still think we notice SUBJ
stratum of annexation feeling existing, which gets
stirred up and brought to the surface every now
and then, whether by plantation tronbIes, fan
cied political wrongs, or by Indigestion. If a
man feels that anything is going wrong, and sees
no immediate prospect of righting it, it is a relief
to his feelings to dream of, or tolthreaten,
annexation.
We believe that this hankering after something
that we have not been able to get, has had a
most injurious effect on this country. We have
neglected to put our shoulders to the wheel, as
otherwise might have done, had we not lived
in hopes of this something turning up. We
have been like a poor man waiting for his rich
uncle to die, or a gambler for a turn in his luck,
1t is time the idea of either reciprocity or
annexation be dropped once for all. Let US
depend upon our own resources, and upon the
markets or the world, and make the most of
which we have, and of which no
one can deprive US.
We believe the time will soon arrive when the
civilized nations of the earth viii occupy them
selves more in studying how low they can FIX the
duties on their own imports, than IN endsaEering
to lower the duties imposed by their neighbors-
forSif they place them too hight it is their own
loss, and their own business. q The consumer
pays the duty. Our sugars, for instance, taking
least an average of our different grades, nett
us about the same thing in San Francisco, Auck-
land, Sydney and Melbourne, whilst the duties are
different at each port ranging from about I cents
to 34@4 cents per pound. The consumer in each
country pays this difference, or the duty; we do
not. In fine, we look upon the much discussed
high duties on our sugars in San Francisco, as a
good deal Of n bug-bear, inasmueh rs they pay it