SETTLEMENT ABROAD

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 68, 17 September 1930, Page 11

SETTLEMENT ABROAD

PROBLEM FOR CHURCH

CONFERENCE OF BISHOPS

(From "The Post's" Representative.)

LONDON, 3rd July.

Oversea bishops, with the Bishop of London as chairman, considered the question of Empire Settlement at a meeting arranged by the Church of England Council of Empire Settlement last week.

It was announced that at a meeting of the bishops of the Church in Great Britain and the Dominions, held in the morning, a resolution was passed reaffirming the belief of the bishops that it was an essential part of the work of the Church "to co-operate with statutory and voluntary bodies in the movement for the settlement under suitable conditions of British people within the Empire.''

The Bishop of London said it was quite clear that Empire settlement was not going on as it ought, and the pur-j pose of tho conference was to find out | the reasons. Five years ago he gave a luncheon at Fulhain Palace to representatives of the Dominions and of voluntary societies interested in the subject, and placed at their disposal thj organised services of the Church. He had learnt since then by practical experience some the reasons why Empiro settlement was hanging fire. The complaint was properly mado that intending emigrants got in London too rosy a view of their prospects, and that.they ought to be informed beforehand of some of the troubles they would have to face. He was told by the Labour Party of Australia quite f. .nkly that they were strongly opposed to migration, because they feared that if there were more people available for work the statutory minimum of £4 10s as the weekly wage of labourers would disappear. In New Zealand he found a better atmosphere prevailing than in Australia, but even there, as well as in Australia, he met settlers who were disheartened by the coolness of the reception they had received. Ho also saw many signs of encouragement, and met many settlers who had made good. He thought it right, however, to put forward some of the difficulties so that they might not fall into the mistakes of thinking that they had nothing to do but pat each other on the back in mutual congratulation of their success. THE PERSONAL TOUCH. Mr. G. C. Whiskard, of, the Oversea Settlement of the Dominions Office, said that undoubtedly there were failures, but those were few.compared with the thousands of successes. While the whole world heard of the failures, news of the successes did not go far. There was at present economic depression in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, which necessarily restricted migration, but no one could doubt that those Dominions were destined, in the relatively near future, to take their place among the greatest nations of the world. We were only at the beginning of a great movement of population to the Dominions, and now was the moment to consider what the policy of the future was to be. While it was necessary for tho Government to remember that this was an economic question, it was necessary also to remember that economic problems, of this kind had to be worked out in terms of flesh and blood. The actual process of migration required the personal touch, and that could only be given by a voluntary'organisation. The personal touch as administered by a Government Department often turned out to be a knock-down blow. SETTLEMENT IN CANADA. Lord Jellicoe said that the experience of the British Legion in sending families as settlers to Canada was very encouraging. Last year the Legion sent out 47 families. It happened to be tho worst possible tiino for the experiment, as the Canadian harvest had ntoro or less failed, and there was consequently a scarcity of work. In spite of that handicap 40 of the families had permanently settled down, and were doing splendidly. The legion was arranging to send out several more families. Mr, J. Bell, high master of St. Paul's School, said that 16 headmasters of secondary schools of all kinds went out to Canada 13 weeks ago to ascertain through the Universities what prospect there was in the Dominion for boys from secondary schools in this country. The conclusion of tho headmasters was that, while there %vas no opening for their boys in agriculture unless they had largo capital, there were openings in Canada beyond anything that could be found at Home for boys of initiative, character, enterprise, and ability in science, engineering, law, teaching, and other professions; and that the right way to get boys in was through the Canadian Universities. The Archbishop of Now Zealand said that tho only thing the Church in the Dominion could do was to help the juveniles. In that they were doing good ■work.

_ The Bishop of Toronto and Commissioner Lamb, of tho Salvation Army, also spoke.

By special arrangement neuter's world service, in addition to otiier special sources of Information, is used In tho compilation of the overseas intelligence published in tills issue, nnii all rights therein in. Australia nu4 iVcw Zealand are reserrod.