Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1903-09-25
BAIFOUR'S TARIFF plan
IS FREE TRADER WITHIN
PRACTICAL BOUNDARIES
GREAT BRITAlN's POSITION HAS
IN MANY RESPECTS BEEN
DISASTRoUs-PR
TON.

London, September 15.-Premier Bal
four issued tonight the advance sheets
Of pamphlet on the subject. "lnsular
Free Trade" in which he presents at
length arguments in favor of a change
In Great Britain's fiscal policy. In in
Producing the pamphlet Balfour says
his purpose in issuing It is because II
would be impossible to put all the i'm.
portant points of this question within
the limits OF single speech, and
therefore, he says, the pamphlet may
be fitting preliminary to the speech
which he will shortly make. This UNI
doubtedly refers to the speech BalfDUg
will make at Sheffield on october LIST.
Balfour says he approaches the sub.
ject from the standpoint of a free trad.
Ell as far as contemporary Circum-
stances will permit. He continues:
Il am a free trader, but not of the
pattern which holds that the doctrine
Of free trade Is so universal IN its APP
plcat!on and is capable of an exact OK.
preston so that every conclusion "
which It logically leads must be &c.
cepted without hesitation ami without
reserve"
| The arguments presented throughout
the pamphlet vary little from those al.
ready enunciated, but the Premier
points out that as a result OF Eng
! lands policy of retaining a fiscal pol
J icy made for free-trade country in
q world of free traders, not for free.
trade country in world of protection
lists, the rate of her export trade has
not increased, and, in fact, has SER
iously diminished. Compared with past
years some departments show no in
crease. while others show symptoms o!
decay. The Premier asserts that there
is no reason to expect an improvement
Meanwhile Germany. America. France
Russia and even Great Britain's self,
governing colonies continue to build
up a protected interest within their
borders.
I Balfour says the mistakes made by
the free traders half a century age
. luNN l'll 'lNhN lht "ll NV
burdens and enjoying only half the al
vantages which should attach to thf
empire. He devOtes much space to tho
effect OF protection upon combinations
in countries in which protection exists
This, the Premier points ont, is to thc
disadvantage of the British manufaC.
turer, who Is unable to compete with
the manufacturer who Is able to sci
abroad at lower price than he Chargcs
for the same article at home. He gives
an instance of German steel in thi!
particular, saying that 1t is selling
manufacturer can possibly produce i
Tor.
BalfOur declares that the optimi2t'
who advocate a continuance of thu
free trade policy in spite Of the injur!
worked by protection on Great Brit
aims interests are foolish and thci
arguments little short of reckless. RI,
only possible hope of mitigation 0
the evil Is through negotiation, which
he says, can only appeal to self-inter
est in foreign protected countries, am
in the case Of the colonies to self-!r
tercsL coupled with sentiment.
Br,fOur concludes: Were | prnve
to be wrong my opinion on the funda
mental question would remain I'm
changed. Where we fail others ma.
succeed 1t cannot be right for Coun
try with frcc-trudc ideals to enter mt
competition with protcctiOniSt rivals
self deprived OF the only iRstrumen
, whereby their policy can conceivabl
be modified The most essential obicc
OOf our national efforts should he to &c
lid of the bonds with which We hay
, gratuitously entangled ourselves. Tn
precise manner in which We shout
use our regained liberty is important
=, yet, after all, only a secondary issue.
Balfour's pamphlet is a reprint q
: notes which circulated among his col
leagues in the Cabinet in the earl
: part of August and are now published
. he explains, because he thinks the
might gain larger circulation tina
that for which they were original
I written.
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