New-York tribune., 1917-06-11
Lord Northclife's Mission

For the work which Lord Northcllfe is
TO do in this country the British govern
rent could not possibly have chosen bet
ter man. He fits the situation. He is to
act as a co0rdinator Of British activities
here. especially those which relate to the
purchase and forwarding of food and
ether supplies. He will represent his gov
ernment in relations which fall OUTSIDE
the routine Of iplomacy-which have to DO
with our cooperation with Great Britain IN
fighting out the war along the lines of in
Gustrial and economic effort. More than
that. he will act as a friendly counsellor,
emphasizing for our benefit the lessons
which Great Britain has learned since she
entered the war, nearly three years ago,
in a state of physical and moral unpre-
paredness almost as lamentable as that OF
the United States to-day.
Lord Northcliffe has done more than
any other single Englishman, perhaps, 10
put England on her feet as fighting
power. He had the courage to expose in
efficiency in Office He let the light in on
the muddhng of the Asquith government
and finally drove that government out OF
mower. He took the lead in hammering In
on the British public the real meaning OF
the war-in insisting on the vastness OF
the task ahead of the Entente Allies and
the genuine peril to Great Britain of the
submarine attack which Germany was
preparing for and is now making. He was
one Of the chief hackers of Lloyd Georges
plans for economic and industrial reorgan-
ization. through which Great Britain has
been enabled within the last year to ap-
proach German standards of wartime ef-
ficiency.
Lord Northcliffe's work in England was
practically completed when the Lloyd
George government was established. That
government is doing what the two preced-
ing war governments failed to do. 1t is
not in need of the stimulus of Lord North
chffe's constructive criticism. 1t can spare
his great talents for time; and there is
no other field in which those talents can
low be employed TO so great an advantage
as in this country, which is struggling vio-
lently, as Great Britain had to struggle, to
prepare for war.
We look TO Lord Northcliffe for many
suggestions which will help to speed up
American energy. He knows the mistakes
his countrymen have made. He has seen
Great Britain free herself from the
shackles Of red tape and routine officialism
in government and accomplish startlingly
big results in big way. Our people are
eager to do the same thing. All they want
is intelligent leadership
One thing the great English newspaper
publisher is likely to accomplish here is the
introduction of sound English methods of
war advertising. The war cannot be
brought home TO our vast and scattered
population except through skilful adver-
Using. Interest in all war activities can
be created and sustained only by free gov
ernmental use Of the advertising mans
art. 1t is one thing to send our soldiers
to France. But after they go there the
people back here must be kept constantly
in touch with them and awake to the i'm
/ portance of every home activity which
even remotely concerns them. That is the
function Of war advertising.
The British government has used ad-
vertising freely as means Of pushing the
war. We shall have to follow that exam
pie. The handling Of the Liberty Loan
was a shocking instance Of bad advertis-
ing. Failure was invited, when great
success might have been scored by cleverer
publicity methods. This is one thing about
which Lord NorthclifTe can tell US much.
But whatever he tells us, we feel that he
comes as friend who knows and is keen
TO put his knowledge at our service. His
mission is a splendid exenrplifcation of that
all-for-one-and-one-for-all policy which, if
faithfully pursued, will soon weld the AL
lies into an invincible combination.