THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH. WEDNESDAY,
JUNE
1985.
CO-ORDINATION OF EMPIRE DEFENCE
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF UNITED CONTROL
By SIR C. W. GWYNN, K.C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O.
FOR
MOR the accond time a debato in recommendations to the Govern- which it was proposed toment with a very thorough know- discuss the co-ordination of the ledge of all material facts. Defence Services, and the possi bility of establishing some form of Defence Ministry, resulted merely in n debate on our immediate Defence policy. Nevertheless, the
the Government cannot be accused This recapitulation shows that of hurried decisions, of keeping its own members in the dark, or of neglecting to consult or co-ordinate
debate gave Mr. Baldwin an op-expert opinion. On the whole, one portunity of throwing light on the finds it a reassuring picture, and processes by which our Defence"
one may note with satisfaction the policy la formed, and especially on the part played by the Committee C.LD. in forming Defence policy Influence now exercised by the of Imperial Defence (C.1.D.). He in addition to the invaluable ser- also indicated that the Government vice it performed in the pre-War were seriously considering whether the appointment
period by bringing into Defence of a Defence
preparations organisations outside Minister to co-ordinate Defence
the control of individual Service measures would be of service, and
Departments. invited suggestions.
are
Broadly speaking, there three schools. of thought on the subject:
OVER-ELABORATE
The criticism may perhaps he made that procedure was over- elaborate and cumbrous, and that (n) That existing arrangements
it reveals a machinery which would 'are adequate and are designed to place responsibility for co-ordinat-not adapt itself to the actunt con- ing National Defence directly on duct of war, however well it func
Minister and histions in the study of Defence pre- Although, therefore, Cabinet. That the appointment of parations.
Defence Minister is, therefore, we can congratulate ourselves on unnecessary, and would not con-improvements made since the pre- form to the spirit of the Constitu-War period, have we yet retched a stage at which we should be wise
the
tion.
Primo
to leave well alone? That, I take (b) That the existing system it, is what Mr. Baldwin meant theoretically assigns to the Prime when he invited discussion on the Minister a task to which, with his many other preoccupations, he question whether the appointment cannot in practice give continuous of a Minister solely responsible for or sufficient attention. That the the co-ordination of a aysiem ean in consequence be made policy would be of service. to work satisfactorily only by:
Defence
employing an understudy to the The arguments in favour of such Prime Minister, who becomes while a course appear to be strong, for 80 employed a close approach to we should, I think, realise that the a Minister of Defence. It is held that these conditions should be Government, when faced with the recognised by the definite appoint- necessity of revising their Defence ment of a Defence Minister con-polley, were fortunate in being tinuously occupied with the co-able to draw on the experience of ordination of the whole machinery those who either in a positive or of Defence machinery which 18 nogative sense, had to an unusual widely distributed through all the State Departments and in every degree been concerned in Defence branch of national activity. Such problems. The Prime Minister, a Minister to have advisory rather | Mr. Baldwin himself, and than executive functione,
one
Ministerial armament
tion.
the
Committee on Dis- Wero going over (c) The third school advocates the amalgamation of the three familiar course in a reverse direc- Defence Departments into grent Ministry of Defence in order to secure unity of control not only in the co-ordination of Defence measures in peace, but to secure unity of executive control in war and in framing war plans,
EDCE OF RISK
Under normal conditions Minis- terial minds are apt to be absorb ed in domestic politics to the detri ment of their interest in Defence matters. and Ministers cannot count for ever on having the ser- vices of a conch with Sir Maurice Hankey's wealth of experience. Defence
Mr. Baldwin's description of the stages by which the Government. The appointment of a having realised that the negative Minister to carry out the duty of Defence policy of unilateral dis- armament had brought the Empire supervising the activities of the to the "edge of risk," were forced C.I.D. in co-ordinating the pulicy
to form a positive policy in order of the Fighting Services and in
T
Dante might have wondered whether this great aperture lead to a new Inforno. Actually it is one of the funnels of the giant iiner Normandie,
These children of Hungary swear by bicycles, and their luxuries are the picturesque clothes they are wearing.
RHODESIAN FANATICS
SECRET SECT IN
MINE STRIKE
FOMENTING UNREST
Johannesburg, May 30.
