THE EMPIRE ON A BUSINESS FOOTING.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 15, 5 July 1900, Page 4

THE EMPIRE ON A BUSINESS FOOTING.

Addressing tne students' of Gljj] gow University the other day, Loj Ros^bery said:— "l confess thj my mind is mainly at this mometj filled with a topic which may se| alien to the University of Glasgc? and which is yet not really] remote — I mean the lessons that] all derive from the war in whij we are engaged, and the irnporta^ of doing what I have ventured] call putting the Empire oni business footing. Iv that wori consider that the universities ] Scotland— and not least the Uo versity of Glasgow— ought to p£ a not unimportant part. I don know if this audience will agfl with me in thinking thai jj enormous responsibilities which \ have undertaken in the worlds late years — great and growjj responsibilities — demand on |l )art a great and growing efforlj be equal to them. The leasts suppose, that a business man wq|B do if his business had trebled nfl quadrupled within a certain nurnj of years, would be to conl whether his business" arrangema were equal to the influx 1 increase of his business, and \wjj endeavour to put his firm of surer and more methodical fooKz My conviction is that though wej certain to come out of this vratui triumph and with lustre, notmefi of our arms, but of ournationaloSM acter, that we shell have iostfl surest result of the war if we do 9 utilise it to reconsider our busigfl arrangements. I will giveW illustrations of what I mean.'^M have a great department-^ Foreign Office— which is constijg mainly to carry on our diploaM arrangement of foreign affauvjH have a great departmental Colonial Office — which is cotfl tuted to administer, so far asjfl require administration, andfl supervise, sr» far as they refjfl supervision, those great extiH possessions of Great Britain ?fl wo are accustomed to calijfl colonies. But, within the last 9 we have * seen our most impo|H diplomacy conducted, ably,jM doubt, and efficiently, bufe no>H the department which is appoiffl to conduct it — the Foreign Oifl but by the Colonial Office ; >iiiH the other hand — I know becaffl have been at the Foreign OffitH tbat the Foreign Office is cutm^B with the administration otj^^ tracts of territory in Africa li^B rate, which should most cerkfl be placed under the dominaiM^B the Colonial Office. Iwillgifl^B another instance. The f<^| Office is now constructing &j^| railroad into the centre of^^H I am as much responsible |^J construction of that railroad »|^B one else, but there is no doiifH of all the departments Government the one tuakjjjHj qualified to construct sucbai^H is the Foreign OflSce ; and \s^k do not know to what eztj^H capacity of the Foreign Offif^B extend. I give you tbo^H instanses, which are non-pi^H and would have occurred ojiher Government, simply ||^H that we shall not have g^^H , full fruit iv tbe victory .^^H achieve in South Africa if take the opportunity of ove|^M out methods and fittio/^H machinery for the much'^^H draft on its power than i^'^H to undertake. I know thaj^H minds of many there is a^^H for example, that the h is fallen short of its dutie«|^H not entirely of that opinio|^M not blame so much the i^^H heads of the War Offic*; : J^M have done a great work^^H ways. They have achieTe^^H siderable result in the tnt|^H a vast army over an uup^^^B distance. Bat there i? D 9H that the War Office, I>^H departments, will obviousl^^H better, when the war is o|^^| strict examination fflilj^H skuction of its methodsJ^H implying any blame on w]|HH