Evening star., 1926-10-26
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

perial matters. constitute a league
more powerful In action than that of
Geneva, If the dominions hold to-
gether in one great commonwealth.
In the last March issue the Round
Table said:
"In due time, If it is preserved, the
empire must inevitably develop into n
real commonwealth of equal partners.
sharing power and responsibility alike.
In the meantime there is no need to
despair and no need for revolution"
One Of the chief bones Of contention
now between the distant dOminions
and the central government is the OBJ
legation of the Locarno treaty. which
binds Great Britain to go to war to
safeguard the present boundary of
Belgium and the international boun-
Diary between France and Germany.
In case of aggression by France
against Germany. Great Britain must
send an army to help defend Germany.
In case Germany first invades France.
Great Britain must go to the aid of
France. But wars seldom start by
overt acts, and what arbiter Will de-
eide who is the aggressOr. in case Ger
many defaults in payment of repara-
tionS under the Dawes plan and
France reinvades the Saar according
to the terms of the Versailles treaty?
Will Australia or New Zealand or
Canada or South Africa recognize an
obligation to war to uphold the boun-
daries of Europep
Again the Round Table speaks:
What is to happen when Great
Britain or any part OF the empire ~
drawn into a serious war? War is
the supreme test of unity OF the EN-
pire, for it's parts cannot be at war
and not at war at the same time. Yet
if the King declares war on the ad-
vice of the British ministers. all the
dominionS are. conStituionally and
under international law, in a condi-
ton of belligerency. though they need
not, of course, take an active part in
the prosecution of war.
And 1t would be presumably the
same If the King could he induced to
declare war on the advice of any do
minion ministry. Whenever an acute
international crisis develops into q
serious war. all parts of the empire
will be faced with the alternatives OF
being forced into the status of bellig-
erency. by the action of Great Britain,
or of escaping belligerency by seced-
ing from the empire"
Would not secession provoke a
British civil war as 1t did In the
United States? Because of that alter
native, and, further, because of eco
nOmic considerations, the dOminiOns
demand, more and more fnsistently.
an active share in developing the pol
icies and supervising the administra-
ton of the government OF the COM
monwealth.
~ D,-it f&I, tell fes
overpopulation and unemployment.
In all the dominiOns there is under
population and retarded development
of natural resources. This is the
main problem-how to equalize these
discrepancies.
The dominlons have been giving to
Great Britain a preferential rate in
tariffs. which. they claim. amounts to
fl2. 900 900 sterling per annum, while
the preference given to the dominions
by Great Britain amounts to only
El 600 900. The DominiOns demand
that Great Britain put IA protective
tariff on her imports. with Il prefer
ential TO the dominiOns. so as to give
greater monopoly in her markets to
imports from the dominiOnS. To that
Great Britain declares she will never
puI q tariff on fOdStuffS. The do
minionS want to put their own pro-
tective tariffs on manufactures so as
to build up "home industries" but
Great Britain objects, so far as that
would limit her own manufactures In
her dominion markets
In reply to the protest of the do
miniOns because their prefere ntial tar
ifs benefit Great Britain 12 times as
much as the benefits the dominions
have in British markets, the English
point to the protection the dOminions
receive from the great British Navy
and Army-to which the dOminions do
not contribute proportionately
The cost OF the army, navy and air
forces is borne. by Great Britain, f546.-
600 600 a year; By Canada, f29 100000:
by Australia. f33 900. 900. Per capita
the British pay for the upkeep OF
military and naval protection, In round
figures, f12; the Canadians pay f3.
and the Australians f6. The British
argue that as all the doninions have
full protection, the inequality Of the
cost of that defense more than offsets
the preferential tariffs on imports in
the respective markets.
It is proposed that the imperial con-
ference devise some method OF making
an impartial survey of conditions
throughout the commonwealth and 80
adjust the tariffs and the imperial de-
fense as to equalize the costs and
benefits. the adjustments to be enacted
by the respective dominion Parlia-
ments, as well as by the British Parlia-
mont
lCopyright. 1926. BY Paul V. ColIins.l