THE WAR AND AFTER.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume III, Issue 872, 25 November 1916, Page 8

THE WAR AND AFTER.

SERIOUS PROBLEMS. NEED FOR IMPERIAL FEDERATION In the course of an address recently, General Page Croft, M.P., (Eng.), made a vigorous appeal for stronger measures in the prosecution of the war and preparation to meet the disorganisation after peace. After describing the present military ; position, he said: "A doubtful situation has been ! turned to certain ultimate victory, jbut we must fight on as if we might i lose. Our blockade must be tightenjed until Germany is strangled: it Is a j pitiful thing to see our timidity in j exercising our legitimate rights at sea for fear of offending neutrals ! when our enemies sink at sight any j neutral ship. There is no need to | imitate our piratical opponents, but ! to deliberately allow neutrals to feed lour enemies is moral cowardice. | "Again, in dealing with Zeppelins ; we ought to take measures to punish Germany after the war, so that whenever a Zeppelin raid takes j place in future we should impose by |law an additional period of prohibition of German goods. That is war, and war is the ony argument the j German understands. No Half-measures. "Let us cast all aside in a mighty : effort to prevail, and above all let us j exhort our rulers to lead us more [fearlessly. Let us tell them we will I have no more delays or half- ] measures. When we remember the i great sacrifices of our men and the I wonderful work of our women, we ! ask ourselves, Can it, shall it be in vain? All these sacrifices will be worthless unless the giant of greed | is throttled, unless victory is a real 'victory, and peace a J -sting peace. "More, all will be vain unless the j spiritual renaissance of our people is j maintained, unless we seize this 'golden hour to create out of the I ruins a finer and a fairer mansion ;for our race. The hour is favourable for peace between contending i factions in our country, but the great j problems can only be solved if the | country demands leadership. "Think of the return of four mil- ; lion men and the labour problem, i especially the female labour problem. Is the new host of labour to :be turned into the streets to give j way to the old, or are the soldiers I and women to enter a war of underselling each other's labour in a still greater battle for life? Impossible! j Work must be found for all, and the jpioductive energy of our enemies, i which has hitherto exploited our markets in the Empire, must be ! transferred to our own people. The ■ workshop of England must be walljed off for our people. Some bricks | must be removed for neutrals, many I bricks for our Allies, and our own ; kinsmen must be welcomed with the j smallest impediment. But if we J adopt a fearless after-war policy

I and refuse to be flooded out by our i enemies, if we deny them the opportunity of recuperating themselves for a further war at our expense, then prices may remain for a i time at a high level until our productive engines are at full steam. Profits may also be high; and I believe the '■ whole country will agree that in any increased profits which our industry gains the workers of England who have proved so patriotic during the war shall share in the form of ■ higher wages. "We must plant our soldiers where we can on the land; we must ; come together on a land policy which ! will give them root and ownership I in the soil they have helped to save. I "Who shall decide these problems? The country demands a franchise for the fighting men. Those who have saved us must share in deciding our : J fate in order that we may gain a i greater, happier England. We want :' to see the Canadian, the Anzac, and the South African come into the i. family. I want the union of the battlefield—the union of death—to be transformed into an imperishable • union of the living. We would wish ! to see in future these fair young j countries, who have poured out their . most precious blood for us, not a , collection of sympathetic States ■ united on chance only, but one I mighty federated race founded on the ! i ideals for which we went to war I, united in face of the world. The I hour is ripe. Never again will the ! j day be so happy for this great 1 change; it is a cause worthy of all '! the sacrifices we have made. I have '! come home to fight that battle, and '' I pray we may not fail."