PALESTINE.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 164, 11 July 1919, Page 7

PALESTINE.

PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE. LECTURE BY REV. W. G. MONCKTON, M.A. Palestine, past, present and future, . formed the subject of an interesting address at the Leys Institute last evening by the Rev. \V. G. Monekton, M.A. Mr T. YV. Leys presided over a large attendance. The speaker dealt with the call of the Jews to expedite the righteousness of the world. The mission of the Jews, he said, was to be the mission of God's law. which aimed rather at the protection of humanity than ut tho protection of property. Then their failure to carry out their mission led to the successive subjections of Palestine under the Babylonian and Hellenic Empires, and - finally under the Romans. Palestine then passed under the dominion of the Moslems, and the crusades were the effort of united Christendom to rescue the Holy Land. For nearly one hundred years Jerusalem was under Christendom, but it was retaken and remained under the dominion of the Moslems until our own time, when its capture was effected more by the troops from the British dependencies than by Britain herself. The lecturer, by means of maps and slides, illustrated the many incidents connected with the conquest of the IToly Land. He mentioned Allcnby's march as one of the most momentous episodes in military history. Between September 16, lie said, and October :il we covered ."500 miles, and one cavalry division covered 72 miles in 2-1 hours. The conquest of Palestine was facilitated by the fact that we had destroyed the flower of the Turkish army at (iallipoli, and only had inferior troops opposed to us. Lantern slides Were shown, depicting Jewish colonies in Palestine, of which there were now '.\~>, one colony founded in 18S0 having increased in value from €1,200 to .C650,n00 by the energy of the colonists. Various phases of the Holy Land were thrown upon the screen, also a picture of Versailles, where the future of Palestine will be decided. In dealing with the future of the country. Mr ■Monekton mentioned various proposals likely to ,be put forward, such as a condominium, the trusteeship of France; an independent Jewish kingdom and the trusteeship of Britain, lie pointed out that this last was the most acceptable to the Jews themselves, and that when this took place a large portion of the .TewisTi nation woulu probably return to the Holy Land. and. under the <ruardianship of Britain would not only fulfil their own destiny, but would serve, as George Eliot put it, "' to be a reconciliation between East and West." and to help in solving many of our own social problems.