Parliament •
On Thursday, February 4, the Chancellor of the Exchequer explained the scheme for the fiscal changes on which we have written in a leading article. Subject always to reservations connected with negotiations at Ottawa in the summer, or elsewhere, the main points arc these : a general 10 per cent. tariff on imports with the few, but immensely important, exceptions of wheat, meat, fresh fish caught by British fishermen, raw cotton and wool and tea, at any rate until the next Budget ; the 10 per cent. not to be added to existing duties nor to interfere with those imposed under the Abnormal Imports Act ; an Advisory Committee of from three to six members to advise on the imposition and amount of duties, and to protect the consumer from exploitation ; the produce not only of the Dominions until the Con. ferenec at Ottawa, but also of the Crown Cokinies, Protectorates and Mandated territories, to be exempt ; power to be given to the Board of Trade to raise the duties against countries that discriminate against us. Here Mr. ChaMberlain seemed to smell a battle afar off. We fear that if we begin to play the game of tarifs de combat against infinitely more experienced players, we may not win. He spoke with his usual clearness and less usual moderation to a sympathetic House. He had an excellent opportunity for touching the heart of the House by his references to his father. The House always warms to such appeals, but here the references to his father and brother. were so graceful and so restrained that he touched chords of sympathy among all readers as well as hearers of his speech.
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