DISPELLING ILLUSIONS.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 May 1916, Page 5

DISPELLING ILLUSIONS.

LORD QUEZON TO THE PRIMROSB LEAGUE

CABINET UNITED: Received May 6, 5.5 p.m. London, May G. ' Lord Curzon, addressing the Primrose League, said that he wished to dispel the illusion that the Government had spent time in modifying or rejecting the War Committee's decisions. The latter had an absolutely free hand, and in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred its decision was not even debated. Another illusion was that the Government ignored the advice of their military and naval advisers. The Government fully recognised that the strategy and conduct of the campaign must be left to the Chief of the General Staff. A third illusion was that the Government considered themselves indispensable. Neither collectively nor individually were they guilty of that mistake, and all were ready to retire if Parliament's confidence vas withdrawn.

Lord Curzon continued: "The. greatest contribution that Britain is making is not merely the number of men in the field, the munitions, or the shijis sailing on the seas, "but the unimpaired solidarity and stubborn tenacity of the nation as a whole. That inspired the confidence of the Allies and struck terror into the enemy." The rebellion in Ireland was one of the enemy's many attempts to diminish the military strength of England; but the revolt was a mad and squalid one, and retribution would be swift and stern. He would not say that the Government was the only one capable of retaining the unity of the nation, but it represented all parties in the State, and was therefore more likely to retain unity than any other that could be formed for the time being. Whether the war would be long or short, the Government of the country would go on to the end. He had heard many tilings discussed in 'Parliament, but never the subject or peace. That word was expunged from the British vocabulary until victory was won. (Applause.)

MR. HUGHES AT HOME. HIS PROGRAMME, Received May 0, 5.20 p.m. London, May 6. Mr. Hughes has gone to Wales, and will return on Monday. He lias had further conferences on the freight and metal problems. Ho is undecided as to the. length of his stay in England. He hopes, to respond to the invitations to vißit Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Bristol, Birmingham and York, where he will be given opportunities to address Labor circles and follow up the policy that he will submit to the Paris Conference, but this will depend on whether he must return to Australia urgently or whether lie can be spared for a longer period. He will attend the Sugar Producers' Conference on Tuesday.

GERMAN VIEW OF MR. HUGHES. BOLD AS A CIRCUS ATHLETE. Times and Sydney Sun Services. London, May 5. The German press does not lose an opportunity to advise Mr. Hughes. The Cologne Gazette publishes a part of his Edinburgh speech, headed, "The Strong Man from Australia," saying: "Herr Hughes enjoys a splendid preßS in England. 'He is tougher than the* English statesmen, who are invited to copy his rough and ready 'strike them dead manner. There is a great difference whether, like Herr Hughes, one is playing the strong man with no further responsibility, or whether one has to provide some sort of harmony between words and deeds.

"Mr. Churchill was 1 ticking in deeds, sc. was,hissed, off the stage, while Mr. Hughes continues bold as a circus athlete to awing hundredweights made of paper. It is a sign of the English intellectual decadence that this Australian id hailed as the ideal statesman." AUSTRALIAN DIATOMITE. London, May 5. The Imperial. Institute has examined samples of Australian diatomite, and reports that the Victorian and New South Wales samples are of a most promising quality for the manufacture of dynamite, especially those from Lillicur