The Anglo-Australian Talks The conversations begun between the Australian Ministers
headed by Mr. Lyons and a corresponding group from the British Cabinet headed by Mr. MacDonald can range over the whole field of Anglo-Australian commerce, as it has been developing since the Ottawa Agreement. But notoriously their main subject is meat. No policy to restore and expand the livestock industry of Great Britain—an industry quite fundamental to what is left of British farming—can succeed without diminish- ing pro tanto our oversea meat-imports. The question then arises as to what the incidence of this diminution shall be upon our chief oversea sources of supply ; which are Australia, New Zealand, Argentina and Uruguay, with, for some purposes, Brazil, the United States, and Canada. Involved in our answer is not merely how much meat we shall buy from them, but how much goods. they will be able to buy from us. The United Stittes is not, per head, a large customer for our goods ; nor is Canada. But Australia, New Zealand, and the South American countries are ; and all, too, are -in -varying degrees our debtors. It will not be easy to -decide be- tween them without rendering more difficult both the sale of our goods to them and the payment of their debts to us. Yet on the other side, with still more primary claims, stands the British farmer.
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