The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-10-02
BALFOUR SPEAKS FOR TARIFF,
GIVE Us POWER TO NEGOTIATE,
THE PREMIER SAYS.
He Admits That the Country Is Not Ripe
for Taxation OF Food and That Ills
Plan Is u Palliative. Not . Cure, hut
srsrtai Canie Dcspatch 10 THE sun.

He Says He VIII Lead the Crusade
Special Cable Despatch 10 THE SUN.
SHEFFIELD, Oct. 1.-The Earl of Derby
presided at the opening of the thirty-eghth
annual conference of the Conservative
Associations here to-day. The delegates
who are opposed to the scheme Of prefer
entail tariffs sat together. II was evident
that they were in the minority.
Long before s o'clock the Drill Hall was
filed to Overlooking. Five minutes before
the hour Prime Minister Balfour arose.
He was cheered again and again. He an
nornced his intention Of speaking on one
subject only namely. tariff reform, which
had come prominently to the front owing
10 tie growing uneasiness among men Of
varied opinions as to British trade in its
relations with the trade Of the world.
Mr.. Chamberan's speech in May would
not have had the effect it produced had it
NOT fallen upon ground prepared for it by
circumstances The threatening of Canada
for granting preference to Great Britain
had brought home to the British their help
lrssness TO deal with such situation.
Tariff attacks could only be met by tariff
replies Prolonged cheers.
Protection in foreign countries was
growing daily. 1t was more and more
separating the nations, commercially, one
from another. The British had been dream
ers and for fifty years had atched without
saving word a wall OF hostile tariffs being
built against them, and the British Colonies
we're building up system of protection
which, when it reached its natural con-
10 t1or fNr hn
manufacturers of Great Britain to export
their goods to them az to export those
goods to America or other protected
countri
The present state OF affairs was absolutely
inconsistent with free trade as Golden
understood 1t. Referring to the treaty
negotiated by Golden between Great Britain
and France in 1850, Mr., Balfour said that
that treaty made him ask whether Golden
was indeed Cobdenite.
According to those negotiations 1t was
the opinion Of Gladstone and Golden that
it was legitimate to keep on taxes and
solely to put pressure on foreign Govern
ment to relax his No free trader could
deny that he had suffered profoundly by
foreign tariffs. Free trade was an empty
name and vain farce
Golden never dreamed Of tho modern
trust system built up under protection,
which inflicted injury upon British capital
and British workmen.
For the present state Of Affairs Mr.. Balfour
admitted that he knew Of no cure; the i'll
had gone too far, but he said he know Of
palliative. Loud chsers.l
A nation that deprived Itself Of It's power
49, ,ayLl
bargains. He asked that freedom be given
the Government to negotiate. loud and
prolonged cheers.l That power he asked
the country TO give the Government. from
whichever party It might be drawn.
He did not think the country ripe for the
taxation Of food. The evils Of the taxation
Of food kept within narrow limits had been
exaggerated beyond what reason and logic
justified. He advised the Unionist party
AZ the best result Of his reflections that q
tax on food was not, with public opinion In
the state In which It was, within the limits
Of practical politics.
go tina no man could tomorrow or hSre-
after say that he was obscure he asked and
answered questions to make himself quite
clear az to whether he wished to reverse
the policy Of 1856 He remarked that
that controversy was Of no interest to-day,
circumstances being entirely different
Regarding the fiscal traditions of the
last two generations he proposed to ask
the people to reverse, annul and delete
altogether from the maxims of public
conduct the doctrine that taxation must
never be put on except for revenue pur-
noses. (Cries Of Heart Heari'I In his judg-
ment the country ought never to have de-
prived itself of that liberty and 1t ought
publicly to resume in the face of Europe
and the world that liberty Of which 1t had
deprived itself.
OF course, that liberty so resumed may
be abused. 1t may get into incompetent
hands. but 1t should be resumed. l'Hearl
hearl'
This country should again have what
every other country in the world possesses
and that Of which no other country In the
world would think Of depriving itself
the liberty to negotiate and something to
negotiate with. Cheers
It might be asked why he wanted to re-
sumo this liberty of negotiation, seeing
how well the country had prospered all
these years without it, 1t was his object
to mitigate as far as circumstances would
allow the injury done by hostile tariffs
Those hostile tariffs have inflicted upon
Great Britain injury of double kind. They
have divided one fragment Of the empire
fiscally from the other.
They have diverted British industries
into channels into which they would have
never naturally flowed. They have re-
stricted and hampered the British export
trade, and their effect has acted and reacted
over the whole community, the community
of consumers and the community OF pro-
ducers for home consumption.
There Is another evil. that is, insecurity.
which Mr.. Balfour said he feared some
great branches Of industry suffer and must
suffer 80 long as Great Britain permits
protective duties in combination with
trusts to pour into this country at unnatural
prices goods which under a true system
OF free trade-namely, system In which
every country produces according to Its
natural capacity--would never be able TO
compete with and would never be able
10 outstrip like goods of home origin.
Another question that will be asked is,
Will the proposed remedy be completel
Il will not be complete even II 1t can be tried
in It's integrity. and it cannot be tried In
lis integrity because no believed that the
country would not tolerate tax on 1000
but undoubtedly 1t would be useful.
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