Letters to the Editor .sx IRON AND STEEL .sx VIEWS ON IMPORT DUTIES .sx The letters printed below are a selection from the correspondence sent to " The Times " putting the arguments for and against a duty on imported iron and steel .sx Sir , - A great many people appear to have misgivings as to the effect the imposition of duties on foreign manufactured goods , and especially on iron and steel , may have on the shipping and shipbuilding industries of this country .sx The object of these duties is to protect our home trade and , by the resulting increased volume of production and consequent lowering of the cost of the article , to enable this country to compete more successfully in the world markets and so increase our exports .sx British shipping is to-day suffering from a scarcity of outward cargoes , and any policy that will increase our exports cannot be other than beneficial to our shipping industry .sx In fact , on October 8 , the Council of the Chamber of Shipping of the United Kingdom unanimously approved and adopted a Report in which they state :sx " It is essential to correct the disequilibrium of the balance of trade , and no other means are open to Great Britain than a drastic reduction in the volume of imports , either by total prohibition or by a general tariff .sx " As regards shipbuilding , under the steel rebate scheme 95 per cent .sx of the yards in this country are to-day using British steel .sx Again , practically all the liner companies in contracts for steamers stipulate that British steel must be used .sx Therefore , what is wanted in the shipping industry is not cheap Continental steel , but cheaper British steel .sx Surely the best chance of obtaining this is by restricting the millions of tons of foreign steel coming into this country yearly ( for October the imports of iron and steel were 275,000 tons) .sx This would enable our steel works to run at their full capacity , or at any rate at a much higher capacity than the 40 per cent .sx at which they are working to-day , with a consequent reduction in the cost of production of British steel .sx Yours truly , .sx H. R. CAYZER .sx M.P. , Portsmouth South .sx House of Commons , S.W.1 , December 8 .sx Sir .sx The correspondence in your columns on the subject of protection for the iron and steel industry has been of considerable interest as showing the widely divergent views between the manufacturers of steel and the users of the material .sx The claims made by the steel masters that a duty on iron and steel would cause a large increase in employment would seem to be contradicted by the figures given in the Economist of December 5 , which are as follows :sx This clearly shows the position and indicates that any duty on iron and steel would detrimentally affect a far Iarger number of workers employed in the finishing trades , who are , incidentally , paid a higher rate of wage .sx But there is another angle from which the subject , does not appear to have been approached namely , the cause of our higher costs as compared with the Continent .sx These seem very largely to be due to high and excessive managerial expenses , to which most of our large companies are subject .sx Sir , As the question of protection for iron and steel will be discussed in the House of Commons on Wednesday next , it is appropriate that Labour Members of Parliament should be reminded of the following views on this matter expressed by trade union leaders :sx The RT .sx HON .sx John Jones , President of the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation ( John Bull , July 19 , 1930) :sx " We must have some form of protection for the steel trade , as lower wages and conditions on the Continent would otherwise give the foreign producer a competitive advantage in the present condition of world trade .sx There can be little doubt that safeguarding in the motor industry has been beneficial , and the fears of free traders that the prices to the home buyer would rise have not been justified .sx " Mr. WALTER DODGSON , Divisional Secretary of the Iron and Steel Confederation ( Sheffield Telegraph , May 9 , 1930 ) :sx " I am personally in agreement with Mr. Baldwin concerning the urgent need for some form of safeguarding for the iron and steel trades .sx At the present time the iron and steel trades are in a lamentably depressed condition , and some measure of safeguarding would be of advantage to the trades in question .sx " Mr. J. T. BROWNLIE , President of the Amalgamated Engineering Union ( Daily Mail , May 8 , 1930 ) :sx " At present large quantities of finished engineering products are being imported .sx They are manufactured in conditions less favourable to the workman than those obtaining here in regard to wages , overtime , and piece-work rates .sx " This , coupled with the fact that large numbers of our own members are unemployed , makes me think that something must be done to safeguard the industry .sx " I have always believed in the policy of safeguarding what belongs to oneself wages , hours , and opportunities .sx This is only sound trade unionism , and , applying the same idea , I believe we must safeguard the Empire .sx " Yours faithfully , .sx SCOTTISH CHARACTER .sx Sir , We are grateful to you for the admirable account in your columns of the Prime Minister's speech on Friday , November 27 , and we are grateful for the wonderful example of its broadcasting , which enabled millions of hearers to enjoy greatly a speech which brought out so well that side of Scottish character of which we are all proud .sx One felt certain that the Prime Minister could not omit reference to that class of mind which is so well represented in Scotland one which in humble circumstances and against enormous difficulties continues research into the realm of Nature until it is successfully accomplished .sx At once four names leap to the mind Thomas Edwards , the Banffshire naturalist ; George Don , the Forfar botanist ; Hugh Miller , the Cromarty stonemason and geologist ; and Robert Dick , baker , botanist , and geologist , of Thurso .sx Have I not this year been by the place where Dick's Herbarium is preserved at Thurso , containing as it does the Holy Grass which he discovered in the upland meadows by the Thurso river , and the