The Dominion SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1916. A FOOD DICTATORSHIP

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2932, 18 November 1916, Page 8

The Dominion SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1916. A FOOD DICTATORSHIP

The British Government is about to face the question of appointing a dictator with very extensive' and drastic powers. This, let it be emphasised, is not a confession of weakness, or a concession forced by an , alarming crisis in the Empire's food supplies. On the contrary, it is yet another intimation to the enemy of our determination to see this fight through to a successful finish. The system proposed is at once a, pro- . tection to the public- against exploitation by unscrupulous persons, a method of promoting national economy, and an effective means of conserving our food supplies against all contingencies. Those who gave careful' attention to the discussion in the British House of Commons on the subject, as reported by cablegram in The Dominion yesterday, will, no doubt have noted that the objections raised; took the line that the, ■ proposals were ..'not' drastic enough, and it may be ' taken for' granted that when the Bill' lore-' casted by Mn. Runciman is,presented to the House, .it "• will havo a favourable reception and an easy passage. _ With characteristic dilatoriness, ,the British Government— and the British miblic—arc wakings up • to the fact that if a nation is - to achieve ■ {success < under presentday conditions of modern warfare, every department of that nation's activity must bo tuned up to a high standard of efficiency. Our supremacy in the air, our magnificent artillery, the splendid valour of our our stupendous efforts in the ■ munition factories, our victories in the field, will all have been in vain if our fighting'efficiency as a nation should be impaired by a breakdown in our food-supply. Two factors might conceivably bring about such a crisis. German submarine piracies, if unchecked, might accomplish it, but our supreme confidence in the Navy, our knowledge of what it has achieved since the war began, allows us few qualms on that score. Public indifference, incompetent administration, might, and in the long run most certainly would,' accomplish it, and it is to safeguard the nation from the possibility of such a grave contingency that the British Gov-' eminent,, rather, late in the day, says Mr. G. J. Wardle, spokesman for the Labour Party in the House of Commons, now proposes to establish a'food dictatorship. Everybody knows that in this departure, the British Government, in one sense, is taking a leaf out of the German war book. But that is not the way to look-at it. An organised system of food supply control, under State supervision, is a siiw qua- lion- of successful effort in a prolonged war, with all the sources of supply.,liable , to . interference through enemy efforts or by reason of internal. dislocation of labour and transport. .The late Earl Kitchener told"us distinctly to prepare for at feast three years of war. Those who had the best means of judging the soundness of' this prophecy realised at least 'that the -Bi'itish Empire was about to engage in a life and death struggle ;°liut the great mass of .the people, as it daily perused- its heavily-censored war news,-has not until recently adequately understood . the gravity of the situation ' which Germany" created by her long-prepared and carefully organised attempt to conquer the world. Germany, we know, made the fundamental mistake of thinking that with all her' matured and expert- preparations, she could make the war, sharp and short. That is why, realising its mistako rather late in'th'o day, : the German Government recently appointed 'a food creator. But long before that they had established,-of necessity as well as precaution, a. rigid supervision of their foo.d supply, based on food tickets. These food tickets, in the first .instance, were instituted i to prevent inordinate'consumption and waste. Had they not taken | these measures, it is. quite conceivable tthat their powers of resistance, i?nder the steady and- inexorable pressure of the British naval blockade, would have collapsed' before today. Mr. Runciman, in h'is statement to the British. Parliament, made it perfectly clear that the British public had made a very poor response to the Government's appeal for economy in .food consumption, and that, as'a matter of .consequence,

the Government intended to enforce, if necessary,' its ideas .on the subject.' _ The. British. Government, in this important matter, means business, and this public announcement of its intentions will make uncomfortable reading for the ' enemy, though they-may seek for a time to make'capital'dut of' it by claiming that the submarine'blockade'is placing the people ( of Britain on 'short commons. The' Germans, however, have thoroughly realised by this time, that we mean what we say, and this latest indication of our de-termination-to: win the war at all costs will hot' leave them any ground for encouragement. It '• is well that wo in New Zealand who are so comfortably off in the way of foodstuffs and who, owing to our remoteness from the centre .of the struggle, escape so many of its horrors and hardships, should realise < what our countrymen in Britain are enduring; ' and -the' splendid spirit in which they are facing the burden < cast upon them.