PARTY LEADERS RETURN
MR.' MASSEY AND SIR JOSEPH WARD. AT AUCKLAND N.Z, REINFORCEMENTS STATEMENT BY PRIME MINISTER By Telegraph-Press Association. Auckland, October 12. The Prime Minister (the Eight Hon. W. t\ Jiussey) wlio, with Sir Joseph Ward, Finance Minister, returned to New Zealand by tiio Niagara, interviewed' paid ji high tribute to the New Zeaianders at the front, and said:- "While at the front we were able to put some matters right in which they were distinctly concerted, and roinovc some lnisflpjjrehoKions created by adverse criticism at this end. There were other matters which we could not deal with, as tliey require Parliamentary sanction and which will be submitted in due course. Following the successes of the Germans in the spring, there had been a certain amount of anxiety in Er gland in May at:d Juno, but with the Americans entering the war in large numbers, and the splendid response of the Dominions and India, tlie position rapidly improved. "As for the Pacific Islands 'of the Southern Hemisphere, formerly in the occupation of Germany and in winch •New Zealand is intensely concerned, my impression is that if there is difficulty it will make its appearance at the Peace Conference, but Australia and New Zealand will bo able to show that they are lighting in the best interests of the native races as well as for the safety and security of Anglos Saxons who nave already, made homes in flie South Pacific, and the f-till very muoh larger number who will make homes there in the future."
Referring to the suggestion that now that America lias come into the war New Zealand should relax its efforts and either greatly reduce its reinforcements or cease sending soldiers altogether, Mr. Massoy "I should like to say that unless in a. crisis sucll as occurred last March, the Government do not want to rend more xlian necessary to sufficiently reinforce our troops already in the fighting-line, but I think for New Zealand or, any one of the Dominions to slacken oft would he a very serious mistake. I understand the proposal was that New Zealand, could do its duty sufficiently by producing food for the Allied armies, but if until the end of the war Wβ were to depend upon America for our soldiers it would meau ihat all our ships would he required to carry troops and munitions, and we should be left with our produce on our hands. As Minister in charge of the Imperial Supplies Department, I have done my best to secure a sufficient supply of ships in order to get our products away -and keep the commerce of the country going, and I think not unsuccessfully, but I cannot poasibly guarantee that the supply-of ships for the present season will be equal to last year, All I can say is that, taking the requirements of the war into consideration, the British Ministry of Shipping will do its best for us, and I believe the position will improve steadily, but not rapidly as compared with the last few months. The Imperial authorities thoroughly understand the! importance of sufficient' ships for the Australasian trade!-, and nothing .but the most urgont necessity will keep them away from us. While I have confidence in tho Shipping Ministry there are Departments of State in Britain with which I .ini not so well satisfied in the handling of our products,' and it may be necessary to nsk parliament to set up a special Commission to go into tho whole qiiestion, so .that the public may understand some of the difficulties with ■which wo aro being called upon to deal." Mr. Massoy made non-committal, reference to tho important work of tl;e War Cabinet and Conference, saying he believett all the Dominions would appoint a. Resident Minister. Asked regarding tho .feeling in England in respect to the war. Sir Joseph Ward said tliat since the- time of his former , visit a remarkable change was noticeable, especially among tho people. Their spirit was splendid, and there was a complotc absence of uncertainty and wondering what was coming next. Much more information was given'out to the public than formerly. There could he no question that tho British people preferred to know the very worst, and the publicity now given was, in his opinion, one of tho factors that had heartened the people and made them even more determined tn let no temporary set-back swerve them from tho path to victory. ""The progress made since early in July." continued the Minister, "makes the position regarding the future, of tho' Pacific Islands more assured than evpr. They will not pass back to the control of the enemy, and consequently tho people in tho Southern Seas mil bo free from the menace of great strategic posts being again in the possession of Germany.
"The work no\r carried on by tlic British Government is splendid. It is enlightening the populations of Germany and Austria, and giving them a true glimpse of the war situation, tlio truth having linpii consistently Icept from them. With Win lmowledge thev are now roce-iving, the plements of distrust-'iuirl alarm in the Central Empires must develop as timo goes on against their military rulws, and all this, of course, is in our favour."
Asked hoiv tlie New Zealanders on the battlefronts were, Sir Joseph Ward said no finer body of men could bo seen anywhere. He did not say this in a spirit of parochialism, because Britain, the "United States, and tho whole of tho oversea countries had beeir sending of their best, and in feats •of bravery and staying-power every cno of these countries, including New Zealand, had a right to be proud of their men. The physique and appearance of our men, when seen in thoir thousands on the battlefronts, made him feel proud of the country he jepresented." Sir Joseph Ward declined to discuss local politics. Mr. Miissny and Sir Joseph Ward are expected to reach Wellington at noon to-day.
Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19181014.2.49
Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka
Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 16, 14 October 1918, Page 6
Word count
Tapeke kupu
994PARTY LEADERS RETURN Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 16, 14 October 1918, Page 6
Using this item
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Dominion. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International licence (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.