Page:The World's Famous Orations Volume 5.djvu/236

 ASQUITH

ively in this country upon protected countries without imposing a tax upon food or raw mate- rial. I give you one or two figures which have been put in very striking form by Mr. Sydney Buxton. He takes Russia and the United States, the two most protected countries in the world. Suppose you want to retaliate upon Russia. Out of our total imports from Russia, amounting to 25 millions, 23 millions, or eleven-twelfths, con- sist of foodstuffs and raw materials; so that we can not retaliate upon Russia without at the same time injuring either our working classes or our manufacturers, or both. What is the case of the United States? Out of 127 millions of imports from the United States in 1902, 108 millions, or five-sixths, were also foodstuffs or raw mate- rials. The moment you begin to translate these vague platform phrases into practise, you find that they can not be carried out as a policy with- out doing to you here in Great Britain as great, and probably more, harm than the persons against whom that policy is used.

Mr. Chamberlain says he has two objects in view. The first is to maintain and increase the prosperity of the United Kingdom, and the sec- ond is to cement the unity of the Empire. We all agree as to these two objects, to which, I will venture to add, not by way of qualification, but simply by way of supplement, that the one end must not be sought, and can not be attained, at the expense of the other. In the long run, depend upon it, you will not promote the unity 202

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