MORE AMBASSADORS

Manawatu Times, Volume LIII, Issue 6632, 11 June 1928, Page 9

MORE AMBASSADORS

PROPOSAL BY CANADA. TWO PROBABLE APPOINTMENTS. , TORONTO, April 21. Delay in appointing Cabinet Ministers to Prance and Japan, as forecast by tbc Premier, is caused by the Government's desire to have Parliament formally approve the policy. It is conceivable, that if the Opposition were sufficiently strong and effective, the project might be abandoned altogether. There is, however, no sign of the development of any such opposition So far, the Conservative leaders have done nothing more than snipe at the proposal. When Mr Bennett and Mr Chhan the other day in a debate in the House of Commons sought to belittle the advances Canada has made in her position in the world, and taunted the Government with seeking to give Canada "a place in the sun" they were sharply reminded of the disaster their party uncounted less than two years ago, when it placed itself in a position of antagonism to Canadian impulse. The current of Canadian nationalism continues to run strong, and so far there has been little serious effort by Conservative or other loaders to stem its flow. Launching of a system of foreign Ministers following the appointment of Mr Vincent Massey. to Washington was so radical a departure that it inevitably stimulated some criticism, but there has been nothing in the nature of a “last ditch" stand. The cost of this new diplomatic service has been emphasised, but the answer is that if trade commissioners are useful, diplomatic Ministers can greatly expedite their work. A second argument is that an impossible situation will be created if the other British Dominions also go in for the business of, sending Ministers to foreign capitals. There might be, for instance, in one capital. Ministers from Great Britain, Australia, New" Zealand, Canada, the Irish Free State, and South Africa, What would bo wrong with such a situation? asks the Winnipeg Free Press. At Washington today there are British, Irish, and Canadian legations. They seem to bo getting along fairly well. It is in free co-operation that the strength of the British Empire rests. A third argument is in the form of a question: How is Canada to obtain satisfaction from a foreign Government in the event of a Canadian citizen being ill-treated or in danger of his life in a foreign country? Will Canada still call on the British Army and the British Navy to bring the foreign na- : tion to time, seeing that we have not much of an army or navy of our own? The answer is that Canada would try to look after* Canadian citizens pretty much in the same way Denmark, or Norway, or Sweden or Great Britain would act in the event of a citizen of those countries being bullied or abused by the United States. It is argued that the Canadian Government, even if it has a negligible ' army and a “tin-pot" navy, is just as capable of looking after Canadian • citizens as 90 per cent, of the other nations of the world. The appointments to Paris and Tokio are expected shortJ y-