Evening star., 1936-05-10

rate in these dominions, as in Britain
and most other countries except Japan
and Russia, is either stationary or
falling.
Some socialists and Left-oriented
churchmen in England advocate fin
ishing with imperialism and pooling
the Colonial resources now under
Britain's control for the service of all
mankind. The hard-heads answer
that all that would happen would be
an armed rush for the loot. In a new
share-out. Japan probably would seize
Australia and New Zealand, while
Germany, Italy and Japan would di-
vide Britain's territories in Africa and
Asia.
Extreme League partisans want
Britain to cut loose from her colonies
and dependencies, which would all
become independent states, members
Of the Geneva League; and thus
achieve collective-security protection
instead Of having to rely upon Britain's
fleets, wealth, resources and allies.
This amounts to abdication of empire
in favor of the League, and enchants
q large emotional group.
Quite a few British bankers and
industrialists would like to open up
the empty lands to foreign immigra-
tion in the pre-war American manner
They regard the free interchange of
peoples much as they regard the free
interchange of goods and commodities.
1t is necessary. first. for the survival of
the capitalistic regime. and, second,
for the creation of new markets to
carry the world into a new money
making expansion era. The weak spot
is that these world-trader and world
financier views cut across national
political, economic and labor vested
interests in each of the self-governing
colonies.
Meantime it may be noted that
while idealists enthusiastically indi-
cate how an effective control of the
world supply of essential minerals can
be made an insurance for peace, the
knowledge that such a control can be
exercised by the "haveS" stimulates
fears and jealousies among the have
nots, who do not accept the theory of
the static world-or, If one prefers,
the status quo. The British Empire
and the United States are the only
peoples which can wage a war in
definitely on their own natural re-
sources. Every other nation, which
cannot rely on supplies from one or
the other, must put sharp limit to
the term of any war it plans.
Influence on War Plans.
Incidentally. this Is having marked
influence both on weapon design and
war plans. The short, sharp war,
waged with the maximum of speed
and destructiveness, and aimed from
the start at the key points of a ma
tional organism (ports, capitals, army
headquarters, industrial centers, rail
functions. naval bases, governmental
seats), is the war envisaged by the
STATS in the states where they are
thinking hard in war terms. The
factor of raw material resources die
tates strategy. tactics and even the
scope and direction Of the war en-
visaged.
If peace could be kept among the
economic empires for century or
two. all might be we'll Men might
escape from the national fixation and
the pattern in which they now seem
fatally entangled. For although nature
has played a hand by accumulating
the larger deposits of minerals in the
lands bordering the North Atlantic,
other deposits exist and are being
developed, not on an econom-
ic basis but on q state-policy basis.
Russia in 1885 imported 10000 tons
Of copper and almost as much lead.
But her economic program includes
plans to produce enough Of these
metals to supply her own needs and