FUTURE OF THE GERMAN COLONIES.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXVII, Issue LXXVII, 4 January 1918, Page 4

FUTURE OF THE GERMAN COLONIES.

Considerable anxiety as to the future disposal of the German colonies and especially Samoa and New Guinea, ap pears to have arisen out of statements recently made by Mr Lloyd George and other British leaders. Yet in stating that the question of the German colonies would be one for the Peace Conference to settle, Mr Lloyd George may have intended merely to lay down a formula that people of conquered areas must be left free to settle the form of government best suited to their needs. If so, such a formula would be consonant with the of-■-—"lea-ted statement that Britain ci ! not enter the war for territorial g-in. It would be difficult to believe that Mr Lloyd George by his statement had shown a weakening policy, yet one cannot but remember the emphatic declaration mado by Mr Walter Long about twelve months ago that the captured colonies would not revert to German rule. Of course, those who took part in the j capture of Samoa and New Guinea de-1 sire that those islands should remain' in the possession of the British Crown,

but the .principles, laidwdcwn by the Empire's leaders at the ..beginning of the war contain no guarantee that the colonies will, remain..in. Bj-jtish hands, ' Wt they do^g_ar J aniee.,tnftt. the Germanic tyranny of the^ .past shall not be again permitted, and, seeing that the German system amqng the natives of the various. colonies was one of severe military . .despotism, one may well conclude .that the enemy will not recover his lc*t .jpossessions. To New Zealanders the.idea.of Samoa .and New Guinea, being restored to, Germany for use as naval or.,military, b<ises. cannot be tolerated, and. it is that fear that gives ground for .the recently-ejpressed anxiety. But Gexmany is.to be given no peace until she renounces,, the Prussian system entirely, and one* feels that the Allied determination y^ crush militarism completely, is a j guarantee that the future safety not only of the Pacific, but the -,w3iole, world, wUI be secured before _ie, T^-ar , If. the Allies carry out their , programme in its entirety, German?r will be una-bfe to menace civilisation jy. the. future. It seems then that there* is every indication that the Gerni%rv«olonies will_ot be given up, though :.:tbeir. future Jpsfts not yet been decided- upon. LQ*rj£ Willoughby de Broke, peaking at « meeting of the Colonial Institute"-i_i London recently, said : •■•*;*W_.en it comes to a settlement T hope-we : never will

consent to hand back •*feo tGermarry a single acre of the -eojoiii^s „we have taken from her, nc-i-frQ-mf-fc-enevolent motives or territorial agg^^seiaent, Lbut because we belieir <c we c e%*a : .govern -pr help others to govern the^s • .better 'than the Germans have yet learnt : to $_&#." All wall "(heartily agr©e-,<wi**eh that statement and hope for iteffai^rment, ft_&ugh there may be good a_d-,-sum-■cient reasons expounded at the <3aa&!>rence why the colonies yjshjffi^d -.•H©t-j*e_iaitn in British hands.