Evening star., 1943-11-12
British Empire as Portent

In his address the other evening
before the New York Academy of
Political Science, Viscount Halifax
suggested that the evolution of the
British Empire into a voluntary
Commonwealth of Nations offered
helpful pattern for war-torn world
seeking lasting peace, yet disinclined
to seek it through the erection of
superstate which would sacrifice
nationhood.
Lord Halifaxs suggestive thesis
cannot be better set forth than in
his own words. Through the nine
teenth century," he said, "the Brit
ish Dominions were growing slowly
into nationhood, until in 1881 the
Statute of Westminster recorded in
law that independence which they
had long enjoyed in fact. I have
described it as a Declaration of In
dependence, but it was also a decla-
ration of interdependence. And there
may lie the germ of a new kind of
relationship. Today it is scarcely
necessary to argue about the dangers
of unchecked nationalism, or, for
that matter, of unqualified isolation
ism. For good or Ill, we all live in
world that grows smaller every day."
The strength of the voluntary in
terdependence of the British Empire
has been abundantly attested by the
way it has rallied to the defense and
preservation of its common interests
and ideals. At the same time, the
reality of the correlative principle of
independence has been shown by the
way Fires refusal to participate has
been respected. Despite the handi-
caps which Fires neutrality involved,
no compulsion was employed to OBJ
tain a forced alignment with the
rest of the empire which would have
derogated from the legal sovereignty
OF all members of the British Com
monwealth of Nations. This world
wide commonwealth thus functions
effectively in it's supreme crisis with
a minimum of institutional machin-
cry and even without a written con-
stitution.
OF course, it would be taking too
much for granted to jump to the
conclusion that the establishment of
a world-commonwealth on similar
lines is Immediately feasible or
even possible. Lord Halifax himself
pointed out that the British Com
+ monwealth had evolved through the
common possession of "the common
law of England, Magma Carta, ha-
beas corpus, the jury system, the
parliamentary tradition and the
spirit of representative institutions"
He went on to say that Americas
evolution in this same heritage
greatly facilitates that firm basis
for Anglo-American cooperation"
which must form IAN indispensable
part of any larger plan" for world
peace and stability. This implies
that world reconstruction can best
be achieved by what may be termed
"gradualism"-an organic process of
evolution, starting from natural
associations and combinations of
nations, and arriving at the eventual
goal of a. world commonwealth
based upon enlightened Self-interest
and the realization of self-preserva-
ton in a world where science and
invention have raised the spectre of
totalitarian war, destruction and
chaos as dread alternative to CO.
operative peace and stability.
The successful functioning of the
British Commonwealth of Nations
may thus be regarded as a helpful
portent, and the feasibility of Anglo
American cooperation can be con-
sidered as a second signpost along
what seems to be the most hopeful
path toward better future that the
wisdom of mankind seeks to realize,