The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 1915. THE HIGH COMMISSIONER.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 251, 14 July 1915, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 1915. THE HIGH COMMISSIONER.

{With which is incorporated The T&i* hape Post una "Waimarinu News.)

The tenure of office as well as the status of our High Commissioner in London is seriously being discussed by leading British journals and by correspondents writing thereto. The burden of these writers seems to be that the position of our representative/ should, at least, be equal to that of foreign ambassadors, and that the term for which he is appointed is altogether too short —that no sooner does he become so fully acquainted with the ram- : ideations and magnitude of his work I to enable him to be of the greatest pos- ! sible usefulness than he is recalled and 1 and a novice is sent to replace him and I to comcnce that process of education that the recalled has had to go through. | There is no gainsaying the fact that the | interests of Hew Zealand in London have grown to a degree which many of us here have not quite realised, and, looking at the question from all points of view, there seems no valid reason : why the representative of a large selfgoverning Dominion should not have similar ambassadorial rights and privileges as are given to those from the smallest of foreign countries represented at the Court of St. James. A writer in The Financier states that Mr. Mackenzie has expressed himself in favour of men representing Ovrseas Dominions bing placed on an equal footing to those from foreign countries. If resultant advantages would warrant the change it will no doubt come, but this is no time to give preciden.ee to questions in which mere personal honour j r and glory is concerned. The writer in I The Financier deals with the subject of our High Commissioner 's tenure of office, which is a matter of importance at all times, and if present ..arrangements are not productive of the greatest good a reasonable change might be brought about; bat -when the. subject is under discussion the possibility .of % sinecure being given must not be lost tsight oil’. JThq. writer says:. "It. Is difficult to-realise the advantage n »nrnn >A a dominion by such freqaont:

changes, so that its best interests arc promoted thereby. The High Commissioner’s office is yearly becoming more and more the eyes and ears of the doj minions. It is the pivot on which vital I* interests centre. The success or otherwise of many industries and operations [depends on how these interests are handled in London. The commercial and financial side looms larger every year. It seems a thousand pities to remove High Commissioners and AgentsGeneral just when they are beginning to be useful. It takes a newcomer considerable time before he can get a thorough grasp of the multifarious duties of the office, and the dominions arc bound to suffer by continuous changes. The term of office of the High Commissoner for New Zealand expires in August next, and I make bold to say that there is not a New Zealander in >London, or anyone commercially connected with the Dominion on this side, who would not regret Mr. Mackenzie’s departure from the office in which he has been such a conspicuous success.’’ It was announced lately that the Government had extended Mr. Mackenzie’s )term for twelve months, which will no doubt be good news for the writer just quoted. Our present High Commissioner has filled his position with benefit to the Dominion and credit to himself, and no one will begrudge him another year of it, particularly at this crisis in our affairs. But no man is indispensable, and when Mr. Mackenzie’s time is up no doubt we shall be able to replace him with a Dominion ambassador equally as capable.