TEMPTING BAIT

Waikato Times, Volume 122, Issue 20524, 14 June 1938, Page 7

TEMPTING BAIT

NEW ZEALAND’S PERU. DANGER FROM JAPAN LORD ROTIIERMERE’S WARNING United Press Asm.—Elec. Tel. Copyright. LONDON, June 13 “New Zealand will be one of the most vulnerable countries In the world when Japan lias beaten China. In the next 10 years the Dominion may find itself in a position of the greatest peril." This warning is given by Viscount Rothermere in an article in the Daily Mail, says the Sun-Herald cable service. The article is strengthened by a map. Three routes from Japan to New Zealand are shown—directly past New Guinea, southerly to Singapore by sea and via Sydney by air. Also indicated on the map is the United States naval station of Guam- “ New Zealand,” Lord Rothermere adds, “Is a very tempting bait, as Its area and climate are very suitable for Japanese settlement on a large scale. “The Dominion may in 1939 spend 2h per cent of the national revenue on defence, while Britain's expenditure in that direction will be 40 per cent of the revenue. “New Zealand, therefore,” lie asserts, "supports the argument that a parliamentary democracy cannot arm. This is a terrible conclusion, because even if it is only partly true it means that parliamentary democratic countries have no future.”

REPLY BY MR SAVAGE MIN'D HIS OWN BUSINESS DEFENCE OF NEW ZEALAND (By Telegraph.—Press Association) WELLINGTON, Monday In a speech to Public Works Department employees at Otaki, the Prime Minister, Mr Savage, recounted how he had been telephoned to by a representative of an overseas newspaper and invited to reyly to Lord Rothermere’* article. “I said New Zealand's defence was in a better position to-day than it had ever been,” said Mr Savage, "and we are going on to do still more. If Lord Rothermere would mind his own business and allow us to mind ours he would be doing a service to himself, lo New Zealand and to Britain."