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to Viscount Lyons, Her Majesty's Ambassador at Paris, in order that the Ambassador might place him in communication with the proper authorities in that capital for the purpose. The particular method by which the arrangements desired by Canada could be carried into effect was not finally settled at that time, whether it should be done by ordinary legislation or by means of a Special Convention between the Dominion and France. Lord Salisbury, however, decided that while the formal negotiations between the Governments of England and France were to be conducted by Lord Lyons, the settlement of the details was to be made by Sir Alexander Galt.
In accordance with this, Lord Lyons arranged with M. Waddington, then Minister of Foreign Affairs in France, that Sir A. Galt should have an interview with M. Teisserenc de Bort, Minister of Agriculture and Commerce. Having regard to the state of public affairs in France at that time, Sir A. Galt thought it desirable to limit his endeavours to a reduction of the French duty on Canadian shipping in exchange for a reciprocal reduction of the Canadian duty on French wines; and the negotiations with that object went on directly between M. Teisserenc de Bort and Sir A. Galt, under the general sanction of the Ambassador. all but settled, but opposition in the Chamber of Deputies prevented the proposed At one time the arrangements were treaty being then concluded.
Several Postal Money Order Conventions have since been entered into between Canada and foreign countries; and at the International Cable Conference of 1884, Sir Charles Tupper, who had succeeded Sir A. Galt as High Commissioner for Canada, signed the Convention on behalf of the Dominion in the same way as the repro- sentatives of other contracting Powers.
More recently, when it was decided to reopen negotiations upon certain trade questions pending between Canada and Spain, Her Majesty's Government were pleased -to grant to Sir Charles Tupper joint plenipotentiary powers with the Ambassador at Madrid for negotiating the proposed treaty. Sir Charles Tupper alluded to this on a public occasion in the City in the following terms:-"So far as the foreign commerce "of Canada is concerned, Lord Derby and Lord Granville have responded in the most generous spirit to the wish of Canada that her representative should be charged, as plenipotentiary, with the duty and responsibility of negotiating treaties in regard to foreign Powers; and they did me the higher honour of at once placing me on equal "terms with Sir Robert Morier, in the negotiation of a treaty with Spain." In a recent speech in Canada, Sir Charles Tupper announced his intention of going soon to Madrid to resume the negotiations.
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I ought to add that some time ago, upon a postal question, I was accredited in the same way to Lord Lyons by Lord Granville, and placed in direct communication with M. Cochery, who at that time controlled the French postal and telegraphic services.
The immediate cause of my asking permission to bring the question before the Conference is that very recently communications of a private nature have been passing with the French Customs authorities, on a matter of much coinmercial interest to New Zealand. A trade in our frozen meats has sprung up at Paris, and it is capable of large extension; but the heavy duty of 10 fr. 50 c. per 100 kilos, lately increased under fresh protective legislation to 12 fr., has hitherto been greatly in the way of a profitable trade. An opportunity, nevertheless, exists now for reconsidering these duties, with a view to reciprocal trade advantages; and I have been asked to go over to Paris and discuss the particular points requiring arrangement. permission of Her Majesty's Government to communicate with Lord Lyons, and I propose accordingly to ask through his Lordship with the French authorities, for this object.
But in the meantiine, as there are many commercial questions in which reciprocal trade concessions might be secured with advantage to British interests generally, and to Australasian interests in particular, by friendly negotiations between the Australasian colonies and other countries, it seems desirable for the Conference to consider the general question whether the privilege should not be extended to all Colonial Govern- ments alike, of being allowed to negotiate commercial treaties with foreign powers, under the sanction and supervision of Her Majesty's Ambassadors at foreign courts. The Foreign Office would reserve to itself, of course, the right of judging in each case as to the expediency of the proposed arrangements, and as to their bearing on the commercial interests of this country; but generally it will no doubt be admitted that the removal of difficulties affecting Colonial trade which arise out of foreign tariffs, must tend to the advantage of the trade and commerce of the Empire.
Westminster Chambers,
27 April 1887.
F. D. BELL.
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No. 44.
SUGAR BOUNTIES IN RELATION TO OUR COLONIES.
MEMORANDUM BY MR. NEVILLE LUBBOCK.
THE sugar industry is carried ou in several of our Colonies and in India. In some of the West India Colonies and Mauritius it is the main industry, and that by which the bulk of the population is supported. In Queensland and New South Wales it promises to become a large industry, and during the few years prior to 1884 it was increasing rapidly, and would undoubtedly have continued to do so provided that the natural price of sugar could be permanently secured. In Natal, Fiji, Ceylon, Canada, sugar is pro- duced, and also in India. The known production of our Colonies is about 500,000 tons. The industry is thus a large one, but, what is of more importance, it is capable of almost indefinite expansion. The production of sugar, moreover, is of far greater importance and advantage to those countries in which it is carried on from an industrial point of view than is the case with most products of the soil, such as wheat, maize, rice, coffee, tea, cocoa, &c., for the following reason. It is not only an agricultural, but also a manu- facturing industry, requiring technical education of a high order for its success. The advantage of this is not only that it provides a profitable field of employment in our Colonies for intelligent, skilled mechanics-an advantage to the working classes of this country, of which they are not sufficiently aware,--but the fact of such skilled artizans being brought into contact with the ignorant coloured labourers of our tropical possessions is of the highest profit, from an educational point of view, to those classes.
those only who have seen the immense improvement which has taken place in the condition of the labouring population, apart from the mere wages question, in those districts of Europe where the sugar industry has of late years been introduced, can realize how important an element this is in the consideration of the sugar question. I therefore think that the sugar industry is one which the Colonies would not be wise to neglect.
During the last four years the sugar industry has been passing through a crisis of the gravest character. Since the beginning of 1884 the price of sugar has fallen about 40 per This fall has been entirely caused by the enormous increase in the production of sugar in Europe, an increase which has been brought about by the large bounties granted by European Governments on the production of beet sugar in their respective countries. The "Deutsche Zucker Industrie," a newspaper devoted to the interests of the German sugar industry, and a thoroughly well-informed journal, recently published an estimate of the amount of the bounties now being granted to thes sugar industries of the different European countries. The following are the amounts:-
cent.
beet
Germany France
Austria
Belgium Holland
Total
£
1,826,690
3,280,000
1,036,667
813,000
309,000
7,326,012
Russia is left out of this calculation; but, although at present Russia does not grant bounties, she did last year give a large bounty on the export of sugar, and there is no certainty that she will not again do so. Such bounties, if granted, are not, however, likely to be permanent, and Russia may be left out of the question.
The total known sugar production of the world is about 5,000,000 tons; of this quantity about one-half, or 2,500,000 tons, is bect, and of this quantity Russia produces about 500,000 tons, leaving about 2,000,000 tons as the production of the rest of Europe.
It will thus be seen that the bounties granted amount on the whole to about 31. 10s. per ton, the value of beet sugar in the English market being about 127. per ton. This large figure of 37. 10s. per ton, however, not granted by all the Governments, but is largely accounted for by the very excessive bounty at present given by France, and which commenced only last year under a new law, evidently passed under inisapprehension and ignorance of its effect by the French Legislature, and there scems every probability that the bounty now granted will shortly be reduced.
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Assuming this to be so, and that the bounties are reduced to a figure not exceeding per ton, it will still readily be seen that industries without any such artificial aid are placed at a considerable disadvantage, so much so, that it is impossible they can assume
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