OVERSEA. SETTLEMENT.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17118, 13 April 1921, Page 8

OVERSEA. SETTLEMENT.

- LAST YEAR'S RECORDS. (prom our own correspondent.) ' LONDON, February 24. According to the report of the Oversea Settlement Committee, which has just been published in the form of a White Paper, the number of applications for.free passages received during last year numbered 64,043, covering about 130,000 persons, inclusive of dependants x The number of free passages granted was 20,155, representing some 37,000 persons. Of these, Canada received 6118 men and 1851 women; Australia, 4429 men and 1051 women; New Zealand 3574 men and 398 women; and South Africa 1319 men and 318 women. -It' is unhappily, true, the, report proceeds, that considerable numbers of. exsevice men - are at present unemployed, and : though unemployment haa been less in extent during the present winter than at certain times before the war, the fact that it has affected numerous ex-service men mates it a source of special anxiety, and justifies the adoption of special measures tending either directly or indirectly to afford relief. A policy of settlement and. production overseas, and thus strengthening the best market for the manufactures of the Mpther country —is, in the opinion of the committee, one of the measures whidh deserve consideration, but it cannot be over-emphasised that the relief afforded by such a policy would be largely indirect. It'is clearly, impossible for the 'self-governing Dominions- to receive the unemployed pf the Mother Country, - even if they are ex-service men who have fought for.the.Empare, except in cases where those Governments afe'satisfied- -that-.-the men .in question,will: find suitable work, and will not continue to be unemployed when they arrive overseas. ■ >' Women and Children. ' * Last year the committee expressed the view that - there were 'special grounds for granting State aid f or * n ® settlement of' women overseas. They adhere to this view, and-pre strongly in "favour of encouraging by State aid, and State supervision, the settlement overseas of large numbers of /.women, if and in so far as adequate arrange* ments can be made for their reception and.employment. The chief openings for women 'overseas axe in domestic service, and it is understood .that the Dominions are prepared to accept large numbers of suitable women for this purpose, even though they are untrain> ed; • Women who are: not prepared to' undertake domestio .service in the United Kingdom are prepared to gOoverseas;, where such service,may lead to fuller and happier conditions of Me than are availaole for them in this country. % The committee regard the oversea, settlement of Poor Law and other auitable children as highly beneficial, I hey are of. opinion that any soheme of Mate aid should include adequate facilities for the settlement of children overseas, if, and in. so far as,, suitable arrangements can be made for "".heir reception, and welfare. It would be desirable to ensure, if possible, that the.number of girls sent < out should be at least equal to Hhe number of boys. A wtell-organ-ised system of juvenile settlement is in existence in Canada, and there are indications that a .similar sj stem may shortly be inaugurated in Australia. The Government of Western Australia haß recently entered into-Negotiations with Dr. Barnardo's Homes, and it is hoped that arrangements will be made for sending out a party of 50 boys from the Homes to that State. If this project is carried out successfully it may be anticipated that similar schemes, will be developed in other, parts of Australia and in New Zealand'.:■ .' Education'and Training. \ » The Imperial Education Committee, whidh has administered 1 the special Government grants to ex-Service jnen.for higher educational training outside the United Kingdom, has established-a wide connexion all oven the world, and is thus able to advise and t help all those who wish to take advantage" of facilities offered overseas. The committee has also administered! the scheme for agricultural training of ex-officers and men overseas, and the . agricultural colleges and Departments of Agriculture of the Dominions and colonies concerned have cordially assisted in making .the scheme a success. Two hundred ex-officers and mien have been placed in colleges a/d on farms in the Dominions, where their training is supervised by experts.' Favourable reports are being received as to tlheir progress. "".' The Oversea Settlement Committee have been requested by. the Secondary School Headmasters' Employment Committee to assist them in« obtaining training in farm work, and finding suitable- openings upon the iand in other parts of the Empire, for hoys who leave sridh'schools at the age of about 18. The oversea Governments are bsing, communicated -with; on-'_ the subject. An endeavonr is at present being made by certain Australian Rhodes Scholars at-Oxford to provide training in Australia for a few. selected aecondtfry school boys from this country. It is intended that these boys should be •trained for three years on Government training farms, and subsequently placed in agricultural employment. i .-•■"..'.. : . . ' . . .-.-. ; . . . • s Advancing Passage Money. .It is considered desirable to establish a system of advancing passages, railway fares, and incidental expenses to men and. women -with their dependants, w!ho can be engaged in this country through the machinery of the Ministry of Labour for definite work in the Dominions. It is suggested that his Majesty's Government should as-' sume this responsibility, and that the Dominion authorities should be. invited to assist it recovering these advances. Under such an arrangement, workers proceeding to take up employment overseas would* arrive bound by no obligation or contract to serve any particular employer—thus obviating the objection of the trade unions to anything which is in the nature of contract labour. The principle of advancing fares has already been adopted internally this country and in the Dominions in the case of persons pro-

ceeding from one district to another for the purpose of obtaining employment. It should therefore be an easy matter to extend the principle as suggested. State Supervision. The Committee again urge the enactment of an Oversea Settlement Bin, based upon the principles recommended by the Dominion/.' Royal Commission, and the Empire Settlement Committee, for the purpose'of setting up a Central Authority to deal with oversea settlement and emigration. The experience of the past two years has satisfied the Committee that it is impossible for them, without legal powers and the recognised status of an estab-lished-department of the Government, to exercise supervision over emigration and oversea settlement; and 'they are convinced that the establishment of such-an authority cannot safely be deferred.' ' State-Aided Policy., The Committee welcome the decision of his Majesty's Government to invite tho Governments of the self-governing Dominions to discuss with them _the possibility .of adopting a State-aided I policy of oversea settlement. In their opinion State aid to oversea settlement or emigration_ implies the exercise- of | State supervision both by his Majesty's Government and by the _ Governments of the self-governing Dominions. , The direct aims of such a policy are: (a) To'distribute the available population of this country so as to develop and thereafter to populate the empty spaces of the Empire overseas, thus providing increased employment and prosperity both in the United Kingdom and overseas: (b) by these means to provide for the defence as well as the development of the Empire, and to ensure that the additional population which it requires shall be British by birth and in spirit; (c) To reduce.the surplus of the female over the' male pbpulaton in the United Kingdom. This policy, if it-is to achieve success, must be-developed with careful forethought upon scientific lines,. and upon a considerable scale over a period of years. The Empire as it exists today Avas largely built up by the policy of State-aided emigration inaugurated by his Majesty's Government- a hundred years ago. That policy has profoundly influenced the world's history during the past half-century. It may be hoped that if it is now found possible- for his Majesty's Government, in. co-operation with the Governments of the self-governing Dominions, to inaugurate a new policy, of a like character, the result will be no less important .and no less beneficial. \