Evening star., 1941-03-26
Text of Lord Halifax Speech Before Pilgrims in New York
British Ambassador Calls Cooperation
With o Conflict Greatest Aim
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
NEW YORK, March 26.-The
tert OF the speech of Lord Hall
far, British Ambassador, before
the Pilgrims OF the United States
last night tollo,Os:
My last engagement before
leaving England was to meet the
Pilgrims at a farewell luncheon,
given to me on the eve of sailing.
And it is in accordance with ira
dition that the first public speech
of a new British Ambassador in
this country should be made to
the kindly and distinguished
audience of the Pilgrims of the
United States.
I confess that one of my earliest
feelings on appointment as AM
bassador to the United States
was tremor of apprehension at
the number of speeches which l
might be expected to make. Nor
was it possible for me, except at
a price that I should have been
reluctant TO ask of you, to find
relief in the advices once given to
me by Lord Balfour when I first
entered the House of Commons
80 years ago. I told him that I
felt rather like new boy arriv-
in OF or
dear fellow" he said, there is
never any need to be nervous in
the House of Commons. All you
have to do is TO speak as often
as you can and as long as you can,
and you will rapidly lose any
sense of mercy for your audience
as every bore always does"
The reason of my coming here
is known to you all I told your
fellow Pilgrims in London some
of the reasons which had moved
me to submit to the King the
name of Philip Lothian to be His
Majesty's Ambassador at Wash
ington. He came to you indeed as
no stranger but as one who al
ready knew and loved your
country, and had many good
friends among you, and was In
especial degree equipped to un-
dertake the task. l little thought
at that time that it would fall to
me to succeed him after the
tragically short period of Is
months.
But the value of mems work
and lives is not to be measured
in length of days, and I do not
hesitate to say that the year
that Lothian spent here was the
.most formative and important
of his life. He had long pre-
pared unconsciously for it, and
when the opportunity came, he
gave himself without stint to
that which is the purpose of your
society, the cause of better under
standing between our peoples.
The fruits of his labor stand to-
day for all the world to see. He
would not, 1 think, have wished
any better monument.
Seldom before in the worlds
history can so much have de-
pended on that Understandings
and for that reason the Prime
Minister rightly described this
post "as the most important at
this time which any British sub
ject can occupy outside the
United Kingdom"
Nor is the reason far to seek
why recent months have seen a
steady drawing together of the
thought of our two countries.
You and we have felt from the
outset that the instructive reac-
challenge offered by the new phi
loSophy OF tOtalitarian dictator
ship must be Identical. AS the
struggle has grown more intense,
reason and conscience have COM
bined to make us both realize
even more clearly the dark men
ace to things that are equally
precious to your country and to
mine.
Common Purpose Sealed.
By Passage of Aid Bill.
This common purpose has been
sealed anew by the recent pas
sage into law of the Lease-Lend
Act. 1t is difficult to exaggerate
what this means. Across the seas,
in the front line, which is Brit
ain, as in the hearts of those
submerged for a time under the
German wave, there will be felt
new confidence; in the camp of
the enemy new doubts; as all
alike remember the history OF
the last war and see the time
surely approaching when the
weight of this Nation must tip
the scales.
And if we have felt able, as
we have, to count upon the in
creasing support of your moral
and industrial partnership in
this business, we hope that you,
too, have seen the bearing of
the British people to be such
as you would have expected from
your own people if they were
similarly placed.
Certainly, as personality often
fingers where at some forgotten