PRINCE ON PEACE

Evening Post, Issue 149, 20 December 1935, Page 19

PRINCE ON PEACE

THE PEOPLE'S PART

INFORMED OPINION

CONCERN OF EVERYBODY

. (From "The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, November 30. On one night this week the Prince of Wales attended a meeting, two dinners, and made two speeches within the space of three hours. First he took part in the jubilee meeting of the Empire Lodge at Freemasons' Hall. Then he spoke at the dinner which followed. From this he hurried away to Grosvenor House, where he made a speech,after the' dinner of the Royal Institute of International Affairs. "Never was clear thinking in international affairs more essential, never was it more necessary for each successive Government to have behind it an enlightened and informed public opinion." This declaration was made, by the Prince at Grosvenor House. Congratulating the- Royal Institute of International Affairs on its rapid growth, he said: "When, at the Peace Conference, a small group of members of the British delegation saw the need for such an institute in the post-war world, they realised that the maintenance of peace in thefuture was no longer to be only the business of the selected few, but was, indeed, the intimate concern of every single man and woman. But these founders could not have foreseen the astounding development of the interest in international affairs which we are witnessing in this country today. FUNCTION OF THE INSTITUTE. "It is a commonplace to say that the post-war world is one. That is both true and untrue, for if it is one in the speed of its communications it is far from it in its comprehension of those communications. Knowledge flies ever faster, but wisdom lags behind, and so judgment is .apt to be hasty—dangerous. "It is- beyond the range of the ordinary citizen to grasp all the intricacies of government which are involved in the conduct of policy by a commonwealth so'vast and various as the British. "It is the business of Chatham House to supply the facts and provide unbiased information on every aspect of current international affairs, so that responsible public opinion may base its decisions on a knowledge of the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. That is a service of inestimable value to the country, and it is a service which we can, I think, claim has honestly earned recognition." The institute, the Prince continued, had filled an important gap in our national life. Its function was to collect information, co-ordinate' it, make it available to its members, and, through them, to a wide public. The Royal Charter provided that "the •institute as such shall not express.an opinion on any aspect of international affairs." The Prince added that Sir Abe Bailey had given and promised in perpetuity the magnificent income of. £5000 a year for the institute, and Sir John Power had given £10,000 for the institute's meeting hall. SIR SAMUEL^HOARE'S SPEECH; Sir Samuel Hoare - said- he believed that the foreignf policy of country was based, firs^ on ai profound instinct for peace. Secondly, we had a certain moderation of outlook; and a tendency to smooth away-possible: causes of dispute arid .to. ■:■. appease; as "quickly as may be the results of strife. "Thirdly,]' Sir Samyel-continued, "I is not altogether easy 1 to describe, for it is, composed on the: one hand of a realist outlook upon affairs and1 on the other hand of an idealistic belief in-human progress. In my- speech before the Assembly Of the League of Nations in September I described lisas''a;;sound instinct upon the big issues.' It is difficult to be more precise. Like, a gentleman, you cannot define him, but you know'one when you see one; so. is it with this sound instinct upon> big issues, you cannot analyse' it, but it is there to be seen and, felt when the big issues arise. "Those three qualities obviously do not lend themselves to what might be called a spectacular foreign policy. There is something about spectacular diplomatic achievements which opinion in this country is inclined to mistrust. When, in spite of our traditional caution, you find the people of- this country enthusiastic for some cause you may be fairly sure that it is a good one. We are not good haters. Over and. over again we have been the.first to quench the embers of strife and to let bygones be bygones." "STRONG AND LIVING LEAGUE." , Of the League of Nations Sir Samuel said: "It was inevitable that the British people would find in a strong and living League an organ suited to their instincts of peace and tolerance, and able, if properly used, to deal with the big issues of the modern world. "It is perhaps inevitable that we should send often to consider the position of the League solely in relation to the immediate problem with which it is confronted. -'But any institution which has life in itTis -not to be established or condemned by a single test any more than is an individual. And just as I have tried to show that the continuity of British foreign policy is founded on certain deep-rooted qualities in the;people of this country, so we must see to it that tlie policy of the League is a live and a growing policy, because the principles -on which it ,is founded are such as to call forth a response from the innermost conviction of us all. "The future of the League, upon which the hopes of all of us who believe in it are set, depends on its ability to perform the constructive and statesmanlike part of'its' task; yes, and upon the readiness of its members to use ■ /it for constructive work." (Hear, hear.) ■