The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Erha. For the cause that lacks assistance, For the wrong that needs resistance, For the future in the distance. And the good that we can do. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1928. AN UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 226, 24 September 1928, Page 6

The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Erha. For the cause that lacks assistance, For the wrong that needs resistance, For the future in the distance. And the good that we can do. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1928. AN UNFORTUNATE INCIDENT.

A letter which purports to give authentic details of the Anglo-French naval compromise has appeared in a number of American newspapers. There seems to be no doubt that the information which it supplies is accurate as far as it goes, and as the truth in this case appears to be quite innocuous, we might expect that the French and British diplomats concerned would be rather gratified at the disclosure. However, they appeal* to be anxious chiefly to discover how the facts leaked out rather than to emphasise the laudable character of the agreement.

doubt a great deal of trouble and anxiety would have been saved if the full text of this so-called compromise had been circulated publicly some time ago. The temporary concealment of the details, and the air of mystery thus thrown about the agreement, have aroused suspicions that are not easy to allay, and whatever advantage has been gained by withholding the facts must have been outweighed by loss of confidence and goodwill. At the same time it must be remembered, as the British Foreign Office now reminds us, that “the full terms, and not only part of them, were communicated to the governments of the United States, Japan and Italy some weeks ago,” and the official reason for not publishing more widely the full text of the agreement is that, though Italy and Japan have expressed their approval of the compromise, no definite expression of opinion has yet been received from Washington. It thus becomes very difficult to understand what are the motives behind the attitude that the American Government has adopted toward the Anglo-French agreement. The Americans have protested against the “secret diplomacy” by which this compromise was arranged, but it now appears that Washington has been officially aware of the facts all the time. And for this reason the adverse criticism to which the agreement has been subjected fiom the American side is all the more incomprehensible. For the published details prove that the understanding between France and Britain was merely a provisional compromise to be submitted to the other Powers by way of preparation for the work of the Disarmament Commission. If the Americans had not, in their own phrase, been “looking for trouble” they could hardly have found any justification for suspicion and resentment there.

A SOCIALIST BARONET.

The death of his father will give Mr. Oswald Mosley another opportunity of proving the sincerity or otherwise of his professed Socialist views. It may be found that he has been cut off with the proverbial shilling. There seems to have been little affection lost between the two, for his father once said that his son’s birth cost him a hundred pounds in doctors’ bills, and he now thought this was ridiculously excessive. But in any case he cannot avoid inheriting the baronetcy, and his Labour friends have not shown any open admiration for titles. Mr. Mosley is wealthy apart from anything he may inherit from his father, and already he has experienced some difficulty in explaining why, if it is wrong for the capitalist to have a luxurious house in Park Lane, it should be right for him to have a smaller but exceedingly comfortable and expensive house in a fashionable square. His wife also inherited a large fortune, and, though they both profess Socialist leanings and declaim against the riches of others, they have neither of them shown any disposition to surrender their own wealth. Mr. Mosley has explained that if he got rid of his money he could not use it to further those Socialist principles which are so dear to him, and he would merely be handing it back to selfish capitalists. Which goes to prove that Mr. Mosley has some talent for political platform speaking. His supporters must frequently cause him embarrassment. During the Smethwick election they sang at one of his meetings a new version of “Rescue the perishing” by altering the last two lines to “Oswald is merciful, Mosley will save,” which was not calculated to endear him among the class that he had deserted. It is said that while the song was sung Mr. Mosley stood by with bowed head, and it is not stated that he made any protest. From this one may conclude that his sense of humour is not well developed, but perhaps this is an advantage to one who is making the best of two opposite worlds.

A MILD BIRTHDAY.

Since to-day New Zealand comes of age as a Dominion, a little more thought than usual has been given to the significance of the anniversary, but, generally speaking, outside those few favoured classes who do no work on Dominion Day, the day does not cause a ripple on the surface of the national life. There was no enthusiasm for the change when it was made, and no real emotion of the kind has been created since. There were many who regretted the disappearance of the oldfashioned and honourable word “colony,” with its many associations, but sooner or later a change - would have been forced on us by circumstances. New Zealand could hardly have remained a “colony” when her sisters sat with her round the Imperial Council table as “Dominions.” The significance of the title “Dominion” lies in its implication of greater freedom and its suggestion of nationhood. Our sense of nationhood is much stronger than when Sir Joseph Ward brought “Dominion” back from England, but this is largely due to the war, and we would be conscious of this growth no matter what we called our country. At any rate, this is not the sort of national day that lends itself to celebration. In the distant future, when we have developed a more istinctive nationalism, we may celebrate Uommion Day with a little of the fervour that “ Scots brux « to the feast of St Andrew-