The New Zealand Times. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1926. THE EMPIRE ONE AND INDIVISIBLE

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12611, 23 November 1926, Page 6

The New Zealand Times. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1926. THE EMPIRE ONE AND INDIVISIBLE

There emerges from the cloudy atmosphere of the Imperial Conference an Empire of many parts, bound together by a tie all have formally recognised as indissoluble. Before the Conference doubts of this stability were freely expressed, in some quarters in the accent of certainty, in others in the language of faint-hearted-ness. The whole mass of these doubts has been swept away by the Conference. The various parts of the Empire have formally declared the Empire, to which they are attached by many ties, as one and indivisible. It is the first time in history. It is a firm step forward. It is an imperishable landmark. A touching sidelight from the Guildhall ceremony shows how imperishable. At that ceremony the wagon of poor old “Oonx Paul,” captured in the Boer war in the moment or the crumbling of the Boer fortunes, was handed over to General Hertzog, as the representative of the South African Union. The general has been represented by hosts of correspondents as the malicious irreconcilable leading the Boers with fierce contempt out of the Empire. This explanation of his attitude be has recently brought to nought by some very loyal declarations. When the wagon of “Oom Paul” was returned to his people, he was visibly affected. Good, honest old patriot, what else could he have been? But he bared his mind at once; and, lo! it proved a mind as loyal to the Empire as any mind in the great Conference of the Imperial representatives. He spoke in the spirit of Vereeniging—that treaty of peace wonderful among the peace treaties of the world, and unique. By that treaty the beaten enemy of the Empire was promised admission on equal terms to the Empire, on conditions. The ex-enemy fulfilled these conditions, and the other side promptly honoured the promise of Vereeniging. Ihe promise made magnificently by Kitchener was redeemed magnificently by CampbellBannerman. All men of goodwill thought then that the keeping of that magnificent and unique promise had assured the loyalty of the Boer people to the Empire for all time. General Hertzog’s reply to the restoration of his venerated old chief’s wagon asserted this, with graceful, tender, loyal speech, for the remainder of fleeting time. That most touching speech of his completes the absolute unity of the great Empire to which he and his people, once terribly hostile, are now proud to belong. It is one of the splendid, 'shining landmarks in the great story of the British Empire. The State paper embodying the details of the newly-formulated agreement offers, on many points, hard reading. It throws light on the enormous difficulties before the agreement of equal standing of all the senior partners. To discuss the details now would be useless. Such discussion can only be useful when some particular detail is presented by the “clutch of circumstance” for settlement. The main result of the Conference is that, when such presentation occurs, it will be discussed with the utmost frankness, after all possible consultation between the parties, in the mutual determination that, whatever happens, the solid unity of the Empire will be maintained as the single paramount object of all the representatives concerned. The Imperial Conference has consolidated the Empire once for