A WAR BOGEY.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 June 1923, Page 5

A WAR BOGEY.

JAPAN DESIRES PEACE. FRIENDLY TO BRITAIN. OPPORTUNITY FOR TRADE. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received June 15, 8.10 p.m. Sydney, June 15. Mr. Walter Marks, a member of the Federal Parliament, who has returned from an extended visit to Japan, deprecates keeping alive the Japanese bogey. He says Japan is loyally abiding by the terms of the Washington Treaty. She could take Australia at any time the spirit moved her; nothing could stop her, but this she would not do for many reasons, the main ones being her desire for friendship with the British Empire, and secondly because she had no desire to be & participant in the greatest naval battle ever seen, that between the British and Japanese fleets. The oft-repeated cry in Australia, “Lock out, Japan will take us,” was not only senseless, but an ungenerous and unpardonable insult to a nation that rendered Australia such splendid service during the war, and had been supremely loyal to her ally Britain. Mr. Marks said he was strongly struck by the prospects of wide trade expansion with the East. In this connection he mentioned that New Zealand butter had a ready market in China, as against Australian. Goods from Australia were handicapped by bad labelling, grading and packing. ’