THE IMPERIAL CONFERENCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2895, 8 September 1909, Page 87

THE IMPERIAL CONFERENCE.

MR MASSEY'S CRITICISM, REPLY BY MR FOWLDS. . WELLINGTON, Septemoer 5. A re-ply to Mr Massey's criticism .on the arrangement come to by the Imperial Conference was made to a newspaper representative this morning by the Hon. Gr. Fowlds, Acting Minister of Defence, previous to his departure for Auckland by the Main Trunk express. " Mr Massey's opinion about the harm done to the Imperial cause by the closing of Parliament to enable the Prime Minister of New Zealand to attend the Defence Conference," said the Minister, " I leave to the -judgment of the country. I do not think he represents the opinion of the majority of the people of New Zealand. Regarding my telegram to Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman, I have no regrets to express. If Mr Chamberlain had been retiring from his position on account of ill-health I would have had nothing to say, but as he was retiring from the Government purely for the purpose of his fiscal propaganda, which I believe to be inimical to the interests of the Empire," I felt called on to protest against the unseemly haste with which the resolution was rushed through our Parliament without notice. You will remember that it was brought on without nocice at the first Monday sitting of the House, and as I, along with a good many others, had not expected the House to eit on that particular Monday night, I was absent 'owing to a private engagement. Had I been pret-ent I would have joined with Mr Ma^ey in vigorously protesting against the resolution being passed by the House. Regarding the unity of opinion' amongst the Opposition leaders, I was glad, to have the assurance of one of his lieutenants that Tir Massey was not in favour of handing over to outsiders the control of the national training of the youths of New Zealand, because that is to me a fundamental proposition. Whatever is done in New Zealand relative to national training, the people 01 New Zealand mean to settle the question themselves, and they do not want either advice or dictation from any outside authority. If that is Mr I Massey's opinion, as stated by Mr Allen, what, then, was the meaning of Mr Massey's lament, that the subject had not been dealt with by the Defence Co;iforence? The country will be relieved to kficw, on the authority of Mr Allen, that Mr Massey's patriotism is not to be mentioned in the same breath with the patriotism of anyone on the other side of politics. This is not the first time that Opposition leaders have hinted that they pcassss ft monopoly of all the virtues, patriotifm included. Mr Masfey denies the correctness o,f my statement that he deplored the folly of New Zealand in not- joining the Australian Federation, and asks me to give him my 'authority or sdmit my error and apologise. I have much pleasure in reporting my authority — Hansard, volume 119, 28th September, 1901, page 33. Speaking on the Federation question, Mr Massey said: — 'The colony had made up its mind that it was not going to federate, and had to abide by the .esult, and public opinion coul-d not be changed until it was recognised how foolish the colony had been in refusing to join the great Commonwealth of Australia." I leave your readers to judge whether that justifies my statement or not. Regarding the wisdom of the arrangement made by the Defence Confer-,, ence of New Zealand's battleship being made the fiigship of the China unit of the Imperial navy, and some of the ships of that unit being located in New Zealanci waters. I look upon this as the high water mark of Impsrial (statesmanship, leavin a.3 it does the way open foi the creation of a New Zealand unit of the navy as soon as ever the people of New Zealand feel competent to undertake such a responsißility." Mr Massey's whole speech on the dc<.-a-.sion refei red to by Mr Fowkla was «h follows: — "' lt woukl be useless -to set apart a day to dij-euss the" question of federation. He was a> strongly in favour of fe.lprat'on as any member of the Hous?, but he K'cogrni'sed that to far as the colony was concerned the tr.ne had gone |»t for <liv_ussing it in the nay prcpo «d Ly lhc Premiar. ' At anyraie, when ibo eeseion was so near its clo-- 1 it was impo sible to do justice to Mich a. subjee . Ho thoroughly agreed with the meinb?r for Waihemo and the number for Wellington City (M<- Fishor) in that th<» commissun iva> not -represeiita-tive of th? most important class ir th^ community — the sn-all farzueis. There was not a single repiespneative of that class on the commission. After th-p end of la*t f-e -ion a hint 1 cached him that if he apprca/.1.0d il.e Premier on th* subject be would h* appcintfd a comniis<ioncr. but he did net ask for the fav#ur. Whpii h-p tht names of th<- pr-t-ntlenie-i who ha, I be n appointed on rh-- cc-nni.'s-ion '. c cou!d have written out th-»ir report without j-o'n^ to all the f"i\j?uso in urr-'l. They wro appointed for rK-> rci-on (hat they w- re ni))-osp<l to f&'erat'on. an<l it. wa^ ifaAy i-othir.tr but a fr *c? to 'et up t^e commV sion at all. A« he had said, it_ was Jojless to 'Hscuss tne filiation Th<> cnlorv h"'l rra '" n\> its h-lik' that it wao iKt j?oirff to f'-dnr-ii" aM *he\ had <n abid > !-.v The vo c 'iit luti nublic mini n <-ouH r.-r>t lv cha:"xed u^til it v - rpcopi.is?-! lon foolish thf cooT- harl b<-'-i> ir leiii^inp- to join the gr^at Comn^onwealth of Au-^- | tralia "

— A penny weiglis one-third of an ounce avomlupois A local resident when driving to the Tarras last v.erk -ay snrrr n«\ol tactics on tl:.^ part of a hawk («aj<. the Cromw»ll Arsru*-). Thr> hur] Icpi.t foil' wins? s-ornc •=1' ■<_■■- in tbo Cluiha Iliver. and h*-n ano (,[ iho -haus rti.no i;n. nfl«i a div<\ wit!) ,- trout th^ liav k rl.arterl diun and vi/orl j ilia (I=}) Tiii-, k rho first instance that | 1.11 .1- }>of-no f -n broiit'hr under notice of hawk* I (■"-•N"! pit-.''- thi- f'-aii. but thero :<? not the j s.i_.itcat doubt of it beini: authentic. I