168 PREFERENTIAL TARIFF 



INDIA WITHIN THE EMPIRE. 



I come now to the next natural division of my 

 subject, which arises from the consideration that 

 India is part of the British Empire, and that its 

 interests and its wishes cannot be ignored in any 

 movements which affect the policy of the Empire 

 in relation to international trade. The cardinal 

 feature of this consideration is the fact that India 

 has already a tariff and that its tariff, although the 

 rates have varied considerably from time to time 

 and have in the past been materially higher than 

 they are now, is essentially designed for the 

 purposes of revenue and not with the view to 

 Protection. 



In these circumstances it is of the utmost 

 consequence that those who are responsible for the 

 economic future of India should consider carefully 

 what position India is to occupy in regard to 

 the British Empire policy. Looking at the facts 

 of the case and the admissions of foreign writers 

 and statesmen, there can be no doubt that the 

 policy of free importation practised by the United 

 Kingdom in regard to her own Home market has 

 been of great advantage to countries like Germany 

 and the United States in carrying out their own 

 economic views, and in building up their own in- 

 dustries. But for the facility which British policy 

 has created for the disposal of their surplus pro- 

 ducts the high tariff policy they have pursued would 

 not have been attended with the success which 

 they have actually enjoyed. The counterpart of 

 that high tariff policy, pursued in exclusively 

 national interests by foreign countries, has been 

 the exploitation of such markets of the world as 

 have been left open to their efforts. 



In the British Empire, however, the United 



