The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-11-08
BALFOUR REBUKES PROTESTS
 AND URGES DECISIVE DEFEAT OF PEACE MOTION IN COMMONS

s London, Nov. S-A. J. Balfour, sec- retary for foreign affairs. replying in the House of Commons today to a peace motion proposed by H. B. Lees Smith, Liberal member for Northamp ton, declared: t-The aims for which Great Britain entered the war were not and are not either imperialistic or vtndictive, but one. and all are need sd for the double purpose of the eman- rfpation and security of Europe"
 MT. Balfour asked the House to show by an overwhelming majority that: 'swe believe in the cause in which we are struggling and which we know we can bring to a. successful Examination .e. Great as are the sacrifices already made, we are ready to continue them and continue them Indefinitely, until the great, righteous and unselfish objects we have in view are finally secured"
 Andrew Boinar Law, chancellor of the excheQuer. amid loud cheers. nov ed closure, which was carried 282 to S3. MT. .Lees-Smith's motion was then negatived without division.
 In the course of his remarks MT. Balfour expressed the opinion that discussions of this kind did little to assist the object that those who start ed them had in view-the attainment of an honorable peace at the earliest possible date. He ridiculed the idea khat secret treaties existed, as suggest ed by MT. Lees-Smith, and declared khat Great Britain was not a. party to any such treaty. He did not believe Ellat any such treaty existed.
 He regretted that the member had used such an argument, which, of . st-o fad iraH( Yer a n " without contradiction, and which had For it's basis that the allies aims were not those they had loudly proclaimed pf freeing small nationalities and mak- Ing the constitution of the states in Europe as far as possible harmonious krith the wishes of the inhabitants
 -.sIt never was, and is not, the ob tect of the allies to take from the Ger hnan empire admittedly German terri tory." said MT. Balfour. "But, of course, the allies desire the restitu- hon of Alsace Lorraine to France. The aliies," continued the secretary, were not fighting for that alone, or as an isolated object of their war aims.
 'sWe are fightingf in the first t,1ace." said he, that Europe might bS free from the perpetual menace of the military party in Germany"
 Ut was not Europe alone Inat was to be considered. he declared. and naked whether the movers of the amendment and their party had no care for the misgovernment and the most brutal anad barbarous cruelty in Armenia and Arabia The pacifist members seemed to think that all these matters could be satisfactorily settled if they could only bring the E.,~,raa, pouers to talk together nround table.
 ..Ts that common sense ?" he asked
 s.'Is it supposed that Germany would sver consent to restore, as has been publicly suggested, the ancient king hom of Roland7 Of course she would hot. It Is no use waiting to meet srouna a peace table to. determine that
 s.sIs 1t inperialistic to desire to see hn independent Poland? Is it i'm berialistio to desire to see Armenia released from the tyranny of Turkey Is it imperialistic to desire to see Al Eace-L Lorraine restored to France? Is It irnperaalistic to desire to see Italy