18 AUGUST 1906, Page 2

Acting in conformity with his recent statement in the House

of Commons, Sir Edward Grey has informed the Porte that the British Government is unable to accept the proposed three per cent. increase in the Custom-duties, on the ground of the inadequacy of the guarantees offered. The reasons for this attitude are well known and unanswerable. The burden of the increase in the Customs would fall chiefly on ourselves, though we are the only Power granting Turkish products free access to our markets, and we have no guarantee that the increased revenues will be devoted to reforms in Macedonia. Sir Edward Grey states that the British Government is dis- cussing the subject with the other Powers, so that his com- munication cannot be regarded in the light of an ultimatum.