Wirarapa Times-Age SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1938. A SUCCESS OF THE MOMENT.

Wairarapa Times-Age, 8 October 1938, Page 6

Wirarapa Times-Age SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1938. A SUCCESS OF THE MOMENT.

QTRONGLY as he is criticised by a few members of his own party, the British Prime Minister has secured a vote of confidence in the House of Commons by such an ample majoritv as obviously makes him completely mastei of the situation for the time being. Probably, too Mr Chamberlain is putting the interests of the nation above his own interests and those, of his party in declaring that he has no desire for an immediate general election. It is likely that if such an appeal to the country were made, the policy pursued in bringing the late European cnsis to a settlement would be endorsed as decisively by the body of electors as it was by the House of Commons m the divisions reported yesterday. While the position to this extent is settled and defined, it will be observed that there is general agreement that the European and international situation is very far fiom having been stabilised and made secure. The debate just concluded in the House of Commons showed that those who are divided in opinion as sharply as they well could be in regard to the methods by which the present settlement, or truce, has been achieved are of one mind in believing that the democracies are under an imperative necessity of building up their armed'strength as rapidly as possible. Mr Chamberlain has said that there must be no slackening in the rearmament programme, and in the debate reported yesterday he stated as one of his reasons for not desiring an immediate general election that “at a time when they might have to call upon the country for a great effort in the months to come, he did not want to magnify differences.” Precisely the same conclusion as is here implied was reached, though along an entirely different route, by Mr Winston Churchill. Declaring that Britain and France had sustained a disaster of the first magnitude and that Germany had secured enormous strategic gains, so that in one or two years’ time a'situation might easily arise in which it might have to be recognised that by recent policy the safety and evert the independence of France and Britain had been deeply and perhaps fatally compromised, Mr Churchill added that: — The situation could only be retrieved at this late hour by an effort at rearmament the like of which had never been seen before. He ended with a strong appeal for supreme national resolution to recover moral health and martial vigour, so that Britain should take her stand again for freedom as in old times. Those who hold that Britain has played her part worthily as a peacemaker, and those who take the opposite view that an ignominious and perilous surrender has been made to aggressive dictatorship are thus of one mind in maintaining that rearmament must be carried to its practicable limits. AVhile, however, he is not less insistent than Mr Churchill and others on the necessity of building up armed strength, Mr Chamberlain declines to admit that what he has called friendly and trustful relations with the totalitarian States are impossible. His contention is “that every effort should be made to avoid war by discussion in a spirit of collaboration and good will, and by analysing the possible causes of war and trying to remove them.” . ■ ‘ In principle this is altogether admirable, but whether there will be an opportunity of bringing these methods to bear upon European problems in the immediate future seems at best rather doubtful. The fact stands that in the present settlement Nazi Germany, by her gains. of territory and in the development of her relations with a number of the secondary States of Europe, has enormously strengthened her strategic position and is correspondingly well placed to seek and to extort, further concessions. Czechoslovakia was an island and outpost of democracy in Central Europe, but the Czechs themselves are now discussing the advisability of joining up with Germany. A Prague newspaper, the “Lidovy Noviny” was quoted a. day or two ago as declaring: “We have been deserted by a world governed by force, not law. Therefore our place is alongside force.” Whatever Czechoslovakia’s ultimate decision may be, the problem of setting limits to the aggression of the totalitarian States evidently has not been solved, and if that aggression is to be continued and extended, conflict has only been postponed and not averted. Mr Chamberlain’s belief apparently is that a friendly approach lo the dictatorships may induce them to exercise restraint, provided adequate force is available to back persuasion. It must be hoped that there is some foundation for his belief, but the danger stands out very clearly that Herr Hitler and his Nazis may be tempted to extend and enlarge upon their recent achievements in the seizure of Austria and the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia.