WORLD CONDITIONS

Evening Star, Issue 20779, 29 April 1931, Page 3

WORLD CONDITIONS

IMPRESSIONS AT GENEVA ADDRESS BY MR LLOYD ROSS A highly interesting address ou the work of the League of Nations and of world opinion as ho felt it before and after the meeting of the League Assembly at. Geneva last year, was o-iven to tho annual meeting of the Btago branch of the League or Nations Union last night by Mr Lloyd Ross, M.A., LL.B, Mr Ross said lie would endeavour to give some idea of world opinion as he felt it just before the meeting of the League of Nations A -nobly last year, something about the Assembly itself, and a summary of the general world position as ho felt it alter the conference and to-day. At Geneva, which was a delightful place from a tourist point of view, one lr the idea that the pulse of the universe was there being felt and that the patient was at a very low ebb. Tho general feeling, in fact, in visiting Europe was one of pessimism and one almost of despair. He thought the statesmen of tho world were feeling that the Disarmament Conference to bo held next year would be a turning ipoint in world history. The matters with which tho League was concerned were made much more vital thngs when they were beard from tho people who wore actually carrying out the work. After expressing admiration for the organisation of the secretariat of the League, the International Labour _ Bureau, and the League Assembly itself, Mr Ross said it was felt that the only weak thing was the driving force of the people behind tho League, and the representatives there. Referring t ) tho general economic depression in Europe, Mr Ross said tliat eyes were being turned towards Russia. Geneva felt that Russia offered tho hungry masses,of Europe an alternative. There were criticisms of Russia, it being claimed that there was a curtailment of liberty and that there was an atmosphere c" tyranny and war. But supposing the Russian five-year plan was successful, and that the .Bolshevists brought stability. That seemed to be becoming every day not more and more of a possibility, but perhaps a certainty. Russia said that she could control her machine. The Western nations were becoming afraid of the efficiency of Russian industry, which was threatening to destroy our industry by the dumping of cheap goods. Mr Ross spoke of tho close relation of economics and world affairs, and said a bitterness was arising in the economic field that might possibly cause war. Because of tho tariff barriers which wore being raised by nations against one another thtire was increased bitterness, out of which wars might break. The.< was the danger that the solution of the economic upheaval could be found in a war, when everybody would at least be fed. Nations "could organise for war, but they had .not yet found a method of organising for peace. The man out of work might look upon war as a possible remedy for unemployment. Mr Ross gave an interesting description of the meeting of the Assembly. Ho said that tho British delegation at the last session was probably tho most brilliant that had represented the Homeland. This delegation had brought tho name of England before tho peoples of the world in a way not put before them for over a decade, this being 1 largely duo to the work of Mr Arthur Henderson, to whom tho speaker paid a high tribute It could be said that, while the Labour Go-, vernment of Great Britain had been rather doubtfully successful in Home affairs it had been outstandingly successful in foreign affairs. Personalities of the various delegations to tho League were interestingly sketched by Mr Ross, who quoted parts of some of the speeches. Tho outstanding speech he had board was bv Mr Willie Graham, of England, who had given an academic talk on Trectrade, and for the whole threequarters of an hour he had spoken he had not used a single note. There were about fifty-one delegates present, and the feeling of pessimism that bad faced them on their way to Geneva had deepened, because they had fiftyone representatives of different countries, each giving his own particular views on tho position of world affairs, Mr Ross said that when one watched the proceedings of tho League one’s hopes were raised and then dropped. There seemed to be two possibilities—two roads along which they might travel to find solutions for the economic troubles. One road was that of the increase of nationalism and the other that of the increase of internationalism. There was the great danger that.many people thought they could go along both roads at the same time. While delegates to the League from various countries spoke of the advantages of Freetrade, they pointed out the necessity of tariff barriers. It was to bo hoped that tho Now Zealand delegates to the International Labour Conference would be prepared to adopt international remedies for the solutibn of the economic crisis. They should remember that the economic crisis would make war not merely possible, but might make war inevitable. It was hoped that the discussions now going on at Geneva about the gold supply of the world would help in tho solution of the economic troubles of the world. The speaker stressed the need of the support of the masses of the people to make tho work of tho League effective. .In conclusion ho said that disarmament must come about or an economic crisis would result. (Loud applause.) Mr Lloyd Ross was accorded a vote of thanks.