OUR EMPIRE AND THE WAR.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 120, 14 October 1914, Page 3

OUR EMPIRE AND THE WAR.

AN 'ELOQUENT SPEECH. .BRITAIN'S WONDERFUL MANA. , Speaking at the Wellington Orphans' Club on Saturday evening the Hon. A. L. Herdman eaid'tliat tlict greatest phe>nomenon in the grea>ii*t war of all ages now proceeding in Europe was. the fact that for the Ifrst time in the history of the world tim little. inland nation Britain, (had been abl« to draw troops from all parts of tie world to figM. in Europe. To him thin w;i« a most wonderful and significant fact., rendered still more remarkaoie toy, tho fact that England was the, only nation that Could do itReferring to the same point, Sir James Carroll, at the same function, 6aid that truly remarkable was the power that England had in assimilating her bemeficicnt influences and constitutional primciples witlh other diverge peoples. In most other monarchies the head of the Stftto was tho dictator, and Truthless v."hcre his desir«s> were concerned. But England had lifted ite Sovereign out of the sphere of control to a sanctified place., where he was loved and worshipped as the Crowißjr-tlie apex of our splendid national 'What was this wondrous inftaence? Only tlhe ot,h*>r day India was reeling,. with sedition; to-day she was absolutely | ing to /take her filuire of the rosp'oß'j. Wtifty of the .Empire, South | wliere fourteen years ago tjc,y ~" Were ' fighting tlhe stubborn BoeTc, had oeen granted a constitution, and' had como forward to do its part. And so it waa with Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. And it was all done voluntarily —there was never a vestige of any'illiing ta; pronching eomipuk'wn. When ■ the tocsin of war was soundea, there was a mighty response immediately, showing that in spite of difference in color and creed the Empire was oneone pulse, one throb, one ithrill, w" [heart I

He had the greatest faith in the ultimate result. The Allies must win. It wa« impossible to conceive any intellect believing otherwise. Still tihey musf bear in mind that the position' was se.rdous. The Allies hid not pushed tfhe > Germans (back much if at all, in the east or west—they were face to face with a terrific mechanical force Chat was backed up by an organisation perfect enough to stagger ona It wa« indeed fortunate that circumstance—and it was but ci--oumstance—had not ordained tthnt.England should fight Germany alone. Oh the other hand they found that so little 3iad Germany right and justice on her side that she found herself in a position of having to stand alone. On the result of the war depended whether the future should witness a retrograde civilisation or its advancement.