The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo. FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 1911. THE COMING OF PEACE.

Auckland Star, Volume XLII, Issue 136, 9 June 1911, Page 4

The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo.

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 1911. THE COMING OF PEACE.

Tor the cause that locks oasistoncm, Vor the wrong that needs resittanos, for the future in the distance. And UK good that tea oaa da.

Whatever be the ultimate outcome of President Taft's proposal for a permanent and comprehensive Arbitration Agreement between England and the United vStates, he may at least congratulate himself that he has evoked an immense amount of interest in this great question throughout the Anglo-Saxon world. Not only in England and in America, but throughout the colonies, meetings have been called in most of the large centres of population to advocate President Taft's scheme and to give moral support to the movement in favour of closer and more amicable relations between America and England. And it is a significant sign of the times that such a meeting as was held at the Choral Hall last nigbt can command the sympathy and interest of the general public. Even a very few years ago the idea of universal peace and the cessation of war was looked upon as a purely Utopian notion, such as no ordinary commonsense person could afford to entertain. But to-day, in spite of the constant growth of preparations for war, the expansion of armies and navies, and even in spite of sporadic outbreaks of actual conflict between the nations, the desire for peace and the detestation of war arc sentiments infinitely stronger and more widely diffused than ever before in the history of the race. And though the Peace Society must still wait a long time before it can see the end of its labours, its members already have the satisfaction of knowing that it has not toiled in vain, and that the world is moving onward slowly to that distant goal when in the full fruition of human progress there shall be war no more.

Generally speaking. It is to be feared that tho advocates of peace have often neutralised their own enthusiasm and 'baffled their own efforts by disregarding the obvious fact that war is still with us, and that self-defence is a fundamental principle of liuman resistance. Whatever we may hope for the future, the primary duty of every free people is to safeguard themselves nnd their country; and so. as Mr. rrickitt, Air. Myers, and Mr. Poole all pointed out last night, a positive and manifest obligation is thrown upon every country to arm itself, so as to guard against the contingency of war. But when we have done this there rests upon every civilised human being who realises in any sense the horror and devastation and misery that war brings in its train, a heavy moral responsibility to do what lies in its power to assist the cause of Teace. And certainly nothing has happened in recent years so well calculated to promote this great end as President Taft's proposal for a peaceful understanding with England. As Mr. Parr pointed out in his introductory remarks, America and England arc exceptionally well circumstanced in regard to the suggested Arbitration Treaty. Their interests can hardly corns into serious conflict; for neither desires any further extension of its territories or encroachment or aggrandisement at the expense of other powers. Moreover, in spite of the existence of many alien elements

in the American people, these two branches of the Anglo-Saxon race are suflicient'ly akin to understand each other and to sympathize with each other more fully than with any foreign nation. And we. -can hardly doubt that if England and America in conjunction gave a lead to the rest of the world by binding themselves to prefer Arbitration to war as a means of settling all disputes between them, the moral e'fTect of such an example would be prodigious. It is, of course, possible that there may still be found questions about which these two nations could not consent to arbitrate; and it is by no means certain that all the other Powers would be content to follow where the Anglo-Saxon race led the way. But these problems are for the future; and for the present all men who resiard war as the worst' of evils may at leas! be sure that the movement which last night's meeting wis intended to pro mote is bringing vis ever nearer to the coming time—sren, as yet. only by the poet's vis-'-onary pye-*-"whcn the war drum throbs no longer, and the "battle flags arc furled, in the Parliament of Man, the Federation of the World."