A POLITICAL CONUNDRUM.
LTO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR:1
Sra,—Mr. Balfour has given his party a riddle which will puzzle the most ingenious brains to solve,—i.e.," How to be and not to be at the same time." In his Birmingham speech he declared that he never would agree to any tax or tariff being placed "on food or raw material," and at the same time he proposes that as soon as the swing of the pendulum returns the Unionist Party to power he will summon another Colonial Conference and arrange that its members shall not again be sent away without being united to the Mother- country by the bond of mutual preference. But as our Colonies can only offer to send us foodstuffs and raw material (on which Mr. Balfour refuses to place any import- duty), where can preference come in ? You cannot give a preference when there is nothing to prefer. It is simply a case of stalemate unless he can solve the ancient riddle and show us " how to be and not to be at the same time."—I am,
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