Several hundred troops and police are now concentrated in the troubled area of the Northern Rhodesian copper mines, where at noon to-day it was reported that all was quiet, although thousands of natives are still on strike.
All day trains with more troope and special, police have been pass- ing northwards, while Air Force troop carriers are "taxi-ing" from Salisbury to Ndola transporting
more men..
Hitherto, the unrest has been confined to spasmodic attacks on Isolated buildings and the stoning of Europeans and oversetting of forries and motor-cara in the Luanshya area. In one instanco τη που attacked a mine power house and tried to smash the ma- chinery, but the European staff kept off the raiders until the building could be surrounded with a live electric cable, about which the natives knew enough to re- spect it,
The authorities view the trouble gravely, as it is known to be con- nected with the notorious "Watch- tower."
a secret sect of religious sown dissension among Rhodesian fanatics who for many years have natives. They wore originally connected with the Watchtower movement in America but broke away and adopted doctrinca of their own.
SELF-STYLED SAVIOUR
The year 1925 culminated in the Mwanalesa horrors when Mwana- leso, an unemployed native who styled himself Africa's saviour,
and preached advice to drive.out the Whites and seize Africa for the Africans, was responsible for 178 murders before he was cap- tured and semi-publicly executed in Broken Hill Gaol.
Again In 1932 a native was son- tenced to six months' imprison- ment at Lusaka for preaching op. pression by the Whites, and tell- ing his congregations that Ameri- can Negroes were coming over to free their brethren and slay all Europeans.
During the present trouble the police have arrested a native nt Luanshya in similar circum- stances, and it is known that the countryside has been broadcast with pamphlets ndvoenting the same doctrines:
the
It is fertile ground for "Watchtower" propaganda, for all natives over a vast area, where they are still semi-savage, firmly believe that Mwannless will re- turn one day and lead them to freedom, and thus it is easy to arouse fanatical mob who are Hable to cause serious trouble an- less quickly suppressed.
The Rhodesian strike has since been settled.-Ed.]
Our
to make good lost ground and organising the nation as a whole meet a threatening situation is
appointed, should be assisted in worth recapitulating, as it shows on a Defence basis would provide
his tasks of co-ordination by placing that valuable additions have been the Government. on whom final
under him a Joint Planning Com- made to the machinery at the 'dis« [decisions rest, with a Ministerial
mittee, which would allot to the posal of the Government Hiner Adviser who had studied Defence
Service Departments matters to be *pre-War days.
problems continuously and
worked out in detail, is also worth consideration as a development of First came the warning from the whole. That this would facilitate Foreign Oflee that, far from and expedite decision in times of extremes; and how many points of Ministers in charge of the separate
our present system.
Whatever modification of following our lead in disarmament, crisis can hardly be doubted. The friction would develop.
Service Departments cannot other nations
rearming, appointment would also give a
be present organisation may be adopt- Let us improve on our present free from blas is obvious, and toed, it is to be hoped that the as- Secondly, in the light of this
measure of permanence to the heatment of a pinister of Defence in personal contact with the pro-and its professional advisers will system if we can-and the appoint- have a Minister who would come sociation between the Government warning, the condition of our fentures of the present somewhat with a high status and with co- fessional heads of all the Services be drawn ever closer, for on their the Chiefs of the Staff Sub-Com- fortuitous arrangements, which ordinating and advisory functions and be capable of casessing with wholehearted and loyal co-opera- seems desirable, though to find one out bias the respective value of tion the efficiency of Defence de- with experience and with unblassed their opinions is all the more impends. A theoretically perfect and interests in Defence problems portant. might often be difficult. That
foolproof system Whether a Defence Minister, if expected.
enn hardly be
were
Defence Services was reviewed by
mittee of the C.I.D. in their annual have passed a fairly satisfactory report, which dealt with the de- teat. flelencies resulting from the Dis-
armament policy. Here we should' I suppose that Mr. Baldwin's in- note a new and valuable. machine vitation leaves open to discussion at work, which ensures the the more ambitious project of -systematic examination of the amalgamating the Service Depart- whole defence situation by the ex-ments into a single Defence port heads of the three Services as Ministry, but I did not understand -opposed to the pre-War methods, him to mean that the Government which lacked co-ordination. Third- contemplated such a course, for ly came the examination of the which at the moment we certainly Chlefs of the Staff's report by the are not ready, and which, if hurriedly adopted, would lead to parent body of the C.I.D.
