Evening star., 1937-06-27
CANADA FACES FEALTY
CRISIS IF WAR COMES
Aspirations and Hopes for Peace Start.
ling ly Like America a's-Dominions
Wait to See.

lemma would be well-nigh identical
with our own. But Canada belongs to
what was once the British Empire and
Is now the British Commonwealth For
that reason her hour OF decision-if
war comes-vill be exceptionally fate
full.
Canada's leaders are thoroughly
awake to this fact. however perturbed
its reality has made them At the Ca
madam American conference Dr.. John
w. Dafoe, editor Of The Winnipeg
Free Press" delivered an address on
Canadian foreign policy which por-
trayed Canada's dilemma in such 4
lucid and mAsterful fashion that it was
described by Prof James T. Shotwell
Of Columbia University As "one Of the
great state papers Of North America.
War 10 Create Crisis.
Dr. Dafoe declared that the end Of
the present precarious peace would
bring the collapse Of the Canadian
policy Of preserving national unity by
postponing decisions. He added.
When that peace Is broken Canada
will face the most dangerous issue in
her history. The government
Will have to make up its mind what
should bk done and it will have to ask
parliament for the support Of its pol
icy. At that point. II not earlier. the
national unity to which every consid-
Grafton Is subordinated now will dis
appear, and in its stead will come pro-
found disunion and national disinte-
grafton over An issue that perhaps can
not be settled by counting heads"
OF course, Canda's wait and see
policy In regard to neutrality or par
ticipation in another war also re-
sembles closely the American aversion
to making commitments in advance.
It has been adopted by Mackenzie
Kings Liberal government Is . means
Of restricting to . minimum the pro-
found disagreement which already
characterizes Canadian public opinion.
This divergence Of opinion is described
by Prof. Norman A. Mackenzie Of the
University OF Toronto As, in part, 4
natural disunity" He says it is
caused by the geographical divisions
Of the Dominions, by sectionalism in
the various provinces and by very
distinct French Canadian nationalism
where this racial division enters into
the problem. 1t Is heightened also by
the fact that one out OF every five
Canadian tnha abitants today was for
eign born and by . growing body Of
British Thus, Canada is
pulled in several directions at once
There Is rising isolationism, an in
creased lack of faith In the collective
machinery OF the League OF Nations,
= waning imperialism and q growing
sense of North Americanism As op-
posed to the traditional ties with
Great Britain.
No Simple Decision.
It Is the belief Of some Canadian
authorities that the current disunity
in Canadian public opinion would
largely vanish If the safety and future
Of England were menaced by an ag-
gressive war or attacks upon the Brit
ish Isles. In such an event they in
sist that Canada again would spring
to the defense of her mother country.
But they do not attempt to dodge the
fact that Canada's decision would be
far less simple to make than 1t was
23 years ago. Nor do they overlook
the reality Of the community OF in
terests. both material and political
and also psychological, which unites
the Dominion and the United States
and makes for = new and stronger
North American consciousness above
the forty ninth parallel.
In the past Americans have inclined
to ignore or remain oblivious to the
fundamental and increasingly impor-
tant community Of interests between
Canada and the United States If
war comes In Europe. whether soon
or late, it Is safe. to say that our mu-
tual aspirations and our common di-
lemma will be illuminated with =
startling clarity. In large measure
!Canada's disunity and perplexity would
be our own. while Canadas decision
could not fail to Affect the course Of
the American Government to Q very
considerable degree.
tcopyrisht, 1879