The Grey River Argus WEDNESDAY, August 15, 1945. PACIFIC VICTORY.

Grey River Argus, 15 August 1945, Page 4

The Grey River Argus WEDNESDAY, August 15, 1945. PACIFIC VICTORY.

By adjourning virtually for’ a week, to await the formal announcement of victory in the Pacific, the Dominion Parliament last night marked 3 significantly the. transition from a I state of war to one of peace for New Zealand. It was agreed that a Budget which had been drawn up with an eye to the continuance of war could no longer be regarded as the proper basis on which to discuss the country’s finances. This may not signify any actual curtailment of expenditure in connection with war, because the repatriation, payment and rehabilitation of service personnel will call for funds quite as great as would a continuance of hostilities, but it does undoubtedly mean that such expenditure will in future be of a character rather constructive than destructive. The minds of all, however, are meantime preoccupied primarily with the thought that the destruction of life and the strain of strife at last have come to an end, and that the sense of preservation and success should naturally find vent in a common manifestation of thankfulness and jubiliation. It is no time to count yet the costs of victory, though they must be met. It might, especially in the minds of the younger - element, appear that finality in ending hostilities is a slower process in the Pacific than it was after negotiations began in Europe, but it has to be recognised that the surrounding circumstances are very difI ferent. The Japanese homeland, however severely attacked, has not been invaded, and hence there will have been greater inhibitions for the national leaders in capitulating than in the case of the Germans. This is Japan’s first defeat, and it must be a bitter experience indeed. Though their leaders-may endeavour to put upon it the best face they are able, it is impossible to conceal its meaning from the public, and the anxiety may be to prevent the disillusionment from dividing and convulsing the na- | tion. The Emperor is apparently to be ditched, albeit in a manner calculated not to derogate too greatly from the sanctity of the Throne. It will, however, be harder still for the ruling classes later, when the Empire is shorn of all its external territory, and a vast population are thrown back upon the home resources, without a very great part of the industrial scope which has been sacrificed in the quest of outside advantages. Japan has not been invaded. It is because the Allies have been able to overcome her finally by air power. The Pacific war, far more even than the European, has demonstrated that aviation has become the main armament of the modern world.

Japan's great army has been bypassed ■ almost completely. This strategy, which in the early stages appeared so singular, has prevailed remarkably. It has been successfully us-sd on land in Europe for the penetration of' Germany; and it must be said that, alike in conception and execution, its greatest exponents have |b>een the Ameirica’ns. . Australia symbolises her new status as a Pacific Power by insisting on the debunking of the Japanese Throne insofar as it is the core of Japanese unity, and especially insofar as it may be an object of idolatry. Meantime, the celebrations are the immediate concern of all those peoples who have overcome the menace of Japanese aggression. The right note to strike in the Dominions is that henceforth they must shoulder a far bigger responsibility, in defending themselves than they have ever contemplated in their past history. Incidentally, if the West Coast produces material for atomic bombs, it may 'play a prominent part in future defence policy.