You can't buy 'em in London; but
you will all right, and here, too, as soon as we've got
the sense to favour British-grown tobacco."
"Lorne appreciates his family better than he did before,"
remarked his youngest sister, "because we're British
grown."
"You were saying you noticed two things specially in the
way?" said his father.
"Oh, the other's of course the awful poverty--the twelve
millions that haven't got enough to do with. I expect
it's an outside figure and it covers all sorts of qualifying
circumstances; but it's the one the Free Fooders quote,
and it's the one Wallingham will have to handle. They've
muddled along until they've GOT twelve million people in
that condition, and now they have to carry on with the
handicap. We ask them to put a tax on foreign food to
develop our wheat areas and cattle ranges. We say, 'Give
us a chance and we'll feed you and take your surplus
population.' What is to be done with the twelve million
while we are growing the wheat? The colonies offer to
create prosperity for everybody concerned at a certain
outlay--we've got the raw materials--and they can't afford
the investment because of the twelve millions, and what
may happen meanwhile. They can't face the meanwhile--that's
what it comes to."
"Fine old crop of catchwords in that situation," Mr
Williams remarked; and his eye had the spark of the
practical politician.
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