A NEW REPUBLIC

Southland Times, Issue 18935, 23 September 1920, Page 2

A NEW REPUBLIC

CZECHO-SLOVAKIA REACHES GOAL OF LIBERTY. Among the smaller nations of Europe, for whom the great war meant liberty, is Czecho-Slovakia. A nation passionately imbued with the love of freedom, the Czechoslovak’s sympathies during the years of conflict were wholly with the Allies, and scores of thousands of their men deserted from the Austrian Army to fight for Russia, France, and Italy against the German and Austrian peoples. For them the Peace Treaty of Versailles opened up a new era of hope, granting them independence and freedom. And last week there arrived in Melbourne Dr J. V. Danes, professor of the Czech University, Prague, who has been appointed by the first Czechoslovak Republican Government as first Consul-General representing his nation in Australia. Dr Danes, who will have his headquarters at Sydney, called on the Prime Minister. He is no stranger to the Commonwealth, having spent some time in the back-blocks of Queensland ten years ago engaged in physiographical work. In conversation he spoke enthusiastically of the now' era awaiting the Czecho-Slovak republic, states the Melbourne Age, “We are a democratic republic,” he said. “We have universal franchise for both sexes over the age of 21, and our Parliament consists of a Lower Chamber of 300 elected representatives and an Upper Chamber, also of elected members. The President, of the. Republic is Professor Masaryk, who is well-known as. an authority on philosophy, his greatest work being a history of Russian philosophy and of the development of Russian thought. He represented our. people in the Allied States throughout the war. and was elected after the Peace Conference as our first President, and was re-elected after establishment of our constitution in April this year, when our first Parliament was formed. We have now formed a stable Government, a

coalition of agrarians and moderate Socialists. About one quarter of the members of Parliament are Germans, who are in .strong opposition to the Government. But our people as a whole are so glad they have reached the goal of liberty fur which their forefathers fought (hat all are now truly united for the development of our nation. Since (he proclamation of our liberty we have had no serious strike. We are working for the future." Dr Danes explained that the work of production in the country had not. yet been fully restored. The Czechn-Slovaks must therefore import wheat and raw materials for their industries. As far as Australia was concerned they were specially interested in her hides, wool, mother of pearl and wheat. They had their Bohemian glass industry and iron industry, and could export all kinds of fancy goods and furniture, and it was the ambition of the republic to build up a foreign trade of its own. “Hitherto." remarked Dr Danes, "Vienna and Germany have taken many of our industries to their own credit. You here have probably bought out manufactures without knowing it, "as they were labelled as made in Germany But now we have to establish international relations on our own account, Wc are entirely independent.”

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