STERN TASK

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 February 1940, Page 6

STERN TASK

NO VICTORY WITHOUT TEARS Endurance, Courage and Sacrifice Needed MR OLIVER STANLEY ON WAR SITUATION (Press Association and British Official Wireless.) LONDON, February 3. The recently-appointed Secretary of State lor War, Mi Oliver Stanley, in a speech al Newcastle today, stressed that against the Nazis’ philosophy of brute force the Allies are lighting not only for their lives but also lor a lasting peace. “For ourselves we want nothing of Germany or ol mans,” he said. “We do not desire their destruction. \\ edo not grudge their prosperity. We do not want to make ol them helots that they have made of millions or to make their land the desert that- they have made ol a quarter of Itanopc. ( want them to bi' peaceful, happy members of a peaeelid, happy Europe. , , i “But never again, under this or any other leadei, inidei this or any other regime, must they have the power to inflict upon the world the misery and siiflering which twice in om lile thev have done.” ‘Mr Stanley expressed the opinion that a negotiated peace now Would settle nothing and mean only a troubled truce. The Allies, he said were fighting a brave, nil bless and determined people. He had no patience with those who thought that, somehow something should happen. “Make no mistake; there'will be no victory without tears,’ he said. “Victory will gome only as a result of endurance, courage and sacrifice. Everything we have must be thrown into the scales. .Let us steel our hearts and march on the hard road to the .journey’s end—victory, and then peace.”

Recalling that exactly five months have elapsed since the outbreak of the war, Mr Stanley contrasted the difference between the public behaviour then and at the outbreak of the Great War. That generation, said Mr Stanley, had never known a European war, and entered the 1914 struggle determined but yet able to clothe the war with the romanticism of a bygone age, while the present generation, ignorant neither of the dangers nor of the sacrifices, had entered the present conflict even more united and determined. UNITY OF PURPOSE Discussing the reasons for that outstanding unity of purpose, Mr Stanley recalled that throughout the centuries Europe had not consisted of a few great Powers, but was made up of nations of various strength and size, with the small Powers developing their own national culture as the natural prey of their stronger neighbours. The Nazis, however, had introduced the high-sounding doctrine of “lebensraum,” which merely meant, “Anything your neighbour has is yours if you are strong enough to take it.” This had been shown in instance after instance, culminating in the march on Prague. It had often been said, and it was reiterated by General Hertzog in a recent speech in South Africa, that, all the present trouble came from the Versailles Treaty, While not. denying its inperfections and mistakes, the War Secretary said, on the whole .that treaty was inspired by a single idea — to release the people of other nationalities from German rule, allowing them to make their own countries and live their own lives.

“When in the past few months have we seen what German rule means, can anybody say we were wrong, and that the idea was ignoble?” Mr Stanley asked. According to General Hertzog, all Herr Hitler has done in the past years has been to put right some grievances, though in doing so he may. have been a little inconsiderate, hasty and brusque, but always with good intentions.

“How true this is that distance lends enchantment to the view. Let us call as our witness not people 2000 miles away,- but people a little nearer the scene.” Mr Stanley asked whether the Czechs, Poles and Austrians, with their overrun countries, shot students, silent workers, and life without laughter or liberty were likely to think Herr Hitler's intentions good or his actions only a little inconsiderate. And did the small neutral countries, fearing attack at any moment, feel the same confidence in the Nazi leader as that expressed by General Hertzog? Turning to the question of trade, which Mr Stanley said, had been his chief concern till a few days ago, he pointed out that exports were a vital element in the war effort in which the worker, manufacturer, merchant, and public must take their part. Though at the beginning of the war the export trade had suffered a sharp decline, the recovery had been rapid and the December figures actually exceeded the pre-war monthly average. FORMIDABLE ARMY The War Secretary dealt with the initial difficulties in raising and equipping a large army in the limited time, but said that much already had been accomplished. The expeditionary force had been built into a formidable army, some units of which already had the opportunity of showing (he customary skill and dash of the British soldier in contact with the enemy. Not only was British manpower available but also there was already the magnificent Canadian division in England, while Australia and New Zealand had announced their intention of sending contingents. FASCISTS DEMONSTRATE DISTURBANCES DURING SPEECH. SIX TNTERJECTORS REMOVED. LONDON. February 3. As was the case last week, when the First Lord of the Admiralty, Mr Churchill, spoke, the Secretary of War. Mr Stanley, was ' interrupted in his speech at Newcastle today by Blackshirt (Mosley Fascist) demonstrations, which the audience quickly suppressed. Mr Stanley said: “Those gentlemen

must be inspired by German propaganda. The Germans have not only censured me but also have taken drastic action against me. They are going to change the name of the German Derby on the ground that no German racehourse should be associated with my family name. I suppose that is what they call ‘race purity.’ ” Six interjectors were removed during Mr Stanley’s speech.

Leaflets headed “the war is in vain,” published by the Newcastle branch of the International Labour Party were twice showered from the balcony. When the men were thrown out Mr Stanley remarked: “They go free, but if they had been in Germany they would have been sent to concentration camps.” (Mr Stanley is a son of the Earl of Derby.) WAR FOR DECENCY DOMINIONS’ MAGNIFICENT HELP EMPIRE’S STRENGTH IN FREEDOM. SPEECH BY MR ANTHONY EDEN. LONDON, February 3. The Dominions Secretary, Mr Anthony Eden, in a speech at Stratford, said: “This is not a war of aggrandizement or a clash of dynasties. It. is a struggle for international decency. The great Dominions overseas typify the right to be free. That right is at stake — the right of all peoples to lead their own lives, to think as they will, to worship as they will, and to cultivate the arts in freedom and peace. “The Dominions have given magnificent help in every sphere in a giant effort, swinging into their stride, and their influence may be decisive.

“The gibes of Goebbels and the taunts by Hitler that the British Empire would dissolve in ruin in its hour of trial have been utterly falsified. Our great strength lies in our greater freedom. On the other hand, the third Reich is a sealed tomb.” LABOUR DESIRES WORLD FREE FROM , IMPERIALISTIC DOMINATION MR ATTLEE BROADCASTS. LONDON, February 3. Britain must be prepared to bring all her colonics under a mandate and extend the scope of international control if she desires to persuade others that she wants a world free from imperialistic domination, said the Leader of the Labour Party, Mr Attlee, in a broadcast.

“We must extend self-government, abandon our claims to special rights, rid ourselves of any taint of imperialism, achieve equality and recognition for all at home, and build a new Brit; ain to lead the world from anarchy to peace.” he said.

Mr Attlee made no secret, of the fact that the Labour Party is opposed to the Government on Social issues, but ho emphasised that the present war is a struggle between the forces upholding a standard of civilisation and those who desire to go back to the days of slavery and barbarism. In Czechoslovakia and Poland, said Mr Attlee, the German Government was indulging in wholesale massacre and torture. Not only was this admitted. but they gloried in it. .The Labour Party, therefore, had taken its stand along with the rest of the people of Britain, to stop this evil spreading. “We must not allow it to become the master of our souls."—By radio.