THE PACIFIC ISLANDS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LIII, Issue 32, 7 February 1919, Page 1

THE PACIFIC ISLANDS.

Feb. .5. Speaking at the Feiidmg Show. to-day the Minister of Agriculture the Peace Conference, and said .t&at people had to accept 'with caution - ~sl6 cable news which was being received. The Conference was a secret one. fti lor one felt confident that Britain would .insist that the interests of the islands of ithe Pacific would be fu.iy conserved. Prior to the war Britain had nme ten ships patrolling the Pacific in Anstra.ian waters, and he was quite -<»n£b dent that the prior damns of ~thlH seas Dominions would be careful guards in the future as they had beo| 1 in the past. The routes must-be. open and free, and he fell satiiiSecE'BSfc Britain would see that they vjrqpe,, ferring t owhat New Zealand had dotte* he paid a great tribute to who, he.said, had not only met-th6*fe-quirementg of the country mthonu&er of foodstuffs, but bad .produced' exportable surplus representing,' * '854;OUU,IXX) during a broken period- , ■'yKo country had come' ou3 ol the war>'-jhk such a sound position. After mcltnje liabilities there was ,a surplus o£ PII,S(X>,(XX> to form the. nucstew A fund which he hoped would be devoted} to the relief of taxation. strongly condemned the cntirismoLAbe . National Gxvernment, which. 'haS wortl-' ed unitedly and wholeheartedly w prosecution' of the war until victory . had been achieved. However, the' country, he hoped', would’ be given an qßPprtunity before the end of the year.'to* * elect a new Government.' . _ -;' L