EGYPTIAN CRISIS EXPLAINED

Hokitika Guardian, 30 July 1929, Page 2

EGYPTIAN CRISIS EXPLAINED

DIVERGENCE OF VIEWS. j ' . .. - THE FOREIGN SECRETARY’S ' STATEMENT. (British Official Wireless.) • \ ' • \ RUGBY, July 26. In a statement regarding Lord Lloyd’s resignation of the High Commissionership in Egypt, Mr Arthur Henderson, Foreign Secretary, said that within a few days of his going to the Foreigncommunication was received irojn' Lord /Lloyd. He read . the communication, and was very much struck by the language and what he believed to be the spirit underlying it. He at once-asked;?foi£ the papers to be handed to him going back during the greater part of the time that Lord Lloyd had been . High Commissioner. “I must say,” continued Mr Henderson, “'that I could not.;but .b© impressed with the very wide, divergence; of views manifested in • those papets between the position taken up by my predecessor in office and Lord Lloyd. I think I can say that there were four or five occasion when a difference of

opinion between my predecessor and, I suppose, to some extent j the Govern- / ment, and the TTlgh Commissioner was most marked.” ,r y ! !i Mr Hendertdu gaye several instances where this divergence,of,view.had. been shown. It was , theses if considerations which led to his predecessor, Sir Austen j Chamberlain, issuing to Lord Lloyd on May 28, two days before the general election, a complete restatement of the v principles by which the Government had decided to conduct relations between this country and Egypt. An ex- \ {iihination ofrthe papers, clearly demonstrated that the policy of Sir Austen Chamberlain was a minimum of interference with ; the internal affairs of Egypt. HL’LLiO''£• TETTER TO LORD LLOYD: “J want to say that;.very frankly,” continued Mr Henderson. " “ I ran through the whole of;'the .proceedings as far as my predecessor was concerned. In numerous instancesvLord ■ Lloyd was clearly out of sympathy with this » object.” Having read these papers, and having very carefully considered the position, he had come to the conclusion that the best, thing he,,could do was to intimate to Lord Lloyd that the Government were dissatisfied with the position it had obtained during the last three or four years. He made this intimation to Lord Lloyd in the following note: —

“In the short time at my disposal since taking office, I have endeavoured to review" in their broad outline the sequence pf political events since 1924.' ;To ;be ' quite ' candid, I feel bound to tell you I'have been impressed by the divergence of outlook which has from time to time been apparent between my predecessor and your Lordship. That this difference of. outlook was possibly sincere, I do not:for a moment doubt, but I. confess'it appears to me to be so. wide as to be unbridgeable. The success of my policy, which will certainly be not less liberal than that of my predecessor, will depend on the extent to which it can be interpreted with understanding and sympathy by his Majesty’s representative. In the light of the recent correspondence, I should be lacking in 'frankness did I not warn you that the possibility of your views harmonising with those of either my predecessor or myself appears- to be remote, and, in the circumstances, I should like to discuss the; situation with'you on your return.’- ■ Lord . Lloyd bad arrived in England during the previous week, and Mr Henderson'said that he had seen him on , Tuesday! They discussed the position with each other, not merely with frankness, but with friendliness. After they had been together for half an hour, Lord'Lloyd handed Mr Henderson his resignation. ? ’ r , ‘ Sir' Herbert. Samuel (Liberal) said that the House was far more concerned to know whether any serious change of policy in British relations with Egypt, was or had been contemplated. Mr . Churchill, ex-Chancellor of the Exchequer, said that the reading of the correspondence between the late Foreign Secretary and Lord Lloyd had undoubtedly produced a wrong impression otf the actual relations between the parties concerned. /Lord Lloyd, as the man oh the spot, facing difficulties and risks, .naturally had his viewpoint. 'What was there in Mr Henderson’s oration to show anything but healthy, active and reasonable discussion between the parties?

THE PRIME MINISTER. The Prime Minister, Mr MacDonald, paid a tribute to Lord Lloyd, who, he said, went to Egypt under the most difficult .circumstances. He had a great task imposed upon him when Sir Lee Stack, met his death at his post of duty. Lord Lloyd was asked to fill the position, which was perhaps one of the most difficult in the British Empire, and he accepted it. He did what he considered to be his duty, but he (Mr MacDonald) claimed that the Government, in administering the office of a colony or dependency, must have complete and full confidence in its representative. After perusal of the records Mr Henderson, took the action he did because he did not feel that full c'onfid-

ence in the High Commissioner which was necessary. The Governmnet was going to enter into a full examination of all the questions connected with Egypt, but nothing of.the.final decision would be carried out until the House had agreed to its ratification. “We know our responsibilities,” said Mr MacDonald. ‘ I We know our position here. We shall just do what we think the interests df this nation and the interests of Egypt require us to do, remembering the time our responsibilities to this country.” The Government were exploring the .situation. Mr Churchill had asked for a pledge that the Government would not go beyond the extreme limit which he and his friends embodied in the Sanyat Treaty. In connection with each of the reserved points, said Mr MacDonald, there were many proposals to to how the pbsition should be handled. There was the question of the military occupation of Cairo. In the Sarwat Treaty, it was stated that this might be revised in ten years, and then every fifth year afterwards. u ls that the last word in securing our communications through Egypt?” asked the Prime Minister. ‘‘lf it is, we have come to a very bad impasse. Are there no means of securing our communications through Egypt except that? If Mr Churchill and his colleagues are in any doubt about that I will tell them that the whole matter, whilst I am talking, is being considered by the; heads of the three Services.’” Mr MacDonald added that the same variety of possibilities was being treated with the same cautiousness and only when everything had been explored and the best proposal that could be made had been devised would the instrument, which was vital, and to which the Government would commit itself, make its appearance NO CHANGE ,IN POLICY. - LONDON, July 26. Mr Henderson, replying to questioners, said: ‘‘Every move we have made or contemplate making to improve Egyptian relations will be influenced by a spirit of goodwill. I sav emphatically that there has been n‘o change of policy. There is no secret about it. It has been suggested that negotiations are being carried on behind Lord Lloyd’s back. I challenge i..at most empahtically. Whatever our policy, it will not be put into operation until submitted for 'the approval of the House pf'Commons and the Egyptian people. We shall take no steps without consulting the dominions.” Mr Churchill said that there had been a certain streak of prejudice in the Foreign Office-against Lord Lloyd, part of which was natural and intelligible, since Lord Lloyd was not in the ■Civil Servjce. -. Mr MacDonald described Mr Churchill’s speech as a mischievous and unjustified attack on the Civil Service, based on contemptible tittle-tattle. He added': “'We will pursue the examina- 1 tion of the Egyptian question. Nothing final can he done until the House has ratified it.” He appealed to the House not to do anything further to damage Egypt, but “ let us get on with the business.” The debate then terminated. PLENTY OF EXCITEMENT. The experiences of a young Australian who has just returned to the land otf his birth would certainly tend to justify his doubtfulness concerning the stability of New Zealand. He came across some years ago, and found work on a small farm in the Cheviot district, just a month prior to a big shake there. He remained, however, only in fear and trembling until he obtained a job on the railway line at Arthur’s Pass. He had been three weeks on duty when the Otira Gorge tumbled to its very foundations, and the Aussie got away as quickly as possible. At the beginning of June\he went to work on a small farm near Murchison, and had only been there a fortnight when along came the earthquake, and he had again to scamper for his life. This was the limit of his powers of endurance. He left his traps behind, caught the first available steamer, and left for Sydney.