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To Te To Le

PUB RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 885

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8.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE

BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO |

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German, French, and other lines of steam-ships trading between European and Eastern or Australian ports and calling at British ports en route.

These steam-ship lines (though, of course, competing with British lines trading to the Colonies) do not figure to any important extent in the entrances and clearances in the United Kingdom trade with the Colonies, their European ports of departure and arrival being Hamburg, Marseilles, and other ports outside the United Kingdom. Thus, though the North German Lloyd steamers, for example, call at Southampton to land or take on passengers and mails, they do not embark or discharge cargo, so that they are not included in the entrances and clearances at that port.

16. The majority of the foreign tonnage which enters into the home trade with the Colonies consists, as shown above, of sailing-vessels, of which a large proportion (over half) are of Norwegian nationality. These sailing-vessels are largely engaged in special branches of trade, e.q., Norwegian (and, to a smaller extent, Italian and German) sailing-vessels in bringing timber from Canada; German, Norwegian, and Italian sailing-vessels in bringing timber and wheat from Australia.

There is also a certain amount of Norwegian steam tonnage engaged in bringing food stuffs and deals from Canada. The foreign vessels cleared outwards from the United Kingdom to the British Colonies and possessions mostly carry coal, with a certain amount of pig-iron, cement, salt, heavy machinery, and bulky general cargo.

17. Tables are attached showing in detail the distribution by nationality of the foreign vessels, sail and steam, carrying cargo between the United Kingdom and its principal Colonies and possessions (Annex III).

18. The above account of the present state of facts as regards foreign participation in the carrying trade between the various parts of the Empire and of the corresponding practice of foreign countries requires to be supplemented by a statement of the present Treaty position, i.e., of how far we are bound by Treaty to accord to foreign countries and entitled by Treaty to claim from them participation-(1) in the home coasting trade, (2) in the colonial coasting trade, (3) in the trade between the mother country and its over-sea Colonies and possessions, (4) in the trade between the various Colonies and possessions.

19. As regards (1), viz., the home coasting trade, the present position seems to be that the countries entitled by Treaty or other international Agreement to share in our coasting trade include Austria-Hungary (Treaty of 1868), Belgium (exchange of Notes of 1898), Bulgaria (Agreement of 1897), and Greece (Treaty of 1886). Certain other countries (e.g., Japan) are entitled by Treaty to most-favoured-nation treatment as regards the United Kingdom coasting trade.

Certain countries (e.g., Sweden and Denmark), though having at present no Treaty claim to share in our coasting trade, make an express condition as to reciprocity in opening their own coasting trade to our vessels. (For details, see Annex VI).

20. As regards (2), viz., the colonial coasting trade, the present position is set out in Annex VIII. It will be seen that there is no Treaty under which the right to share in the coasting trade of all our Colonies and possessions is granted to any foreign country, but a few Treaties (mostly with unimportant countries from a maritime point of view) concede this right with respect to our Crown Colonies and certain self-governing Colonies which have adhered to those Treaties. Thus Greece has a Treaty right to share in the coasting trade of all our Colonies and possessions, except India, Canada, the Cape, and New South Wales. Paraguay appears to have similar rights, except in South Australia, New South Wales, Canada, New Zealand, and India; and the Argentine enjoys most-favoured-nation (but not national) treatment in alí extra-European British territories.

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21. As regards (3) and (4), i.e., trade between different parts of the British Empire, the Treaty position appears to be the same as that already indicated under (1) and (2),—that is, if we may safely assume that it is within our competence by domestic legislation to assimilate the trade between different portions of the Empire to coasting trade" properly so called, without risk of effective protest from countries (e.g., France) which have a Treaty claim to share in our foreign shipping trade, but not in our coasting trade proper. As against any such protest we might cite the precedents of Russia and the United States, and possibly of France itself in relation to the particular case of trade with Algeria. But it might conceivably be urged as against the validity of such precedents, that the distant and over-sen possessions to which they refer are not, in any case, separate political entities, with the power of separately denouncing or adhering to international Treaties. This argument is, no doubt, far from conclusive, but it is important to consider what is the view likely to be taken by foreign countries which have naturally an extensive power of retaliation

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on British vessels which use their ports.* No doubt, before any action were taken, the Law Officers' opinion would be sought on this point.

