Evening star., 1927-09-18
BY II. G. WELLS.

" HE other day l turning out the
drawers of a bureau and l came upon
a little collection Of printed cards and
papers, the agenda and minutes OF a
dinner discussion club of which / was men,
ber far back in the days of good King Edward.
when Mr.. Joseph Chamberlain was raising the
banner of tariff reform. 1t was a small club
of 13 and l was the least: never government
then since that has not contained member
Of 1t; and the aim of all our talks was
to sharpen our ideas about the empire to which
we belonged and to come to some sort OF agree
ment if we could about what we wanted to do
with it and how we had to serve it. We never
came to any agreement tariff reform cleft us
from the beginning. but doubt IL any one Of
failed to give something or to learn much
in these agreeable encounters.
l sat recalling these old discussions and
linking them with writings of mine that pre-
ceded and followed them. I have been writing
and thinking and talking about the empire for
so years. My ideas have changed and expand
ed; my knowledge has grown; l have moved
with the times. Except that l have put more
of it on record and so checked my steps more
exactly, my thoughts and feelings about the
empire have probably been very like the
thoughts and feelings of thousands Of mediocre
Liberal Englshmen.
X y
1t is interesting to recall some of the chief
phases of the story. ! have had phase of
disillusonment about the empire since 1919
so intense that have come near to a complete
antagonism to imperialism" But l sit
over these papers and think not merely Of my
own reactions but of some of the empire
builders" and empire rulers l have known
Sir Harry Johnson. Sir Hugh Clifford. Lord
Olivier. for example, find myself still reluc-
tant to turn against all the dreams Of that
Liberal imperialism of 80 years ago. For so
years ago l a firm believer in the great
Importance of the British empire to mankind
nd as I q NatiOnaliStS
that set themselves up against it.
l am still am even observation-disclosures
today. l see no good at all in people getting
together into groups to exaggerate and over.
value their own peculiarities and run down,
exclude and injure the rest of mankind. find
nothing charming in the faked-up national
tumes-which all alike all over Europe
women in muslin caps and bits of red and
black stuff and men in pearl buttons-natiopal
arts--thumby bits of wood carving, pottery
and lace that are even more the same thing
everywhere-national dialects. national litera.
lures and national symbols, which pretend to
discursiveness but really aim to pickle dismal
uniformity of petty localism conceit narrow
mndedness and customary tyranny, through.
out the continent.
am all for cosmopos and the high road.
and when / find nationalism rising to intricate
nterferences with trade and money. the free
movement of men and goods about this
too large planet, hastings. hostilites, armies
and the strangulation Of the general welfare
in the interests Of the gangs exploiting patri-
otic instincts, my lack of enthusiasm deepens
to positive hatred.
/ think l born cosmopolitan. / could
never sympathize completely, though realized
the reality of their peculiar grievances. with
the preference of the Southern Irish to be
lords upon their own dunghills rather than
partners Of the Clstermen, the English, Scotch
and Welsh in the world adventure of the en-
pire. and though had qualms about the aims
and methods of Cecil Rhodes and DR.. Jameson,
/ thought it better that South Africa
should be united and part of the region that
should benefit all humanity. / have never
found nationaiism even plausible excuse for
the sterilization of some great of potential
wealth because a backward people happened
to live upon it. The earth is for the whole
race.
But even in those dinner club discussions
of 20 years ago very marked Emergencies of
opinion and spirit became manifest. Our OPEN
ing discussion was upon the possibility of an
imperial Zolverein (customs union), and that
question we found went to the very root of
our ideas. Did want to unite the empire.
economically, financially, politically. militarily.
against the rest Of the world, not? Was it
to be closed fist. in imitation of the Teutonic
Zollverein, or an open hand to all the world
I recall with satisfaction that it was I who
ure of the open hand Our British fingers, 1