THE COLONIST. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING! WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7, 1915. IMPERIAL RELATIONS.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13745, 7 April 1915, Page 4

THE COLONIST. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING! WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7, 1915. IMPERIAL RELATIONS.

With- the object of bringing under, the notice of as wide a circle of New Zealand readers as possible the efforts of the "Round Table" to assist in the solution of the difficult problems which must be solved before a closer political uuion of the Empire can.be 'brought about, the Dominion committee of that admirable Imperial quarterly have reissued in book form comprehensive extracts from articles in which the various aspects of the question have been discussed in the review. Before the, great war demonstrated to the world the strength of the ties of sentiment and loyalty which unite the Empire, which cannot hereafter remain the loose confederation of autonomous States which has sufficiently fulfilled its functions in the past, the fact that the Empire was entering upon a new phase of its development calling for farseeing statesmanship to launch it successfully, was revealed in several occurrences in the Dominions. The first to call for consideration was the position of the Dominions in regard to defence, which was brought to the front by the naval crisis in 1909, when independent action was taken by Australia and projected by Canada. This involved the allied question of foreign policy, and many writers foresaw the danger that each of the nations of the Empire might set up an independent defensive system, and an independent foreign policy for itself. The inevitable results of such a state of affairs were stated in the "Round Table." Instead of one Government responsible for the safety of the Empire there would then be five. Each of these Governments wo\Ud be free to pursue its own policy, and each would have military or naval strength to back it. Each therefore might involve itself in war. What then would be the position of the others? The principle of complete local separation, the writer observed, admirably as it works for internal politics, cannot be applied to foreign affairs. We have only to ask ourselves whether, supposing the Empire had never lost the United States, the foreign policy of Washington could still be determined by the British Government, to see that the present system cannot indefinitely continue.' There is no instance in history of a number of nations who have remained permanently united in defence and foreign policy solely by the bonds of goodwill. How much did goodwill accomplish for the thirteen Confederate States of America, before the Constitution was framed ?• Or how much did goodwill do even for the separate states and provinces of Canada, Australia and South Africa before they broke the deadlock by merging their separate entities in a wider federation? Similarly the nations of the Empire must either agree to co-operate for foreign policy and defence, or they must dissolve the Empire, and each assume responsibility for its own policy and its own defence. There is no third alter-

native. The Empire wide discussion showed clearly, however, that public opinion was not prepared for the great changes involved in bringing about complete Imperial unity in the cojitrol <-i foreign policy and defence, and a satisfactory method of co-operation to attain that end will not be easy to find now. The war, however, has had a greater effect in causing the peoples of the Mother-country and the Dominions to view the subject in a new light than years of controversy could. have achieved. The- principle of - the Empire, which made war;as one people, being fully consulted on the terms of peace

is freely conceded by British statesmen, and it is clearly to be 'seen that the application of the principle of consultation %ill not end there. After the war Imperial relations cannot return to the basis upon which they rested before. The Dominions will be afforded a consultative position in the councils which determine' the issues of peace and war, and in the direction of the Empire's foreign policy. How the change is to be brought about cannot be best discussed while the Empire is waging a war for its existence, but it will be the problem the next Imperial Conference will be. convened |to consider. Meanwhile the Dominion agency of the "Round' Table" has rendered service to New Zealandens interested in Empire problems by making available to them in book form some exceedingly valuable contributions to the discussion.