dangerous confusion. Even if amalgamation were ever consider-
Then, on the advice of the C.I.D..ed practicable, an immense amount the Government called for a detail-of preliminary detailed investign- ed report from an ad hoc sub- committee of the C.I.D., formed by would obviously be necessary.
tion and training of personnel the Chiefs of the Staff, representa- an ideal it is not without its at- Ая tives of the Treasury and Foreign traction, but many ideals are un- Offee, and the Secretary of the attainable owing to the limitations C.I.D., thus obtaining a review of of human capacity and the situation in its military, finan-weaknesses.
cial, and diplomatic aspects. This, Incidentally, furnishes an example
of the elasticity of the 'C.L.D.'s
POINTS OF FRICTION
human
constitution. Finally, we see the When one considers that, in the report of this sub-committee re-existing organisation of the Fight- viewed exhaustively by a Minis- ing Services, it is by no means torial Committee which had been easy to ensure that the commanders appointed to study the Disarma and staffs, in whom control is ment question, and which was com- vested, should possess practical and posed mainly of the Ministerial up-to-date knowledge of the work members of the C.1.D., and pre- of the forces they directa dif- alded over by the Prime Minister ficulty which is always a source of or Mr. Baldwin: From its com friction-how much greater would position this Committes approach be the difficulty if unified control: ed its task of making definite of the Services wore pushed to
Mr. A. Ariyoshi, first Japanese Ambassador to China, profested his credentials in the Grant Ceremonial Hall at Nanking on Friday morning. Tha-caramony was witnessed by many Chiness and Japanese officials. The above photograph shows, Mr. Wang Ching-wal, President of Exavative Yuan and Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Lin San, President of the National Governmenty:Mr.”A. Ariyoshi, Japanese Ambassador; and Rear-Admiral O. Stato, Japanesa Naval Attacho
Something Children Often Forget.
Lituo children, absorbed in their games, often disregard! nature's call they are too young to understand the importance of immediata attention to such matters.
This neglect results in constipation, loss of appetite, indigestion, billousness, bad breath; the child becomes moody, fretful, feverish and generally out-of-sorts. When such is the case a dose of Baby's Own Tablets will usually quickly correct the trouble, relleve the congestion, and restore normal functioning and health.
Many of the aliments to which young children are subject have their origin in the stomach. If children are to thrive they must eat well, digest what they eal, and be unfailing in
Regularity of the Daily Habit.
They can only do so when the stomach and intestines are in perfect working order; Baby's Own Tablets ensure this.
The prescription of a British medical child-specialist, the tablets are pleasant in taste, a there is never any trouble in administering them. They are guaranteed absolutely pure, and equally suitable and safe for the youngest infunt in arma ns for children more advanced in life. An occasional dose, when needed, of this ideal medicine for the very young will keep your little ones happy and well.
Chemists everywhere sell
For Stomach and Teething Troubles,
BABYSOW!
Wise Parenis Keep Them Handy.
INTERESTING NEWS!
OUR SUMMER
SALE
WILL COMMENCE ON TUESDAY, 2ND JULY.
CLEARANCE BARGAINS IN EVERY DEPARTMENT:
WATCH FOR FURTHER DETAILS IN THIS PAPER
ON SATURDAY!
10
LANE, CRAWFORD, LTD.
EXCHANGE BUILDING,
THE
HONGKONG.
HONGKONG
PENINSULA HOTEL:
HONGKONG HOTEL; REPULSE BAY HOTEL; PEAK HOTEL
SHANGHAI
ASTOR HOUSE; PALACE HOTEL;
HOTELS
LIMITED.
In association with the Grand Hotel des Wagons Lito, Faking
Penang
The Scenic Gem of Malaya
Runnymede Hotel
Malaya's Premier Hotel
also under the same management THE CRAGHOTEL Penang Hill
(A health station) CABLES "RUNNYMEDE”. RUNNYMEDE HOTEL, LTD.
JUST OPPOSITE the Dairy- Farm's Soda Fountain.
The MING YUEN STUDIO has removed to the 3rd Floor of No. 6 Queen's Road Central