THE EMPIRE AND THE LIBERAL PARTY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13455, 6 April 1907, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE EMPIRE AND THE LIBERAL PARTY.

BY GERALD L. COCKE.

I. ).\"K of the most perplexing of political iroblems is the apparently inseparable onnection between English Liberalism, as in organised political force, and a general ittitude of mind with respect to Imperial :oncerns, which can only be described as amentable from a national and patriotic x)int of view. It is surely incomprehensible that enlightened views on questions )f domestic reform ; enthusiasm for the tmelioration of social conditions ; zeal for .he abolition of ancient wrongs ; hatred of .injust class privilege ; love of popular freeJoin : persistent endeavours to promote the material iiid moral well-being of the masses, should be accompanied in the case of British Liberalism with the most languid interest in, or sympathy with, the Imperial instincts of our race, I a recent article in the Hkii.vld you say that "a great section of our countrymen at Home, in many ways an admirable section, has apparently .orgotten the circumstances under which the British Empire rose, and tiie essential conditions of its maintenance." 1 am afraid that it it, not so much that they have forgotten these things, but that they feel no glow of pride in the one, and have nc active desire to secure the other. I say this with a considerable sense of humiliation, as one [who has been a Liberal in politics all hit life. But I have never been able to see why it should be necessary to denationalise oneself in order to be a. good Liberal. The life and character of the late Mr. Seddon is f strong contradiction of any such notion. In domestic politics he was a Democrat through and through ; in his social philosophy a, sincere and practical humanitarian. But, at the same time, amongst British Imperialists, he was perhaps the noblest Roman of them all. More over, in his national patriotism, and his ardent desire to increase and maintain the strength and stability of the Empire, lie had the universal support and sympathy of the people of this country, probably the most truly democratic community in the world. It is, therefore, clear that there is no necessary antagonism between demo cratic principles and a healthy and vigorous national sentiment. Indeed, when one speaks of the inability to feel and think imperially manifested by English Liberals at Home one is not thinking of the rank and tile of the British democracy. They are as proud of the mag' nificent- heritage of world-wide dominion won foi them by their heroic forefathers as any other section of their race. The great mass of the British people, whatevei political doctrines they may support in Home politics, are loyal to their race and its glorious if burdensome responsibilities. It is only amongst what may be called the official section of the Liberal party and a certain school of academic and sectarian politicians that the practical abrogation of Imperial responsibilities, and a reck less parsimony in regard to national defence find any favour. To this rule there are, of course, eminent individual exceptions, statesmen who, though official colleagues of men of the Campbell-Bannermar type, or, at least, recognised authorities in the councils of the party, can have 11c sympathy with the cult of the " Little Eiiiglander." But the relief with which the Empire hails the inclusion of one of these genuine British statesmen in a Liberal Cabinet is a measure of the anxiety with which all Englishmen, who take patriotic interest in Imperial affairs, regard the advent to office of a, Liberal Administration. Is it not a- recorded fact that the accession to power of the Ca m pbell -Bamia Ministry was made a- cause for rejoicing by the would-be enemies of England? Cai it be regarded as flattering to a new Bri tish Cabinet that, as regards their foreigi and colonial policy, every British community outside of the United Kingdom shoulc have cause for anxiety, and that every foreign power, which desires to see the naval and commercial supremacy of Great Britain extinguished, should secretly and sometimes openly rejoice at the result o: the elections? I do not say that in actual practice these respective hopes and fears are altogether justified bv the results ol a Liberal regime; but the fact that undoubtedly they are called forth by a Lib eral victory at the polls is a significant indication of how far the party has divorcec itself from the patriotic sentiment and as pirations of the British race as a great world-power. ,! It may be said by those "superior per- ■ sons," who delight in hackneyed can! ; against so-called "Jingoism," that to be a great world-power is not intrinsically de sirable nor admirable. . In the abstract '!perhaps, the cringing coward, who decline! |to risk his own physical safety or materia j comfort for any unselffish or sentimental object, may be the highest- product of enlightened humanity, but he is hardly the j ideal of a heroic mind. Without strength and the virile will to use it in a good cause a nation is impotent to protect the op pressed and to maintain the right—i.e., te | venture upon a heroic policy in any important contingency. But then heroic j ideals, if not absolutely wicked, are obnoxious to a certain type of mind. There seems to be some sordid element in the much-vaunted "Nonconformist conscience' which causes it to regard the principle ol heroism as something to be feared ant reprobated by the well-ordered and decently behaveel citizen. Heroic ideals ■ anc conduct, either in an individual or a nation engender in people obsessed by this schoo of thought feelings of repulsion and dreat as at something which is ardent, incalculable, dangerous, reckless of self, and therefore, bordering on the immoral. Wai to some good people is nothing but the cutting of throats, and the wicked" waste of money on this very sinful amusement. It becomes wearisome, in combating tin J flabby ethics of these moral decadents, te |have to reiterate the self-evident- truth thai I war waged for anything but a. legitimate reason is, without doubt, a national sin One would think that, even to some mem bers of the Peace Society, the resistance of foreign invasion would be regarded a: a legitimate reason for fighting. Yet Mr ! Keir Hardie quite recently has rebuked the I supporters of the movement in favour ol a system of military training in the national schools by calling it "teaching out I boys how to shoot their brothers-" Ii does not seem to occur to this tender[l hearted gentleman that the training of oui youths to arms may be neeemil in ordei to enable them to prevent their deal foreign brothers from shooting their owt national brothers, in the case, let us say of a German invasion. But no doubt Mr ■ Keir Ilardie would give us his valuable j personal guarantee that his amiable Ger'lman brother would never dream of making war on his neighbour; unless, indeed, thai j neighbour were foolish and wicked enough 'jto refuse to submit- to Teutonic arrogance and aggression. Germany, or any othei militaiy ,I'ov/er, he would argue, would have 110 reason to make war on her neigh [bours if she were allowed to have all she ''wanted in the shape of trade and other ! advantages over the rest of the world. She I would, so to speak, annex the Earth, and •'.all would be well and peaceful. AN hat ''though a mail-fisted Kaiser might make .j j summer residence of Windsor Castle aw: a winter hotel of Versailles, should we not have secured whole skins by the mun dane and enlightened policy of passivity": A hide unpunctured by nasty bullets is worth a wilderness of sentiment alxiut national honour and independence. If the mere avoidance of bloodshed outweighs al j other considerations, justifying the abandonment of every national duty and respon nihility heretofore held sacred by our race then the cosmopolitan doctrine of peace-at any-price is- reasonable enough. The in vader of a. country unable and unwillinj Ito resist would not be likely to wantonly i kill and destroy. He would simply con temptuously walk over that country, anc trample its liberties and its historic glory and honour in the miro of the scorn oi I humanity.