THE EMPIRE.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18890, 4 January 1927, Page 9

THE EMPIRE.

NEW CONSTITUTION.

CONFERENCE DECISIONS.

AMERICAN OPINION. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) SAN FRANCISCO, December 1. Interpretations ranging from the "Beginning of the breaking up of the British Empire'' at one extrenio to the "'Beginning of a new epoch of power and influence," were expressed in Washington in commenting on the report of tlio Imperial Conference. Diplomats, State Department officials, and senators were absorbed in a study of the new situation presented, it generally being regarded as of more tense interest and more i widespread significance than anything: which has happened' in international affairs for a long time. With the United States outside the League of Nations and the World Court, the British Empire has been recognised in official Washington as the dominating influence in both. Hence, a great deal of speculation as to what the effect of the greater autonomy granted the Dominions, and incidentally Ireland, will be. Britain's influence in world affairs, due to the concentration of the United StaDes on the Western hemisphere, may be wholly changed, it was pointed out in Washington. There are those who contend that Britain will Decome tremendously more important. Those holding this view say that by the new "Magna Charta," as one writer described the recom* mendations, Britain has eliminated most of the friction and mpny of the embarrassments which have handicapped her freedom of action in the past. From now on, those holding this view assert she will be able to act with far less fear of the possible consequences of her action. Those holding a more pessimistic view . point to the inevitable conflict due to the natural differences of economic interests as between Britain herself and the Dominions. These are bound to occur, these American pessimists believe, and'they opine they will lead to a gradual drifting apart which may easily result in a final breaking up of the Empire when some particularly irritating conflict develops.

Conflicting Interests. "The Dominions have commercial and economic interests which are bound to conflict with those of the Mother Country," said a prominent member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in discussing this phase. "They will find it to their advantage to trade with other countries, and they will drift gradually in doing so. Then will come agitations to do away with the preferential tariffs favouring British goods, and the trouble will bo on."

On one phase of the situation everyone agreed in Washington, and that was the change in the title of the King not being important. It was significant, however, in that it placed extra emphasis on the change in the status of Ireland, making it clear that Ireland now is just as autonomous as Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. Washington pessimists pointed out that the maintenance at various capitals in the world of diplomatic representatives of the Dominions would inevitably lead to conflicts in diplomatic interests, perhaps sometimes as between the Dominions, but more likely between one or more of the Dominions and the Mother Country. On the other hand, the optimists pointed out that the formulation of Empire policy had become a tedious and cumbersome thing, despite the telegraph and cable, and that the new system would surely result in a mora sympathetic understanding between the parts of the Empire which would make co-ordination and . co-operation more spontaneous and workable than thev had ever been Before. "I think it will be found that the Empire will stand solidly together as never before." said a Senator holding the opposite view from the one already quoted. "You will find that the diplomats representing the various Dominions and Britain and Ireland, for example, in Rome or Vienna, or Moscow, will be inevitably, driven closer together than if they were meeting in an Imperial Conference in London.

Empire' More United. "The same sort of tendency which makes Americans in Europe more fervently patriotic and determined to uphold their country, right or wrong, then the same Americans would be at home, will operate to make the diplomatic representatives of the Empire stand together. Then when the time comes to formulate an Empire policy -it will be found that all of the Dominions will have more .or less the same reactions. There will be no such difficulties as have occurred in the past, notably in the gradual development of. opposition on the part of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which would have forced Britain to decline to renew that treaty if the Washington Arms Conference had not provided a more diplomatic method of making the same move.*'

Other optimists also pointed out that the fourth recommendation, which asserts that the Home and Dominion Governments shall communicate directly with each other, instead of through intermediary channels of the GovernorGeneral, would tend to strengthen, rather than weaken the ties which bind the Empire together. In commenting on the Conference report the New York "Herald-Tribune" saw it as merely the definition of an existing condition rather than a creation of a new one, adding: "The report of the Inter-Imperial Relations Committee of the British Imperial Conference is notable not so much for creating or contemplating a new Empire status as for recognising a status which already existed in fact, modification of the Inter-Imperial rolations was one of the fruits of the Great War, in which the Dominions participated with so much zeal and distinction. When the self-governing ones—and India too —were admitted into the League of Nations,'it was evident that old conceptions of the Empire would have to be revised. Since thon the Irish Free State has been detached from the United Kingdom of Ireland, and has been accepted at Geneva into the family of nations. Ireland has maintained a minister at Washington. At Locarno the British Government signed international accords affecting the peace of Europe which were not to be binding on any British Dominion without, its consent. No Constitution. "The Imperial Conference haa sought to regularise these developments and to outline .- little more precisely their constitutional effects. The Empire has no constitution. It would not be in line with British tradition to draft one. "But the committes generalises thus: 'They (Great Britain and the self-gov-erning Dominions) are autonomous communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in no way subordinate to one another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by common allegiance to the

Crown and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations.'

