PEACE PACT.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 10 December 1928, Page 9

PEACE PACT.

SIGNING CELEBRATED IN LONDON.

ADHERENCE OF SIXTY NATIONS

RUGBY, Dec, 6. Sir Austen Chamberlain and the American Ambassador, Mr. A. B. Houghton, were the principal guests at the Pilgrim's dinner held last night to celebrate the signing of the multilateral Treaty for the Renunciation of War as an instrument of national policv. Mr. Houghton read a telegram from the United States Secretary, Mr. F. B. Kellogg, in which he said : “The treaty expresses the sentiments of all the peoples of th© world, and 60 nations have either adhered to the treaty or expressed their intention to adhere to it. Thus it becomes the declaration of tlie hopes and aspirations of mankind,” In his speech Mr. Houghton said that lie could not discuss the treaty as directly as he would like, because it was about to be laid for consideration before the Senate. All were, however, agreed that the peaceful settlement of problems arising between nations was wholly desirable, and tlie fact that the Canadian people and those of tlie United States bad been able to live side by side in mutual safety and contentment, divided bv an unguarded frontier, could not be without significance to the rest of the world. These two peoples had shown that they were safer and happier without naval and military forces for their protection. Sir Austen Chamberlain, referring to the fact that the multilateral treaty was about to be considered by the United States Senate, said that m these circumstances all lie could say was that, if it would approve itself to the authorities of the United States, no Government would more readily and more eagerly give its ratification to the instrument, which proceeded from American initiative, than the Government which he had the honour to represent. Referring to the long, unprotected Canadian-United States frontier, Sii Austen said: “It is tlie frontier between Canada, and the United States, but that frontier is unguarded except by the goodwill and good sense of those whom it divides.” Discussing th© pact, Sir Austen Chamberlain said: “What is it that 60 nations have done? For the first tune in their history they have renounced war as an instrument of policy. I say for myself and for the Government which I represent that from the first moment when we received the proposal of the United States Government we recognised it as important, and oul earnest effort was to help in its conelusion, and that now we have signed it we recognis’d to the full its implications in the conduct of our own foreign policy and the obligations which it imposes on us to seek ; n settlement of all international differences by peaceful means. . . “The pact, however, imposes much which is not confined to Governments. I desire on this occasion to say that among the implications of the pact it places’ a new obligation on. the publicists of our different countries to. work for peace, to interpret one nation. to another, to be slow to excite suspicion or entertain suspicion, and that their part in making the Kellogg Pact or Peace is just as important and just as responsible and just as honourable as that ofi the men who are immediately charged with the conduct of public affairs.”