Assuming that any difficulty of this kind is surmounted, the Treaty position as regards inter-empire trade would appear to be identical with that as regards coasting trade. Thus, our Treaties with Austria-Hungary, Greece, and certain other countries would have to be "denounced " before steps could be taken by legislation in the United Kingdom to reserve the trade between the United Kingdom and any of the Colonies. The carrying trade between Canada, India, and New South Wales could apparently be reserved," if desired, without breach of any Treaty, and, generally speaking, the Treaty restrictions on the reservation of the inter-colonial trade would seem to be less formidable than those applying to the colonial trade with the United Kingdom, always assuming that inter-colonial trade could, without breach of Treaty or fear of retaliation, be assimilated to colonial coasting trade.

The restriction of the trade between particular Colonies to British vessels would naturally be a matter for colonial rather than Imperial legislation. It is also a question for consideration in relation to Treaty restrictions whether it would not be possible, so far as Treaty obligations are concerned, to restrict the trade between the United Kingdom and any particular Colony to British ships by means of a colonial law, in cases in which the Colony passing such a law is not bound by Treaty to admit foreign vessels to its coasting trade. If, for example, we are bound by Treaty to permit (say) Austrian vessels to enter and clear in United Kingdom ports from and to New Zealand, it might or might not be held to violate this Treaty for New Zealand to refuse to allow Austrian vessels to enter and clear at New Zealand ports from and to the United Kingdom. This is a question on which a legal opinion is desirable.

June 14, 1902.

A. E. B.

• Reference may be made to section 6 of the German Tariff Law of 1879: “Gooda proceeding from countries that treat goods or ships of German origin less favourably than those of other countries may, in so far as existing Treaties are not thereby violated, be burdened with a surtax ranging up to 50 per cent,” of the Tariff duty imposed on such goods."

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ANNEX I.

SUMMARY.

Shipping Trade within the Empire.

THE tonnage given refers to all vessels, sailing and steam, with cargoes or in ballast. For the purpose of this Statement trade between the various States of the Australian Commonwealth is regarded as inter-colonial.

The figures for inter-colonial trade refer to the last year for which statistics are available- mostly to 1900.

1. Entries and clearances in trade between the United Kingdom and British Colonies and Possessions (1901)

Total..

Tonnage

of British Vessels.

Tonnage of Foreign Vessels.

Total Tonnage,

Sailing..

Steam

922,000

9,944,000

680,000 1,602,000

514,000 10,458,000

10,866,000 1,194,000 12,060,000

2. Entries and clearances in the trade between the various British Colonies and Possessions

Sailing..

Steam ..

991,000 474,000 1,466,000

20,463,000 2,836,000 23,289,000

Tolai..

·

Sailing

Steam..

Total..

21,444,000 3,310,000 24,754,000

1,913,000 1,154,000 3,067,000

30,397,000 3,350,000 33,747,000

32,810,000 4,504,000 36,814,000

United Kingdom

Cape of Good Hope

Zanzibar Protectorate

British India

Dominion of Canada

Coasting Trade Proper (Entries).

(For other Colonies information is wanting as regards

oasting trade.)

Coasting trade-Total (so far as recorded)

de of qu

62,464,000

4,408,000

9,000

9,815,000

3,845,000† 55,809,000

201,000 4,609,000

17,361,000

33,000

460,000 10,275,000

577,000 17,928,000

36,000

84,041,000

4,816,000 88,657,000

* Other than native craft.

† Nearly the whole of this is in ballast.