IMPORTANCE OF NAVY.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLVII, Issue 306, 30 November 1927, Page 7

IMPORTANCE OF NAVY.

STRESSED BY MR AMERY.

Per Press Association... - WELLINGTON, Nov. 29. Rt. Hon. L. C. Amery attended a reception to-day given by the Navy League. He stressed the importance of the Navy and the necessity for having a force to keep all routes open at all times. New Zealand he considered to be doing its fair share in naval contributions and to the Singapore base. Although the Navy had been reduced in actual numbers of men and ships, it was never more efficient than to-day in every essential direction. The Empire, be said, had no definite form of Government, no written constitution like the United States, but working uniformly on a basis of co-opera-tion each helped to bind themselves closer together. A reception to Mr Amery was also held by the Commercial Travellers’ and Warehousemen’s Association, the chief guest being described as the “chief commercial traveller for John Bull and Co.”

“We value the status we have,” said Mr Coates, “and we take full opportunity of, expressing our views. But if Britain in her judgment deems it. advisable to take a lino of action then Mr Amery can convey this message to the people at Home—‘New Zealand will be found standing beside the Mother Land.’ “My remarks,” he continued, “refer to the higher side of our national life and to the thoughts that run through the minds of every citizen in our country—to allow and to foster trade within the Empire.” Mr Amery stressed the urgent necessity for the devlopment of interEmpire trade and each country’s resources. He expressed his conviction that they were only at the beginning of the development of the British Empire. He thought the United States could show us a mod example of what could be done with the resources of a great and varied territory. There they had more railways than the rest of the world put together, a' greater use of mechanical power, whether electric or steam driven than the rest of the world, and a greater production and consumption of steel and iron and many other essential commodities upon which modern industry was based than the rest of the world put together, and they had done it on a territory about a quarter of the size of the British Empire. The people who had done it were mainly our own stock and tho capital had largely been drawn _ from Great Britain. There was nothing that the United States had done that the Empire could not do. If only we oeased thinking in a water-tight compartment and realised the advantages of pooling our resources there was no reason wliy we should not exceed anything the United States had done to date. The resources and tlio ability were there. He appealed to the commercial travellers to foster Empire trade in Now Zealand not only on the grounds of sentiment but also of business. The prosperity of New Zealand, lie said, was dependent upon the prosperity of Great Britain. After his address Mr Amery was presented with the honorary membership badge of the association. DISTINGUISHED VISITOR AT , CHRISTCHURCH. CHRISTCHURCH, Nov. 30. Mr Amery arrived this morning from Wellington and was met at the station by the Mayor and members of the reception committee.. Later Mr Amery visited various institutions and then attended a civic reception, which was followed by a citizens’ luncheon, an address to a gathering of farmers and a garden party. His total engagements for the day are 14, including a public address' in the theatre this evening.