"This is an elastic Imperial charter. All that it may imply is hidden inscrutably in the future. Yet, logically, it does not greatly expand the liberties and responsibilities vested in the Dominions when they were permitted to sign the peace treaties, each in its own right, and when they formally attained nationality through unconditional acceptance as members of the League. At the last meeting of the Assembly the Irish Free State received votes for one of the semi-permanent seats in the League Council. Was that not a convincing affidavit to the Freo State's sovereignty and nationality? How far, under an unwritten Imperial constitution, will the independence of the Imperial communities be stressed as against their freo association for Imperial purposes!" Broadminded Statesmanship. The New York <; Times" look much the same view, characterising the movement as an instance of •' broadminded statesmanship." "There was as much truth as humour in the recent remark of 'Punch' that a careful reading of the proceedings of the Imperial Conference would lead to the conclusion that Great Britain had decided to remain with the Empire. So slio has," said the "Times," ''but it is within a flexible Empire, given a different outward shape frbin time to time in order to- fit changed conditions. This is the reason for the slight alteration in tho title of the King, as recommended by the report of the Imperial Relations Committee. . . . This is only a re-

cognition of the present-day fact. Ireland is no longer a part of the 'United Kingdom.' But she remains one of the British Commonwealth of Nations, and George V., is the King to whom the members of her Parliament 'tako an oath of allegiance. In this matter it is the apparent intention of tho Imperial Conference to give moro weight to the substance than to tho mere form. Equally suggestive of broadminded statesmanship is that section of the report which deals with the conduct "of foreign affairs by the British Empire. It clings to the elementary truth that thero must be a single and central control. Yet; the self-governing Dominions are entitled to make their voices heard. Legal wavs of doing so may be devised in time, though for the present consultations between them and the Foreign Office must remain largely informal. Yet the report sagaciously points out that the Dominions are necessarily engaged, to some extent, in conducting foreign relations, particularly with countries on their own borders. There they must be given, with certain limitations, a free hand. This has been done already in the case of Canada. It may yet be done in similar fashion for Australia and South Africa. "Meanwhile the fundamental position by the report is that neither Great Britain nor the Dominions can be committed to serious foreign obligations 'except with the definite assent of their own Government.' "

Charter of Nationhood. The New York "Morning World" regarded the document "a charter to nationhood," for tho Dominions. This journal commented: "The Balfour Imperial Relations Committee of the Im-perial-Conference sitting in London proposes what is in effect a new Constitution for the British Empire. True to tradition, no written compact is contemplated. The British Constitution is called unwritten. It is, in fact, written in law and Parliamentary precedents, but rests in no set verbal framowork, is fluid, and is easily changed. This may have its dangers. "It has its advantages. A new system bt grouping and'management of a sisterhood of nations containing one-quarter of the population of the Jobo may be put into effect, if so decided,' far more easily than we can upset the Eighteenth Amendment. . . The key of the situation is the Foreign Office. In the World War the self-governing colonies came splendidly to tho aid of the Mother Country. It was realised with a shock that ;he'y need not all have done so. In the new understanding the Foreign Office is to take the lead in international negotiations. But 'practically all the Dominions are engaged to some extent, and some to a considerable extent, in the conduct of foreign relations, particularly those with foreign. countries on their own borders.' This means Canada, with her new diplomatic i in Washington. And it is agreed that neither Great Britain no T the Dominions could be committed to the acceptance of active obligations except with the definite assent of their own Governments first. "To Canada, to South Africa, to Australia, to New Zealand, there is the charter of nationhood. As symbol alike and record of the union of free and equal self-govern-ing nations the Governor-General of any Dominion is to represent there not the British Government, but the Crown alone. The theory of the veto power over Dominion legislation vested in Great Britain—for years no more than a on the dumpheap." Arthur Brisbane, in the New York "American," proffers his familiar theory that Britain is old and worn out; but ends up with a tribute to the Old Country: "Grandmother Britain is growing old. The war tired her, with its killed and wounded, its billions of debt, millions of unemployed and disastrous strikes following. "The Dominions are young, strong, .and growing. Now epch Dominion is made officially the equal of Great Britain. The colonies and Britain form an alliance, not aft Empire, with Britain ruling. But the colonies are only officially Britain's equals. They will outgrow and dominate her in time, and old England will come to be the European banking office and banking centre of brains in South Africa and Australia. But the old British mother still has the Britons, trained statesmen, great universities, and thinking men. Those things mean Empire, whatever you may say officially."

New Magna Oharta. The New York "Evening World" described the report as a "new Magna Charta," saying: "A now MagnaJ Oharta has been given to the world thai; vitally changes the relations of several of the English-speaking peoples;/ and opens a new path in the history/of the British Empire. The Imperial Conference in London has just.announced an epochal change in the relations of the v-rious Dominiois, which , has been summed up in the following: 'The position and mutual relations of the group of self-governing communities composed of Great Britain and the Dominions may be readily defined. They are autonomous communities within the British Empire, equal in status and in no way subordinate one to the other in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by a common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations. Evory_ selfgoverning member of the Empire is. now master of its destiny.' "This is in harmony with the sentiment in the Dominions which has been constantly growing, and has seemed to point at times to the disruption of the Empire. It marks a complete victory for ' Canada, which sponsored the 1 s-heme. In effect it will tend to bind the British Commonwealth of Nations more intimately than before." The San Francisco "Chronicle," commenting on the appointment of a Canadian Minister to Washington, said: "The whole question works out on a practical law of necessity. Instead of

/ ——. • , drawing Canada away from the Mother Country, the new establishment Is designed to strengthen the bonds existing, between the various communities of the Commonwealth. Canada, like the other self-governing members of the Empire*, is master of its own destiny, but is mindful of the prestige it enjoys u a member of the far-flung British Empire. "Those who see in this appointment of a Canadian Minister to Washington * a drifting away of this western Domini ion from the Crown do not understand the true character of the British Empire. There will be no secession." ~