The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE TIMES” GISBORNE, FRIDAY, DEC. 8, 1944. “POPULATE OR PERISH”

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21582, 8 December 1944, Page 4

The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE TIMES” GISBORNE, FRIDAY, DEC. 8, 1944. “POPULATE OR PERISH”

The Dominion Settlement and Population Association faced an uphill task in trying to persuade the Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, to make a definite statement on the Government’s immigration policy. While the Commonwealth Government has decided to bring out an average of 17,000 child migrants a year to Australia from Britain and European countries Mr. Fraser still talks in terms of “looking into the matter most sympathetically” or “giving it careful consideration.” If Australia can take this step to help herself and help others at the same time, so can New Zealand. The Commonwealth has been encountering much the same problems as the Dominion; in point of fact, some of them have developed to a more serious degree than anything experienced here. Yet we learn from a Canberra message published to-day that the immigration plans of our trans-Tasman neighbours have reached the stage when a mission is to be sent abroad to work on the scheme in both Britain and Europe. A measure of this nature was specifically asked for by Mr. A. Leigh Hunt, president of the Dominion Settlement and Population Association, who put the matter thus: “We are so impressed with the urgency of the problem that we urge the Government to send a mission abroad with wide powers to secure as many orphans as it can.” No doubt there would have to be some limitation placed on the numbers, but, taking the Australian plan as a guide and working on the ratio of the present populations of the two countries, it should be possible to experiment with, say, 2000 child migrants in the first three years. Adjustments could subsequently be made to meet the needs of the times and the conditions ruling here. The Prime Minister, in one of his . replies to the deputation, said the Government would be very pleased to have information about a scheme for the adoption of war orphans. Very well, then —Australia has given a lead. Let inquiries be made from a source which evidently has been enterprising enough to study the question. Australia's mission for overseas, which is to get a Hying, start, will doubtless be obliging enough to furnish more detailed information at an early date. WELCOMING HAND The scheme, for. the absorption of war orphans into our community life has a great deal .to commend it. In the first place,. iriany reasons have been given why it is difficult, well nigh impossible, to increase the birthrate in time to save New: Zealand from the dangers of under-population. In its recently-published booklet, “New Zealand Must Populate or Perish” the Settlement Association mentions the economic burden on families, and the lack of reasonable housing and domestic help in the homes. Also, it lays on the cane to some purpose when it draws attention to “the utter disregard of the purpose of marriage, the lack of spiritual understanding, criminal abortion, arrant selfishness, love of pleasure and lack of patriotism.” There is much more along those lines which has already been said, and still more could be said. The topic of the moment, however, is migration and the chance it offers to place the country’s population on a sounder basis to meet the needs of the future.

Naturally preference should be given to orphans and other young people of British stock, but there should be no objection to extending a welcoming hand to Europeans. Today’s Canberra cablegram quotes the former Australian. Victorian AgentGeneral in London, Sir Louis Bussau, as saying: “Hundreds of thousands of British people are anxious to come to Australia. Most of the inquiries come from young men and women of all trades and professions, including tenant farmers and land workers. There are also large numbers of Norwegians, Danes, Swedes, Dutch and Poles who would come to Australia. The Poles would make particularly good migrants.” What America Ras done surely Australia and New Zealand can do in the course of lime. The races represented in America’s national life have blended into a sound, hard-working and progressive democracy, intensely loyal to the Stars and Stripes and now, largely as a result of this global war, eager to extend its spirit of internationalism into the world at large. “COMMON FALLACY”

No one will question the correctness of the New Zealand Prime Minister’s attitude towards rehabilitation, for the country’s first responsibility is undoubtedly to carry out that process to the limit of its resources. But here again child migration has its advantages. It should not interfere with the rehabilitation of servicemen. In the years to come the presence of more young people in the Dominion will be a big factor in keeping our economy soundly balanced. "New Zealand Must Populate or Perish” states: “Unthinking people automatically associate immigration with unemployment. This is entirely erroneous. Unemployment can be caused by both over-population and under-popu-lation. ... At a conference held in Britain Mr. C. G. Ammon, a Labour member of the House of Commons, when speaking on this common fallacy, pointed out that a migrant was a consumer long before he became a producer. Immediately on arrival he required food,' clothing, boots and transport, and his wants stimulated all industries.”

In making provision to carry a larger population the value of secondary industry development is incalculable. Clearly more industries must be established to eater for the needs of a growing population. There is no reason why in time we should not make most of our own machinery, thus employing a proportion of the labour which might otherwise have been intermittently idle because the machine era itself has a tendency to throw men out of work. In order to balance the ageing population, however, young people are our greatest need. The majority of them could be adopted by citizens and a certain number reared on farm schools established on the Fairbridge model.