NEW GUTLOOK.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 April 1922, Page 5

NEW GUTLOOK.

SOUTH AFRICA’S CRISIS. RE-BUILDING STRUCTURE. PREMIER ON THE REVOLT. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received April 8, 5.5 p.mCapetown, April 7. General Smuts (the Premier), addressing the South African Party at a congress of the Cape Province, referred to the bitter attacks of Mr. Hertzog. He said that when responsible leaders made such attacks the man in the street was easily moved to resort to arms in order to end the Government so denounced as so wicked. Nevertheless, the Government to-day was stronger than in the past ten years. The intention of the 1914 rebellion was to supplant the Government by a Hertzog Administration, and the recent revolution had its roots in the same desire.

Nothing was more dangerous than hatred. The Nationalists were proceeding along Mr. Hertzog’s path of hatred, and the old tradition w*as being supplanted by the Bolshevist spirit. But respectable Nationalists would revolt against a party containing so many firebrands- If the South African Party kept faith thousands would return and resume confidence in the moderate policy of the Government. The cause of the bloodshed in the recent crisis was a tendency of labor organisations to be delivered over to extremists and others.

They had to face new economic conditions and so must labor. Farmers had kicked against the pricks, but they did not shoot, whereas Labor had recourse to violence. No Government descended from Heaven was able to nullify economic conditions, and wages would fall as prices had fallen. South Africa would have Jo be rebuilt soundly from its foundation, not artificially on industries on a basis of 30s a day for a coal-miner, which was impossible. In spite of Australia's industrial development, which outstripped that of South Africa, Australia’s fine new iron industry had gone to the wall owing to impossible wages.

He wondered what would have become of South Africa in the recent troubles but for the Union. What would have become of the public life of South Africa if two years ago they had not taken the step bringing together all patriotic, law-abiding elements in one great solid party. His hope and conviction was that they had to come to bedrock. They had struggled through the crisis, such as was raging all over the world, and had got through not without bloodshed, but they were through it and had arrived at" bedrock, and they would now build up a solid South Africa. The Premier declared that the revolutionary spirit which caused so much disaster was fostered by the Nationalists and their allies, the Laborites. it was the success of the South African Party which brought all these elements in opposition, but the people in the towns and on the veldt were beginning to realise what was going on, and in a time which was coming they would have a chance to get to grips. The one real task was the industrial and economic development of South Africa. —Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.