Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1903-10-14
TARIFF STRUGGLE In ENGLAND
Logic of the Commercial Situ&ti0u
Driving Great Britain to Pro-
tective Policy.

The correspondence between Messrs
Balfour and Chamberlain throws light
! on the rather mystifying situation
brought about by the iatters' resignation
from the British cabinet just at the time
the BalfOur government was making
public declaration of it's 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
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 &C
complish while working under the limi-
| tations Of the official proprieties In
his formal reply Mr.. Balfour takes espe-
c1al care to announce his entire agree
ment with the plan advocated by Mr.
Chamberlain. He writes:
Agreeing, as do, with you that the time
has come when a change should be mace
In the fiscal canons by which we bound our
selves in our commercial dealings with 9TH
er governments, it seems paradoxical, in
deed. that you should leave the cabinet at
the same time that others of rny colleagues
are leaving it who disagree on the very
point with us both. Yet l 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.
You have done more than any man living
or dead to bring home to the citizens of the
empire the consciousness of imperial obi
cation and interdependence between the
various fragments into which the empire
is geographically divided.
81 believe you to be right in holding that
this interdependence 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-
SIdmuo, LQdL II Is more prdCC1cdl TO
take half a loaf by dissociating the plan
of an imperial zollverein from the other
branch of the proposed change of policy
ITO which we both attach Importance
and which we beliere the country is
prepared to consider without preju-
dice.
Thus we have fairly clear statement
of the lines upon which English parties
are likely to divide, the protecticnists
making their first battle on the demand
for retalitatory tariffs and their open
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 a parliament election in
the near future, in which the liberal par
ty, if 1t can patch up it's 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 a free trade victory would
not settle the matter. The logic of the
present commercial situation is driving
England inevitably to a protective pol
icy.