EDITORIAL NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11805, 14 December 1912, Page 1

EDITORIAL NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Nothing could exceed the cordiality of the send-off given to The Ministry and the Min-.ster of Dethe Navy. fence by the citizens of Wellington. .Nothing at the same time could .surpass the cordiality of the speeches, and the oration of the Chief Justice stands at the head of the list. We are bound to say, at the same time, that nothing could be less than the information vouchsafed by • the departing Minister and his chief who remains to do the work of administration. Jt is seldom that so grand a speech isJieard as Sir .Robert Stout's. It was instinct with peace as tlio ennobling factor, and alive, at the same time, with the manliness that is the only security for national honor and greatness. More nol>le things for the work of the Empire in times past no one could wish to hear. After Sir Robert's deliverance there surely cannot be any more complaints against the honorable, necessary, and njost praiseworthy principle of national self-defence based on self-sacrifice. The speech of the General Commanding fitted in very well and stamped the mail who delivered'it as tho right man in the right place for carrying our liewlyfledgetr system to "its proper fullness of organisation and equipment. Between tho Chief Justice, who reminded the Dominion that compulsion has been the law of .the land from the earliest days, and the General, who struck the note of tho need for preparation of the raw material drawn into line of battle, there is nothing more to be said for an exhausted- subject. The Minister of Defence made the best excuse open to him for not taking the public into his confidence about this important matter, which he is going; to discuss with' the Imperia,l : authorities with tire force of public Opinion behind him. His excuse,practically, is he has not made up his own 'mind on the subject, and, what is more, 1 that the Government has not got any more mind on it than lie has himself. Behind this excuse is the explanation that the Imperial memorandum! of which so much has been recently heard, is 'not in the possession of the Government. Mr Allen said': l 'l have not seen the Imperial memorandum." Then this document, so necessary for the right understanding of the matter, has not ..been sent to. our Government,. although'it lias'been sent both to Canada and toAustralia and been in both places communicated to Parliament. We have already held that it is impossible, under the'circumstances, for the memorandum to be published, and Mr Allen was right in saying that the Government could not be expected to announce a policy without having been placed in possession of the mind of the Imperial Government 011 the subject. Mr Myers pointed at the difficulty of arranging for the single control of the single Imperial navy without damaging the autonomy of the overseas. Anyone who is familiar with the discussion at the last Imperial Conference over Sir Joseph Ward's proposal must see that this is'tile crux of the whole situation. Sir Joseph proposed bis concrete system, making provision for an interregnum, as it were, before the day of complete or .completer federation, during which he provided for the play of co-operative work, which at a former Conference all concerned had agreed to accept as the temporary foundation of the international work of the Empire. He, at all events, had very definite ideas 011 the subject, which is more than can be said for the men who now hold the reins of power. We must endeavor to obtain a clear notion 01 the situation from what- has fallen from the Canadian. Australian, and Imperial Governments. Of these tlie most important is Mr Asquith's contribution to the discussion. He has said that- the Prime Ministers at the last Conference 0911) accepted the principle of overseas representatives 011 the Defence Committee." This is the latest oa ile announcement on the subject, put lie himself when discussing this principle, declared that, inasmuch as these representatives must always lie in a minority before the Imperial authorities, he not think the principle could be accepted. He now seems to have altered his mind and done what lie asked the Imperial Conference not to do: he Has accepted the principle and offered seats to oversea Ministers • 011 the Defence Committee. Mr Fisher at Melbourne, has done the opposite—he lias repeater! his conviction that the principle 15 not to lie accepted. "He does not. the cable informs us, "favor the sending; ot a Minister to London to represent the Commonwealth on the Defence Committee " "Under the circumstances one can liardlv blame the Government of iNew Zealand for taking a little time foi consideration. Their plea is reaTTv that -t-hev want to know on what terms the offer of a seat is made before the> ask the-people of the Dominion to accept it. Turning again to Mr Asquith s explanation," we find he has declared that the ships supplied by Canada will be additional to the naval programme ot tlie Admiralty. That is a conclusion, because, otherwise, it would be impossible to see how the offer could; lead to the tremendous increase in tUe imperial fleet's about which the world is raving Just now. Details of the scheme, however, are lacking; and these will "doubtless be placed before our r tative when he gets Home. . A m all this is supplied by going to the great speech delivered by bir Joseph Ward to the Conference of In the course of that speech •he ou lined a scheme based on a payment of 10s a head all .round, which would pve or; ly.ttlesliips additional 111 three to five vears f'.r tVe Pacific and Atlantic work; Ifc seems, then, that, far from talking va'Mielv of what the overseas are read> to do,"he put the points m everybody to say "yes or /no the various Parliaments. All this lias, it is evident, still got to be devised and thought out. It appears, j llcn . or " * careful review of the facts, that .the new thing is not a new tiling all, an that there is just- as much room for difference of opinion as there ever wastliaMn fact' a satisfactory finality is as far off as ever. Nevertheless we wish our representative every possible good fortune in the Important mission on which he is about to set out. If lie had had a little more initiative it"would have, been better, but we have to do tlio best with what we have got. 1