New-York tribune., 1919-10-12
E. W. pethwick Lawrence
Heads Delegation to Con-
ference to Take Place
Here October "a and Is
Declare Rights Menaced
Defence of the Realm Act
Is Chief Target of Com.
plants of the Visitors

At an informal luncheon given at
the City Club by the Civil Liberties
Bureau to small group Of English
Liberals and Laborites, who arrived
direct from England by way of Canada
yesterday to take part in conference
of American and English liberals, which
will be held in the Hotel Commodore
October 81 and %, f. w. Pethwick
Lawrence, a noted British economist,
stated that Great Britain would have
little difficulty in repaying its financial
debt to the United States.
ain," explained Mr.. Lawrence. who is
also one of the leaders of the feminist
movement in England. "is greater than
the debt it owes your country, and
since there is no question OF bank
ruptcy in our country l can see no
reason why we should find it difficult
to repay your country. Our debt to
and s6,0o0,0O0,000 while our internal
wealth alone is roughly $1O0,O00,000s
O0O'
The members of the group were ".
N. Ever, foreign editor Of 1.-The London
Daily Herald; Mr.. Lawrence, B. N.
Langdon Davies, N. A., president of the
Cambridge Union and examiner Of the
OCOtClSu DUdLu O4 GuUSdtlOu anu 1AA ..
Monica Ever, also of The London
Daily Herald" Holford Knight, noted
English lawyer, who arrived in this
country several weeks ago, also was
present.
Mr.. Langdon Davies explained the
purpose of both the trip and proposed
conference to be an attempt to get
together with the American Liberals in
an effort to regain 1.-The constitutional
lihnrfias hot uo hava lost hofh in
England and in America. The one thing
we have had in common is the Anglo
American tradition of liberty and we
must fight to regain what We have
lost during the war"
"Why, in Great Britain" he said,
"there has been complete loss of civil
liberties. in the sense that the govern
ment may stop anyone from saying or
doing anything because of the fear in
which the defense of the realm act is
held. While it is true that the govern
ment does not use that act often, there
is no telling when it may. One is al
ways in constant apprehension. What
we want to do is to organize two groups
that will work both in England and
that we may each know hat is going on
IN our respective countries"
Mr.. Langdon Davies said he expected
that by next April. when the Lloyd
George government tackles the yearly
budget it is not at all improbable that
Labor government may come into
being. 1t was his opinion that Ireland's
salvation lies in Labor government
IN England.
Mrs. Ever. foreign editor of "The
London Daily Herald" the leading
labor journal in England, said Eng
lands policy toward Soviet Russia is
still underlined although one group in
the government is for recognition, while
the other is against it. Both groups
are equally balanced" he said, so
that a decision will probably not be
made for some time"
Mr.. Lawrence said women in Eng
land, now that they are facing political
duties, are more interested in stheir
relationship to industry than anything
else.
"They want to know to what extent
they will be excluded from certain
trades" he said, while the matter of
equal pay for work usually done by
men is another subject for wide dis
cussion. The relationship between mar
riage and divorce is attracting a lot
of attention from the newly franchised
Eng ish women. 1t is true that the pres
ent law does not permit women under
thirty years Of age to vote, but that
law should be amended and probably
will be-
Holford knight compared the Ameri-
can espionage act with the English
defense Of the realm act and said the
espionage act was actually founded on
the latter, although it is more drastic
in its provisions.
1t was announced by Albert De Silver,
director of the Civil Liberties Bureau,
that prominent Eng g'ishmen in favor of
this movement are jerome X Jerome
John Ma,uefield. Arnold Bennett, Israel
Zangwill, g. Bernard Shaw, C. T.
Cramp. president of the National Union
Of Railwaymen. and Lord Buckmaster
ex-Lord Chancellor OF Great Britain
Among those in favor of the movement
in America are Mrs. Charles L. Tiff
fany, Mrs. Victor Sorcham, the Rev
Percy St;ckney Grant Colonel and Mrs
Raymond Robins. Roscoe Pound, FELIX
Frankfurter. Walter Lippman, Herbert
Croly and Frederick c. Howe, ex-Com-
missioner of INN igration