1922.] Council of Agriculture for England. 253 



diplomatic and otherwise, if any exception were commenced. 

 Nine-tenths of agriculturists were opposed to the removal of the 

 embargo which for a quarter of a century had assisted the cattle- 

 breeding industry to an amazing extent and offered the country 

 the greatest protection against starvation in time of war. Was 

 the House of Commons, without any appeal to the country on 

 the subject, going to decide the matter and remove the embargo, 

 thus laying the country open to the dangers which the Council 

 knew would be awaiting it if such a thing happened? 



The Minister outlined the position of the Government in the 

 matter, and said that he was quite content to abide by the decision 

 of the Council. He pointed cut that there was no such thing as 

 a Canadian embargo, as such. The policy of taking no stoie 

 cattle from anywhere overseas had been followed for the 1; st 

 twenty-six years and had been extraordinarily successful. Till 

 this year we had had practically no disease and our flocks and 

 herds had steadily grown. Parliament would have no right to alter 

 the deliberate policy, so long carried on by Governments, Liberal 

 and Conservative, with regard to live stock, which was the most 

 important side of the agricultural industry, without real and suffi- 

 cient reason. He then dealt one by one with the leasons that 

 had been brought forward, and said that he saw no argument 

 which would lead him to depart from the attitude taken up by 

 his predecessors, and that he would speak and vote and do his 

 utmost to defeat the resolution in favour of removing the em- 

 bargo when it came before the House of Commons. 



Mr. George Edwards, M.P., then spoke in favour of the re- 

 moval of the embargo and said he did so in the interests of 

 agriculture. 



Sir Merrik Burrell referred to Lord Northcliffe's recent speech 

 and mentioned a statement which had appeared in the Times 

 of 15th May, being a quotation from the Montreal Star. He was 

 me re prepared to place reliance upon that than upon statements 

 of certain newspaper leaders. The value of the agricultural 

 industry could not be measured by mere voting power. As the 

 country became more and more industrial, so the value of the 

 agricultural industry increased. All questions of agriculture 

 should be outside party politics. 



Mr, II. Herman (Leics.\ speaking as Vice-President of the 

 National Farmers' Union, representing 54 out of 56 branches 

 and 000 local branches, said that the Union had a mandate from 

 them to oppose the lifting of the embargo. He made the offer 



