[TO THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR:1
Sin,—In Mr. Chamberlain's fiscal proposals the effect of the increased cost of living resulting from the preferential duties on corn and meat is to be neutralised by reductions in the duties on sugar and tea. It is, however, certain that we shall
• The trade with Austria-Hungary given above is only that which goes to Austrian porta, and is merely a small part of the real trade. be obliged to treat the Crown Colonies on the same general lines as the self-governing Colonies, and that, consequently, the import-duties on tea and sugar will be preferential. It becomes, therefore, a question of some moment to consider whether the amount of tea and sugar imported from foreign cl un ,ries will not be sufficient to prevent the price of the whole of these commodities consumed -in England from falling to the level which it would fall to if there were no preferential treatment of the Crown Colonies and India. May not Mr. Chamberlain's proposal be in effect that the British consumer, as a compensation for having to give a bounty to the Canadian wheat-grower, is to be forced to give bounties to the Indian and West Indian tea and sugar cultivators ? Probably the dependencies could be forced, to give some adequate quid pro quo, and it may well be, that the real danger of the situation will be the temptation to get too good terms out of our dependencies under cover of the com- pensation due to us for our preferential treatment of their products. But my present point is that in the scrutiny to which I hope you intend to subject Mr. Chamberlain's figures, I hope that this consideration, though not one of the first importance, may not escape attention.—I am, Sir, &c.,
LEONARD DARWIN.
[Major Darwin's point is of the first importance, though, as far as we know, it has not been raised before. Clearly India and Ceylon will want a preference for their tea and coffee. The West Indies when they demand it for their sugar will, however, have to be told that in the Sugar Convention we pledged ourselves to give them no preference. Then will no doubt follow one of those disagreeable inter-Empire disputes which Lord Rosebery has described so eloquently this week. Protection always ends in a tangle of thorns.—En. Spectator.]
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