The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1903-07-09
CHAMBERUAIN'S SCHEME.

! Harold Cox, the secretary of the
Golden club, contributes to the July
number of the North American Re
view an article on Mr. Chamberlain s
Protection Scheme" in which he Sc
verely criticises the recent proposals
of the British colonial secretary. A
fundamental difficulty in the way of
the realization of Mr.. Chamberlain S
purpose. Mr.. Cox points out, is the
fact that no scheme of preferential
tariffs can be made to fit into the gen
eral freetrade policy of the United
Kingdom, since under that policy, ia
vOritism to colonial producers is as
much barred as favoritism to home
producers. Indeed favOritism to
colonial producers, shall, on grounds of
equity, be even more barred than ia
voritism to home producers. since the
colOnists make no contribution to the
imperial eXcheQuer and to the general
cost of defending the empire. Mr.
Chamberlain ideal seems to be the
German ZOllverein and the American
Union; but he has not taken the
trouble to examine what are the es-
sential features of those great feder-
atiOns. There are no tariff bound
aries between the different states Of
the union. and within the German
ZOllverein all customs lines have been
abolished. But the conditions per-
tanning TO the Zollverein and the
Union necessitateS common eXche-
quer or treasury, for it can easily be
seen that if the duties levied at Bos-
ton harbOr, for instance. were paid
into the Massachusetts state treas
ury. the commercial union of the
United States would be at an end
But there is no reason to believe that
a common eXchequer within the
British empire is practicable, mas
much as the colonies impose duties
upon the imports from the mother
country, and there is little prospect
of their disseminating that policy
That being the case. the cost to
Great Britain of Mr. Chamberlain s
scheme would be serious. 1t would
increase the price of food products
and raw materials, and by thus rails
ing the cost of British manufactures
would place "a serious handicap upon
Great Britain in her effort to maintain
a commanding position in the mar
kets of the world On one inevitable
result of Mr. Chamberlain's policy.
Mr.. Cox lays special emphasis. AS a
nation. the United States would have
no reason to complain of Great Brit
aims adopting the protective policy,
since that has been the policy pursued
by the American people themselves.
1t is American manufacturers who
have been responsible for the prOtec-
ton policy, but they would not be in
Britain became prOteCtiOnist nation,
whereas American farmers, who have
themselves suffered from American
protection would be ruined, and would
thus be led to harbor the most hos
tile feelings against Great Britain.
Mr. Cox concludes:
This silly Zollverein craze. sure
ly, could never have obtained even
the partial support which has been
accorded to it, if English statesmen
had troubled to think out the princi-
pies upon which the wealth of ma
tions is based, or had taken the pains
to investigate the facts which are
essential to the controversy. Even
the prime minister did not hesitate
to repeat in his place in the house
Of commons the mOnstrous mis-state-
ment put about by prOtectionists, that
Great Britain's foreign trade is de-
Ginning. AS a matter of fact, Great
Brtains trade is more prosperous
than ever it was; her capital is in
creasing year by year, and her peO
pie are better fed and clothed and
housed than ever before No more
striking proof could be given of the
marvellous prosperity of Great Brit
ain than the fact that this little is
land was able to bear without Sc
rious strain the cost of three
years war, while her big protection
list neighbors on the continent are
faced with successive deficits upon
their peace expenditure. This same
little island maintains. at an enOr
nous annual cost, military and naval
forces that defend not herself alone
but her colonies as we'll Yet it is
lightheartedly proposed to break up
the system upon which this marvel
Gus prosperity has been reared and
to sacrifice the people who bear the
whole burden of the empire for the
benefit of small body of cOlonials
who make no return for the advan-
tages they already receive.