THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1879.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVI, Issue 5630, 2 December 1879, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1879.

How the power of England is likely to be advantaged through the growth of her colonies is illustrated by the growth of the United States, which were once her colonies. The seaboard colonial groups which now enjoy self-government, are on the high road to a prosperous and great position. It will of course vary according to their respective natural capabilities and the wisdom with which they are turned to account, but an important future is before them all. This rapid development of her colonial empire is a magnificent prospect for the mother country. We have often spoken in these columns of tho opportunities it must unfold for her; and while the colonies are sensible of the im-

portance of the subject we perceive that it is now attracting attention among foreign nations also. The French official organ, the Monitcur. was commenting upon it the other day. It is the belief of the Moniteur that the chief event marking the close of the present century will he the federation of all the British posses- . sions, of every class, welded together into an empire of over 250,000,000 souls. • The Mvnitcv.r considers that the forces by sea and land which such an empire will be able to dispose o£ will be so immense that the balance of power in Europe will need to be established on a new basis. It considers that such a confederacy will have to be counterbalanced by other confederacies—" by the federation of other ■ States." But upon this point we may be permitted to observe that it is just be- : cause there is already a movement in this . direction in Europe—because there is the tendency and the aspiration there to : form vast confederacies, as, for instance, the Sclavonic, the Teutonic—that the organised federation of the British possessions looms ae a thing necessary and inevitable. But it is certainly singular that while foreigners, as well :is colonists, are thus ob3ervant of T.he which the dependencies of E:i-jr..::d :i: :;.- in the future render t'i !i'.-r p'K.:.:i , ; s ;-. Ljreat power, in England herse::. -.v;.;;h ought to be primarily intoivateJ. there are numbers of persons, an I those no: the ignorant, who do not seem to no .-imil.irly impressed with the prospect. We certainly cannot say this of the Government, for the Beaconsriekl Ministry is not only anxious to retain but to enlarge the colonial circle. But some of the must influential organs—representing and directing an important amount of public opinion—do not seem to be equally alive to the value of a great colonial empire. The Edinburgh ./ret-it ic stands in the front rank of the quarterlies, and yet we find that, in speaking a few months ago of Cape affaire, it expressed itself quite content that some foreign Powc-r should take over the South African colonies. We sometimes light upon strange utterances to the same effect in the LiuJon papers, and it is not long since the Axamimr deliberately recommended Canada to annex herself to the United States. Yet assuredly this insensibility to England's interest in the colonial connection, even though thus expressed in intellectual quarters, is but a small, narrow, curiously short-sighted rievr of the situation. England is one of the great Powers, and in a day when the great Powers are becoming still greater Powers, she has no huge home territory as the others have ; and she has m> possibility of further extending her home frontier such as exists —and there is no knowing to wlvit extent—for Germany, for Russia, and for Austria. Neither has she an immense colonial possession within a day's steaming from her shores, such as France is the owner of in Algeria. Jfo, England's Empire, present or prospective, is of no great compass in Europe, or within arm' 3 length of Europe. Its vastness, and it 3 capability of vast expansion lie beyond the ocean, and on the shores of every ocean. And though thus geographically divided it ie nevertheless for all practical purposes compact enough, from the fact that she ie supreme on the seas, and, unlf3S by some extraordinary mismanagement, will continue to be so. Aa for the service in maintenance of her power which in the future her developed colonies might be able to furnish, we can best comprehend it by just considering, in the event of some great war, how much the United States, if they were still in the intercolonial connection, could help her now. The United States do not maintain any large standing army, or any large navy ; but no other power in the world, except England, could so rapidly fitout, man, equip, and cover the sea with iron ships a3 the United States; and from the several millions of men, who have a rudimentary military training as militia or volunteers, armies to any amount —which would be put into regular training on the expectation of war—would ere long be regular troops at the disposal of the Imperial authorities. The several colonial groups—the Canadian, the Australasian, the South African—will each, more or less ia degree, srow into rich and vigorous nationhood like the United States ; and one would imagine that the costly and dreary blunder which was made in parting with " the American plantations" in the last century ought to hinder all indifference about retaining the plantations of the present day. Xo doubt the South African is the least important of the several groups. The nature of the country is not favourable to a dense white colonisation, and those particular colonies are in the exceptional position of now causing England heavy expense. So it may be at present, as we are told that the service rendered by South Africa is no more than Gibraltar renders—is confined to the service rendered by Cape Town, with it 3 two bays as a depot resting place for ships. But such a state of things will not continue. The British population enlarged will eventually absorb the disaffected Dutch. I. it if the British Gove-umeut were to let the Boers havo their wsy, and re-arrango their ok' connection with Holland, what would be'il-.e result. "Very rcssisly Holland wotilc! wiin mean Oerma.'iy. There is a strong belief in Europe thai IlaU.inJ is demised" to be absorbed by Germany. It was the belief of the heir to the Dutch Crown, Prince William of Orange, who lately died in Paris. The British Government arc not very likely to assist the maritime rivalry which Germany is ambitious to establish, by handing over to her an important cluster of colonies. As for the curious advice to Canada to leaTe the Empire, which is bestowed by the E-comlmr, we must ascribe it to discontent with the Canadian protective tariff. But Canada has a right to manage her own peculiar affairs as she thifks fit, and whether sh>; does so wisely or unwisely ; and really this ignoring of the future in impatience of the present, which some people in the old country exhibit when anything happens which they do not like in the colonies, is moat shortsighted and silly. The Government, at any rate, have more statesmanlike views, as is seen for instance in the commission now appointed on colonial defences.