GREAT SHOWDOWN

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 September 1942, Page 3

GREAT SHOWDOWN

COMING IN PACIFIC

DANGER TO NEW ZEALAND NOT OVER.

ACTING-PRIME MINISTER’S WARNING.

(By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) WELLINGTON, This Day.

“It is of the very craziest, kind for people to talk, as some reported in the Press have recently talked, as though the danger has passed so far as our country is concerned,” said the Acting-Prime Minister, Mr Sullivan, in an interview last night. “Believe me,’’ he added, ‘‘that is not true. It is inevitable that a great showdown in the Pacific must come. The Japanese will make a mighty effort in the near future to recover everything they have lost in recent defeats.

“Should, unhappily, the Japanese win the impending great battles, New Zealand and its people/ may be for it, and we may have to fight for the preservation of our country. In this connection it will be far better to fight them and stop them before they reach New Zealand than have the task of throwing them out after they come. I say to all our people, don’t listen to those who say our danger has passed. Most definitely it is with us still, and only the utmost we can do in every field will be enough to give us a chance of survival.” OUR NATIONAL WAR EFFORT. Speaking generally of New Zealand’s war effort, Mr Sullivan said there had been a wonderful amount of inspiring example and real sacrifice, and there had been at times resistance and refusal to co-operate. War conditions had shortened the supply and intensified the demand by the armed forces of many things. The civilian community had had to go short or go without altogether. Most had accepted the situation in a fine spirit. Others had fiercely rebelled. He had in mind the problem of petrol, trucks, silk stockings, tea, sugar, ships and even buildings as examples. Even those who had rebelled most fiercely had in some cases been serving magnificently in other directions, giving freely of time, service and money. And sometimes too fallible officials had not done things in the wisest way—inevitable in the muchroom growth of war organisation—-and thus had been in some measure responsible for the resistance encountered. Even so, the resistance and refusal to co-operate had weakened the war effort to that extent by delaying its full fruition. On the whole splendid work had been done by the Public Service. WAGES AND PRICES. “Another necessary war effort, stabilisation of wages and prices—something urgently necessary if disaster and suffering are to be avoided—is meeting with stiff resistance,” said Mr Sullivan. “Everybody agrees with the thing in principle. Most people resist its specific application to themselves at the point where they must give up something io achieve it. “Commercial resistance to price fixation, many individual breaches of Price Tribunal orders, and the attitude of some other sections of the community are’ evidence of resistance to stabilisation based in some cases on lack of understanding of the dangers of inflation, or shortsighted disregard of the national needs. Yet without stabilisation the country will be faced with disaster.” The Acting-Prime Minister stated that recently he had hoard a distinguished American soldier-statesman—-not Brigadier-General Hurley —say that this would be a long war. If we won we would probably have only our shirts and our personal freedom; if we lost we would have our shirts, perhaps, but not oui’ freedom, and the Japs, in the latter case, would tell us whether we would or would not be allowed to wear our shirts. This speaker' put it in a picturesque way, but, said Mr Sullivan, it was certain that the longer the war lasted the greater privations the people would suffer. The more readily necessary sacrifices were accepted today the shorter the war would be and the more certain we could be of retaining our freedom. Referring to other phases of the war effort, Mr Sullivan said that a mighty job had been done in the mobilisation, training, rationing and equipping of the fighting forces and the building ol camps. However, with such rapid development of camps it was inevitable that there should be some shortcomings for a time. The production locally of munitions, equipment and foodstuffs for war purposes had reached record levels. Valuable work was being done by New Zealand scientists engaged in defence activities. THE MANPOWER SURVEY. A thorough survey of manpower was under way, based on a two-year programme of essential production and the needs of the armed services and civilian defence. Mr Sullivan said he thought it was true that among large numbers of people in Britain, the United States ci America, Australia, and a few other countries, the name New Zealand wis an inspiration. There was ample evidence of Great Britain’s regard for Nev/ Zealand. There was ample evidence of the regard of Great Britain, for instance, for New Zealand’s war effort on the cable files in Parliament Buildings, and though these were not available for publication now he assumed they would be after the war. Informed Americans who had had contact with the Dominion had been similarly impressed. He would say that the overseas opinion was a justifiable one. Having regard to the size, resources and population of this country, its achievements had been extraordinarily good. There was one field, of course, in which there could be neither criticism, qualifications or reservations—our soldiers, sailors and airmen and their immortal deeds.

“Led with conspicuous ability and great knowledge by the Prime Minister, War Cabinet, on whose shoulders falls the burden of the main organisation and direction of war activities, works faithfully and devotedly at its task for many hours each week-day, and often on Sunday,” said Mr Sullivan. “Every problem is most carefully examined, more often than not with the military or civilian officers concerned in attendance. Other Ministers of both political parties toil faithfully and enthusiastically at their various tasks.”