“WHO IS WITH US?”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24738, 15 October 1941, Page 4

“WHO IS WITH US?”

SINGLE POLITICAL AIM NO TIME FOR DIFFERENCES APPEAL BY MR COATES A stirring call to the people of New Zealand to forget their political differences. to face up to the difficulties ahead with a fully united determination— in • short, “to team up t,o make sure that this aggressor Hitler goes down and stays down ” —was made by Mr J. G. Coates, a member of the War Cabinet, in an inspiring address to an audience of about 200 at the annual meeting last night of the Dunedin Manufacturers’ Association. “ Every person in this country must realise what the British Empire and its Allies are up against,” Mr Coates said. “And, having got that into the back of his head, he must realise how much more he can do towards the tremendous effort that still lies ahead of

us. The road will be tough and rough, and there is no easy way through. If we are attacked, we are all attacked. There are threats from more than one source, and the power and latent power of ttie aggressor are not, I am afraid, appreciated by everyone as they should be. The Only Way “ His resources are such that Great Britain and her Allies—and that includes every person in New Zealand—must put forward the last ounce of energy. It is not a case of profit now. Who cares about profit to-day when the sole aim must be to get the very best out of everything we have got? There is only one way to win through, and that is by teamwork. If I should be a Socialist and you a Conservative —what does it matter? The main thing is far too important for such differences. This is our chance and our time, and we shall produce the will and the determination to go through with it. “This is not the time to be divided and arguing about politics of any kind. There is only one type of politics to-day, and that is—‘Who is with us to see the aggressor down and how can we do it?’

“We should be big enough and practical enough to provide for the needy; but surely a common cause should ensure that the fair thing is done to the other fellow. We must forget our differences of opinion, team in together, and get there together. Some people have a mighty belief in politics. But there is a war on, and our lives and liberties are being threatened. Russia is giving us a respite, and there are those who would take the chance that Russia can hold the invaders. I see it the other way. We cannot afford to take any chance. The British Commonwealth of Nations must,go forward with grim determination; so let us all forget the little things and drive together on the one great thing that faces us to-day." Hitler’s Russian Gains Mr Coates had turned from an explanation of the Lease and Lend Act to emphasise that the need for all the aid that the United States could give and all the war equipment and servicing that the members Of the British Empire could contribute were vitally important. No one could look ahead Without feelings of great concern, he said—not feelings of dismay but of a keen appreciation of the difficulties that still had to be surmounted. The danger of isolation was still a very real one to New Zealand. Thanks to Russia, Great Britain had had a respite for the last three months; but Russia had her back to the wall, and it was necessary to realise that Hitler’s army had made a tremendous encroachment into her huge territories and her raw materials. It had driven into areas of great industrial importance, and although the Russians had smashed everything behind them, factories and machines could be repaired and made to work for Germany,

“We must get it into our heads that immense resources are now available to Hitler,” he went on. “He has the whole of. Europe and a great part of Russia, and the whole output of that tremendous area is right to his hand. It is all very well to say that it is not working freely for him; but we can be sure that every factory is turning out something. A survey of the raw materials that Germany now controls is enlightening,” and he quoted figures showing that Great Britain, her Allies, and the United States had 35 per cent, of the world’s wheat to Germany’s 30 per cent., and with Russia about 60 per cent.; 30 per cent, of barley against Germany’s up to 50 per cent., 42 per cent, of which came from the countries she had occupied.

Germany, Italy, and Japan controlled 80 per cent, of the world’s potatoes, about 57 per cent, of beet sugar, 61 per cent, of hemp, 49 per cent, of cement, 50 per cent, of wood pulp, 56 per cent, of benzol, 96 per cent, of lignite, 32 per cent, of coal, 43 per cent, of iron ore, 20 per cent, of copper and manganese ore, 20 per cent, of lead ore, 30 per cent, of zinc, and 55 per cent, of aluminium. Aim of Co-ordination “Those are tremendous resources.” Mr Coates said. “The only way we can meet them is for the British Empire and the United States to make the fullest possible use of all their resources. That means perfection of cooperation and co-ordir.ation, and that is the aim we must keep in front of us always in New Zealand. We cannot achieve it if we are divided iimong ourselves and squabbling about politics. There will be time again for domestic politics when Hitler has been smashed. Until that day, let us forget them.”

The applause which greeted Mr Coates’s appeal indicated that the meeting endorsed his views.