NO RAW MATERIAL FOR GERMANY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 199, 11 May 1918, Page 10

NO RAW MATERIAL FOR GERMANY

». : SIR EDWARD CAB SON ON THE TRADE AVAR. Sir Edward Carson, speaking at a luncheon given by the British Empire Producers' Organisation at the Connaught Rooms recently, said ho was not going to explain why ho resigned—he had told the Prime Minister the absolute truth. Nor was he going to talk about Ireland. TIo was going there that night. Wo wore all burning for peace. We never wanted war, but we must not divido the nation into two parties as ff it were composed of those who wanted peace and those who wanted war. The difference \vasl.ipl'.ve;>:i. a void .pcore and a patched up peace, and he was hound to say that in the speeches we had lately heard from Germany and Austria he saw no approach on the part of our enemies to an honourable and lasting peace. Look at what they said about the freedom of the seas-"Givo up Aden, Gibraltar, and Malta!" As long as the disintegration i of the British Empire was our enemies' dream not: even the greatest pacifist in 'this country would have anything to do with it. If we made peace at a tinio when Germany was boasting that her armies were triumphant ail we could do I would bo to prepare for the next war. I Until we knew we were to have a lasting I peace wo could not diagnose or lay down I plans for the future. It was no good talking about a League of Nations if there remained outside one great country which had proved that it could terrorise the world. After the war the whole world would be in competition for raw material. Would wo and our Allies get it or our enemies? It must be wo and our Allies, no matter what happened. Great Britain and her Allies practically controlled the raw materials such as cotton and wool. The President of the Textile Industries in Germany had admitted that if the Allies were to take ■in hand the control of raw cotton Gcnivin textile trade would go down. Why shouldn't it go down? (Applause.) The;" might bo something unchristianlike in that, but he couldn't help it. (Laughter and applause.) The same applied to metals. Were we going, to allow this trndo to pass again into the hands' of j Germany, so that they might'make guns : and bombs for use against us? Was there ever such buffoonery? T(c hoped I that before long a definition would be j given on the question of imports and cxi ports, about which a good deal of confusion had arisen.