PEACE AND SECURITY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 4 August 1924, Page 5

PEACE AND SECURITY.

(Contributed by “8.K.”) On this, the tenth anniversary of the outbreak of war with Germany, we are reminded of many tilings. \) e are reminded of Dejr Tag, ttie day tor whicii Germany boasted and toasted the day when she would “beat England to her knees,” and “bleed France white.” Tne day when all nations would fail at her feet and plead for the mitigation or her wrath. Turing over some political cartoons which go back for over thirty years, we find that the spirit and ideal of Germany was the same all through. To-dav reminds us of the ideals and standards which produce war. The spirit which goes to make war was dominant in Germany—the spirit which demands new territory by the sword, the spirit which denies rights-and. liberties to smaller nations, the spirit which swells with its own importance, and demands the most prominent place in the sun. Pre-war maps of Africa show German territories with narrow strips of land surveyed out, and each narrow strip points to British territory. The German children were taught m their schools that such stripy, of land were “fingers” pointing to lands and countries which would be taken away from Great Britain by Germans. The Fourth of August reminds us of their ideals and ambitions. It also reminds us of the day when the whole British Empire was bound close together by a common danger in a common cause. It showed to the world that the British Dominions stood for the same ideals as the Motherland ; that they were prepared to make the same sacrifices made by the Motherland in the centuries long past. AVe, of this outpost of the British Empire, know from our own experience what war really means; we know that it is a wrong use of our manhood, outr ealtli and our. resources. Not- that it is wrong to fight (if needs be) for aprinciple. But if the same aserifices of manhood, our wealth, and resources had been made in the interests of peace, prosperity and security, how very much better the world would have been to-day. The need of to-day is that Peace shall be iust as heroio as War; that Peace will, have its contributions of sacrifice, service and loyalty more so than AVar. Peace demands that prosperity and justice shall be the rights of all men, of all nations. Never before in the world’s history have men been faced with such opportunities of sacrifice and sendee. Our problems to-day are very difficult, because we have no past experience to guide us. AVe have the one great standard set us by the Founder of the Faith. He showed us that the way of Peace could make as great demands upon the best in mankind as war, and that greater and better results would follow. War is a challenge to Peace to stand up for certain principles. Peace is a challenge to war to show better results of self-sacrifice, unity of purpose, and intensity of effort. The problems of Peace have not yet been solved; there is much to do, much to learn. The day has come when we must admit our enemies in the councils of the world; when we must face the same question that Edith Oavell. faced when she said : “This would T say, standing as I do in view of God and Eternity: I realise that partiotism is not enough. I must have no bitterness Pr hatred towards anyone.’’ This seems to be our hardest lesson, but having learned it, Peace will be secure; our principles will have stood the test, and we will have fulfilled Mazzini’s dictum: “Two things are essential to the realisation of the progress we seek: the declaration of a principle, and its incarnation in action.” The peace, security and propjres of mankind is based on this.