WORLD PEACE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 October 1939, Page 5

WORLD PEACE

NATIONAL UNION SUGGESTED BRITAIN AND AMERICA. ' I BETTERMENT OF HUMANITY. ! A man of ideas and action is Charles | Henry Davis, summer resident of Bass River, Cape Cod, and winter resident i of New York, Philadelphia and Boston, r states an article in the “American ? Journal." He founded and devoted years of • work to development of the National > Highways Association with a motto of i "Good Roads Everywhere.” He found-. . ed the World Peace Monument Trus- ; tees to erect a monument on the site ; of the Peace Portal which connects > Canada and the United States near ■ Blaine, Washington. He has written I numerous articles embodying his con- . ception of what is wrong with this ■ country and its government and has s proposed remedies to correct these conditions. Now Mr Davis is promoting the idea of world unity beginning with a union of the United States and Great Britain ■ under one flag. If the two great English speaking nations joined hands under one flag, Mr Davis believes it would set an example which other nat- , ions would quickly follow, leading inevitably to a union of all nations of the world and to universal peace. An engineer with a national reputation, Mr Davis has been independent financially throughout his life and has been able to aid greatly in financing his schemes for the betterment of humanity. At one time the rambling structure across the street from his Bass River home housed scores of clerks, draughtsmen and engineers engaged in details connected with his hobby of "Good Roads Everywhere." The National Highways Association was formed in the early 1900’s to promote maintenance of highways systems by the government, and hundreds of thousands of maps and pamphlets were distributed from the Bass River “workshop.” Many were sent out by mail and many were distributed by Mr Davis on his trans-continental auto tours. At one time he estimated he had covered half a million miles in the interests of the Organisation. He usually travelled with an auxiliary car so he would not have to wait to change tyres or make minor repairs. He drove and a chauffeur rode with him, while another followed in the second car. Following a serious auto accident in 1930 he has limited his travel by road. The Davis summer house at Bass River, known as the “Seven Chimneys,” was owned originally by his parents, Mr and Mrs William Davis. It now consists of three old-fashioned houses and one barn, connected by cells, with subterranean passages under the entire structure. As a means of achieving his dream of a United States of the World, Mr Davis proposes that the government of this country “shall invite the British Empire to jointly and together establish and maintain ’Peace on Earth. Good Will Towards Man’ by creating a World Peace Commission to determine the wording of the United World Peace Magna Carta under which world peace shall be attained.” He suggests that this commission consist of 26 members, 13 appointed by the King and 13 named by the President, with one member from each nation representing the following: Manufacture, commerce, transportation, communication, finance, economics, education, science, law, military and government. These representatives would draw up a Magna Carta or constitution of 13 articles which would include the selection for a life .tenure of a World Peace Potentate, in whose hands would be vested virtually all governmental authority. Mr Davis offers the suggestion of one flag which would combine the chief features of the Stars and Stripes and the Union Jack, an one anthem which i would keep the tune of “America" and “God Save the King." His “United Empire Anthem" would have these words: — “Two empires by the sea, Two peoples great and free, One anthem raise. One race of ancient fame, One tongue, one faith, we claim One God, whose glorious name We love and praise.” All persons who agree with him on either the anthem or the one flag idea are eligible to life membership in the World Peace Monument Trustees and , there are no dues or other obligations. Those who wish may give of time, , money or influence to the cause. . Mr Davis believes that the ills of this government can be cured by concern' | tration of authority into the fewest | possible hands in municipal, State and ] national affairs, giving the chosen ones free rein, subject only to removal for < abuse of power. He believes that the ( responsibility so vested automatically l would induce a will to serve the people t well. He would have government run very much as business is run and be- ( lieves that “all industry of every kind < and nature should be consolidated into c great units or trusts." This, he says, r would eliminate the faults of competi- g five conditions and permit mass pro-auction-..0f better and cheaper goods, c He advocates repeal of all laws restric- t ting trusts. t “Government is really very simple f for both governed and rulers,” Mr t Davis says. “The latter must have die- i tatorial power, as in all things, to do c it well. Success depends upon the right man being in power. The govern- o ed should not be afraid, as they usually t. are, to give this power, retaining only | n the right to take it away and give it to a others. Our difficulties are due largely ii to our unwillingness to give such pow- e er.

“There are no men more capable of running our affairs for us than those who are now running them for themselves. They think they can gain more of what they want —power or wealth — by continuing their present methods, or they would not travel the road they are following. Some of us think they

: could have more of both were they to use their wealth and power to ‘serve’ ■ instead of to ‘get,’ because only through service can the most of both be gained by anyone. How much more 1 does graciousness (giving.) draw others 1 to us than indifference. ‘A soft answer (thinking of the other fellow more than oneself—giving) turneth away wrath. Kindness (giving) gains much more than harshness. Helping (giving) : brings others to you while thoughtlessness repels them. All of which, if applied by our rulers, would put a united nation at their backs, to push them to greater power and wealth than the world has yet seen. “To be concrete, here is a plan that would give us a government of men as we have in our social, economic and industrial life. A responsible government because the legislative, the judicial, and the administrative functions would be all under one head. In so being the rules (laws) would be flexible, easily and rapidly changed and adjusted to work smoothly and efficiently under all conditions. A real living government to serve the people and if not so serving to be readily changed by the people through the election of a man who will serve. Not the pretence of a government ‘of, by and for the people' that never has existed and never can because there cannot be a government ‘of and by’ the people as such. Only a government ‘for’ the people is possible. The people can only choose and discharge their rulers, nothing more and nothing less. So let the people create and maintain such a government, the first really honest-to-goodness democracy ever created on this earth. “It should be remembered that no dictator can maintain his power save through service to those who follow, for it is only through their co-opera-tion that such dictatorship can continue for any length of time. Unless served, those who follow eventually will withdraw their co-operation and that particular dictator will lose his power. This is no argument against dictatorship itself. One does not so argue in our private, social and business activities and demand Democracy, Socialism, (Communism; etc, in its place. We simply change the dictator. Why not do the same in government? “So why not profit in a practical way utilising these great self-evident truths in our government? We can if we but want to. So here is plan to try. If it works well in one State we can duplicate it in the other 47 and then in the nation. “Take any State. In that State set up another constitution. This can be done lawfully under the Constitution of the United States. Let the new constitution provide for: “The election of a governor for one year. “The governor to have all the powers, legislative, judicial, executive, tha' a State can grant. Not ‘all but,' but all. “The election of a board of advisers for one year to advise the governor at his request or on their own initiative but with no other powers. “Election of governor and advisers to take place as now for corporate directors and officers by the presence of the voter or his proxy in person or by signature. “That the old constitution shall continue to function in whole or part only so long as the governor does . not change it and no longer. This will make the transition from old to new automatic. “Let this form of government be adopted up and down the scale, villages, townships, towns, counties, States and the nation, and we will have, for the first time, efficient, honest government that will serve 130,000,000 people. And if not, at any time, easily changed to one that will.” Mr Davis was born in Philadelphia of Quake)’ parents and habitually uses the Friends' language in addressing members of his family. He was gradu ■ ated from Columbia School of Mines in 1837 and in his younger days was an enthusiastic yachtsman. ,

Mr Davis has adhered to many of the old-time customs at his summer home in Bass River, refusing to permit installation of electricity and continuing the use of kerosene lamps.

His autos have been known all over the country because of the variety of registration plates they carry, all being the number 25.