IMPERIAL CONFERENCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19550, 1 February 1927, Page 12

IMPERIAL CONFERENCE.

STATUS OF THE DOMINIONS. IMPRESSIONS OF MR. BRUCE* The work of the recent Imperial Conference, and the report of the InterImperial Relations Committee in particular, was reviewed by Mr. S. M. Bruce, Prime Minister of Australia, in a brief address at iho weekly luncheon of the Rotary Club yesterday. There was no doubt that the most important question dealt with at the conference was that of inter-Imperial felations, Mr. Bruce said. Prior to the conference many people believed the Empire was in a precarious position, - that restlessness in the Dominions was widespread and that the Imperial Conference would probably only result in the first steps toward disintegration. However, he was confident the so-called crisis Would lead to nothing, and results had justified his belief. In Earl Balfour the Inter-Imperial Relations Committee, consisting of the Prime Ministers, had a chairman who brought to their deliberations wonderful courtesy, judgment, and a ripeness of experience not equalled by any statesman of the Empire. (Applause.) .When the committee commenced to discuss with perfect frankness the relations between the different parts of the Empife, it was found there existed a great measure of agreement. This fact alone demonstrated the extraordinary use of Imperial Conferences and how great was the necessity for personal contact between accredited representatives of the various Governments. "Every Pi'imo Minister was animated with one desire, and that was to contribute to greater unanimity in the Empire and greater co-operation between the various parts. The report of the committee will in future probably turn out to bo one of the most valuable documents ever penned in the history of the whole Empire. "It was not an attempt to draw up a written constitution. Had it been, no one would have opposed it mofe than I, for the Empire never could exist with a written constitution. Before the war wo had reached the point of complete self-governing right, and even in those pre-war days one thing had happened which few realised. There was no possible form of power or compulsion to make any Dominion participate in a war without the consent of its people. The wonderful and amazing response we had in 1914 shewed that this was the best system of government, but our autonomous and self-governing rights were already perfectly established, " The war created a new problem, namely that of international relations, and, although we knew we did not have to take part in any war of Britain's, yet j we realised that if Britain were involved we would be in danger. The demand was made that we should not be involved in war as a result of a foreign policy we j never had been consulted about-. "All the conference did was to set these things out in a document with the authority of representatives of the self-governing parts of the Empire," the speaker continned, after referring to the national status granted the Dominions in foreign affairs since the signing of the Treaty of V ersailles in 1918. "To some of you it may appear unnecessary. I do not know that Australia was anxious to have it done, but we have to take a broader view than that which takes in our own country. The Empire is not made up of countries like Australia and New Zealand with almost entire English populations. ere was certainly misunderstanding in Souta Africa as to what was that country s standing in the Empire, and it U." ?°T i! ?? l , cuk J ble S° od th*t this document should be drawn up so that South Atncu. could understand its position."