FOR WASHINGTON.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 October 1921, Page 5

FOR WASHINGTON.

NEW ZEALAND DELEGATE. SIR JOHN SALMOND SELECTED. OPPOSITION TO APPOINTMENT. A QUESTION OF STATUS. New Zealand is to be represented at the Washington Conference, and the Premier announced yesterday that Sir John Salmond, a Supreme Court judge, had been selected. It is impossible for a Minister to attend, and the appointment of a delegate not postering the status of a Minister has aroused some opposition. By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. Sir John Salmond has been selected by Cabinet to represent New Zealand at the Disarmament Conference in Washington. In the course of a statement to the ■ House to-day, Mr. Massey said the sub- | ject of the representation of New Zea- ‘ land at the ’ Washington Disarmament ! Conference had been under serious conI sideration by Cabinet. It had been ! thought that Sir Francis Bell might go, and no one couiX have represented New Zealand more worthily. Sir Francis had, however, stated definitely that ne would not leave his colleagues at the present juncture. He had been in charge of the preparation of most of the legislation to be submitted to Parliament this session, and it was impossible for Sir Francis to be absent while Parliament was sitting. Cabinet had also decided that under the present circumstances no Minister could go to Washington; on that point they were agreed. They had, therefore, to look outside for a worthy representative, and Cabinet had decided to send Sir John Salmond, at present a Judge of the Supreme Court. Sir John Salmond was generally reported as one of our greatest authorities on jurisprudence, and in his (Mr. Massey’s) opinion his presence at Washington would greatly strengthen the British delegation. During Sir John Salmond’s absence from New Zealand his place on the Supreme Court Bench would be taken by ex-Judge Chapman, so that no one would be inconvenienced by the absence of a Minister from Wellington and, justice would not be delayed by the absence of a Judge. No formal discussion took place on the announcement, but the general comment of members on the Opposition and Labor Benches indicated that it was lowering the dignity of the Dominion to send one with lower status than a Minister of the Crown.

Mr. T. M. Wilford (Leader of the Opposition) asked the leave of the House to comment on the Premier’s statement, but this leave was refused because of an objection from the Labor benches. Replying later to Mr. Wilford, Mr. Massey said it might not be strictly correct to speak of the Washington Conference as a Disarmament Conference; more properly it was a confer - ence to try to evolve a policy of disarmament, but people had got into the habit of speaking of it as a disarmament conference. Had he, as Prime Minister, been able to attend the conference, he believed he would have been able to speak in the conference as a delegate. He thought Sir John Salmond's position would be that he would merely speak in the British delegation, and not in the conference, but Sir Johns recognised knowledge of law would be invaluable to that delegation.