Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1903-10-08
TARIFF STRUGGLE IN ENGLAND
Logic of the Commercial situation
Driving Great Hritain To Pro-
tectiNe Policy.

The correspondence between Messrs.
Balfour and Chamberlain throws light
| on the rather mystifying situatiaD
| brought about by the Iatters' resignation
| from the British cabinet just at the time
| the Balfour government was making
public declaration of its belief in the
protective principle advocated by Cham
| berlain. In brief. Chamberlain explains
! that public opinion is not yet ready to go
the full length OF his programme of a
| general tariff, with preferential duties
| for imports from the colonies, but he be-
! lives it will go far enough to sustain
! the government in policy of retalitory
! tariffs. Furthermore, he believes that
he can do more to advance the cause of
the commercial unity of the empire in
| Independent position than he can ac-
! complish while working under the limi-
| tations Of the official proprieties. In
! his formal reply Mr.. Balfour takes espe-
cial care to announc" his entire agree
| ment with the plaL advocated by Mr..
! Chamberlain. He writes:
| Agreeing. as do. with you that the time
/ has come when change should be made
/ In the fiscal canons by which We bound our
! selves in our commercial dealings with 9th
! er governments, il seems paradoXical in
! deed, that you should leave the cabinet at
| the same time that others of my colleagues
| are leaving 1t who disagree on the very
| point with us both. Yet / cannot but admit
| that there is some force in your argu-
| ments in support OF that course, based as
/ they are, upon your special and personal
relation with that portion of the contro-
Versy which deals with colonial preference
1 You have done more than any man living
or dead o bring home to the citizens of the
empire the consciousness of imperial obi
! cation and inteTdepenGenCe between the
various fragments into which the empire
is geographically divided.
81 believe you to be right in holding that
this !nterdependence should find expression
| In our commercial as well as in our polit-
iCal and military relations. / believe with
/ you that a closer fiscal union between the
mother country and the colonies would
benefit the trade of both, and that if such
closer union could be established on fitting
terms its advantage to both parties would
| increase with years and as the colonies
grew in wealth and population"
But he further agree with Mr.. Cham
belain that the time is not yet ripe for
the introduction of this whole pro-
gramme; that it is more practical to
/ take half loaf by dissociating the plan
| an imperial zollverein from the other
)ranch of the proposed change of policy
Ito which we both attach Importance
1 and which we believe the. country is
/ prepared to consider without preju-
| dice.
Thus we have a fairly clear statement
OF the lines upon which English parties
are likely to divide, the protectionists
making their first battle on the demand
/ for retalitatory tariffs and their oppen-
ents standing for the free trade policy
which has been the settled policy of the
| United Kingdom since 1916. Necessarily
1t means very considerable realignment
of parties and parliament election in
| the near future, in which the liberal par
/ ty, if it can patch up its internal differ
/ ences on the subject of leadership. will
/ have more than an equal chance of sue
cess. The one man that can pull the
party together, Rosebery. has not yet
/ spoken, But free trade victory would
not settle the matter. The logic of the
1 present commercial situation is driving
England inevitably to a protective pol
icy.