DECRYING AUSTRALIA.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3483, 11 May 1920, Page 3

DECRYING AUSTRALIA.

BRITISH UNIONIST‘S REBLTKE.

.=.\.n interesting light on the British trzule union view of immigration to .~.\us1m1i-.1 is given 111 a letfer wv.-itten by Mr W. A. Appleton, president of the International Federation of 'l‘l'l<lcs [,'~niol~,s, to Mr A_ Clemensoh, a/ssi.~:t:l:lt secl‘et:ar_v of the Perth Metropolitan (loxmeil of the Australian Labour Party. Ml’ Clemenson had written to Mr Appleton dxmving :1 most gloomy pictilll'e of the position of \Vestern .«\.n.~‘— tralia, and stating that -an influx of ixnxnignints would zxggmvate the p3.sition, and make the tslSk of the L:l')o'.n' movolnew a. much harder one flnm it is to-day. He expressed the hope that Mr .-\ppleloll would \\‘:ll‘n the Bri*:ish \\'(ll‘kol'S £lco.nr(]illgly.

Mr Appleton, in reply, szlys:——“'l‘llc pic:t'lu'e you paint suggests extraordin:n'y imzzxpacify somewhere. You have land where the sun shines always. Yam ]lu\'9 soil which will produce allything ihe h"eart of-man desires. You have mi.ner:l]s at least for the needs of :1 population of 50,000,000. You are always cl-ying out for :1. ‘white In:m’s .-'\u:<t'l':lH:'l,‘ um} yot you seek ‘(O persu:ld(2 white men from coming to Aus‘rrulia. . . .

“If we are to (3:.m'_v out your wisllo.'~'. rmd bend all our attention to pel'sli:id~ ing our surplus population to emigrate ,to the United States or Argentine, it doeg seem that the possibilities of Asiatic control of Australia is~increased. . . Ithink you ought to know, also, that thousands of Austi-:iiia.ns ‘who linvo bern o'v<,‘l' here for the last fmv yval'.<.,<]n not spo:fl~: so dospondonfly of their ooun’rr_\' ns you do. They have lwon 11‘.-0 '»',‘w.<i‘ ‘i.ll]]llig'i'zifioli agents Aus--I'i'-.ili:l <‘\'“l' had. Coniparing‘ tho-ir .-.‘;ni-<—mu(mt's with yours, I am compoll— to t\'ondm' whether Iliese men were not utterly ignorant of the conditions ‘n their country.

“At the moment it is difficult for :1 mam on this side of the world #0 judge properly of the situation -nxisting un~ 1191' the Soutllol'n Cross. It is .possiblo that Alxstmlia, like ofhcrr countries, is sllfl'oriug‘ from the loss of "brave and sl<.i110(1 men, who were killed in the war, and that it is not less labour but Inm'o l:al)mu' llmt Australia requires to «lovolnp luv.‘-v‘ undoubted resources.”