reed-grass from the swamps of Loch Durran ; and have I not been to the Dwarfie Stone in Hoy this August where Hugh Miller had carved the initials of his name ?sx Among all the charming phrases used by the Prime Minister was his eloquent allusion to the two great Scottish scientists ; but Homer nodded , and it is only reported in the briefest way , and an incorrect allusion is alone given to Dick .sx This ardent investigator , after a week's hard work at his bakery , would set off on his trot for it was faster than a walk and not so fast as a run to the distant Morven hills , whose alpine plants he wished to explore .sx But even this was outweighed by his arduous and risky climbs of Dunnet Head or Duncansby Cliffs , which were made in order to unravel the mysteries of the old Red Sandstone , which aided Murchison so much in his own investigations .sx I am yours sincerely , .sx THRIFT IN INDUSTRY .sx EMPLOYERS' CONTRIBUTIONS .sx Sir , Much as one may commend thrift and the desire to promote it by the formation of National Savings Associations , the ordinary employer is hardly likely to regard the two schemes advocated by Sir Theodore Chambers as either sound in theory or equitable in practice .sx Both schemes propose the augmentation of the employees' personal savings by special contributions from the funds of the business in which they are employed .sx The liability thus undertaken by the employer , once the ratio of contribution to personal saving has been agreed upon , is indefinite ; it is governed not by what the company can afford , but by what the employee chooses to save .sx Moreover , the particular amount by which each individual employee benefits by this contribution from the funds depends upon his willingness or ability to save , and not upon his right , judged by length and quality of service , to any surplus profits that may be available ; and this is manifestly unfair .sx The principle underlying both co-partnership and profit-sharing , to which Sir Theodore Chambers refers , is entirely different .sx In effect , both these movements are concerned with a just distribution of surplus profits , after labour and capital have each received their due reward .sx Where such profits are available the proportion due to labour is , or should be , ascertainable .sx Either this money is due to labour or it is not ; the decision ought not to rest upon the willingness or ability of the individual to save .sx Co-partnership and profit-sharing have something more in view than the promotion of thrift :sx they are concerned with a better and more equitable distribution of the proceeds of industry .sx But while the schemes to which Sir Theodore Chambers refers are inadequate in these respects they nevertheless contain useful machinery by which profit-sharing at all events can be made effective .sx In the scheme which is in operation in the company with which I am connected the proportion of surplus profits available for distribution to labour is determined first of all ; these profits are then distributed to employees on the basis of wage or salary with a percentage addition for years of service , and the whole of the money is invested in National Savings Certificates through a duly authorized National Savings Association .sx Employees are encouraged to add to this investment by voluntary contributions .sx Let us promote thrift by all the means in our power , but let us not make the mistake of thinking that schemes designed purely with this end in view will ever achieve in " the establishment of industrial relations on a harmonious basis " what lies within the power of either co-partnership or profit-sharing to achieve .sx Yours faithfully , .sx W. T. CARTER .sx Keystone Works , Rugeley , Staffs , Dec .sx 7 .sx PUBLIC SCHOOL FEES .sx Sir , In view of the large number of letters which you have recently published from parents , there must evidently be a considerable amount of justification for the criticisms of the expense of maintenance of boys at many of our public schools , and your correspondents have freely urged that in these difficult days much of the expense which in more prosperous times parents have suffered willingly in the belief , perhaps , that it was the inevitable corollary of a good education , is unnecessary and ought to be abolished .sx I would like to point out , however , that there are public schools and I speak as a parent of three boys who are or have been educated at one such where many of the expensive customs of which criticism has been made are conspicuous by their absence .sx For example , the school to which I refer has :sx ( a ) An inexpensive regulation dress ; ( b ) no " hotel " system , giving profit to housemasters :sx ( c ) an inclusive fee covering the cost of all common extras ; ( d ) a fixed charge of 1 11s .sx 6d .sx a term covering the cost of all books and stationery .sx In addition to this , games fixtures with other schools are intentionally kept within a reasonable distance of the school , and boys are not expected to provide cutlery or bed linen .sx Moreover , this school , and no doubt there are others , provides what most parents would regard as the chief desiderata in public school life namely , a good education and a high moral tone .sx Yours faithfully , .sx F. H. WAGSTAFF .sx St. Stephens House , 2 , Coleman-street , E.C.2 , Dec .sx 7 .sx DAME MILLICENT FAWCETT MEMORIAL .sx Sir , With the approval of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster , arrangements have been made for adding a memorial to Dame Millicent Fawcett to that of her husband , Henry Fawcett , which now stands in Westminster Abbey .sx The plans have been drawn up by Sir Herbert Baker and Mr. Walker , and the work will be set in hand at once .sx We believe that those who knew Dame Millicent , and also many of those who did not know her but who admired her life and work , will wish to join in this national tribute .sx The cost of the memorial will be , at the most , 300 , and this will include an endowment to ensure its care and upkeep for future years .sx Should more money be received than is needed for the Abbey memorial , we hope to place other memorials at Aldeburgh and at Cambridge , in connexion with those already existing to Henry Fawcett .sx