1936-05-25 — Page 11

HONG KONG DAILY

MANUFACTURE OF ARMS

Mr. Lloyd George's

Views

STATE MONOPOLY URGED

London, May 7. Mr. Lloyd George, M.P., gave evidence before the Royal Com- mission on the Private Manufacture of and Trading in Arms at a public sitting at the Middlesex Guildhall, Westminister, yester- day. He said that the Great War had taught us the importance of being ready for all contingencies to the extent of being in position to put all our manufacturing resources into operation as soon as war was declared, "When in 1914 It came to the need for Increasing our supply of munitions on an enormous scale," he said, "Private firms broke down completely."

Sir John Eldon Bankes presided the pinle which was created. He and there was a fair attendance of had no doubt at all that the in- the public. Dame Margaret Lloyd formation given to them as Min- George' and Miss Megan Lloyd, isters was also communicated to George, M.P.. were, seated immedi- į politicians outside and, to the Press. ately behind Mr. Lloyd George.

Mr. Lloyd George, before reading prepared starement of evidelice. said that he was in full agreement with the view that the manufac... ture of arms ought to be a Govern- ment monopoly.

From all he heard the armament interests in France were just as tictive on, the same lines to-day. although the methods they adopted were even more pernicious. To

what extent German armament in- terests influenced German opinion he had no information, but he had no doubt they were equally mis.

In his statement, he dealt Arst with political reasons for forbiding private manufacture of arms. Itchievous there. would, he sald, avoid the creation Coming to practical reasons from of powerful vested interests whose the point of view of the efficiency prosperity depended on war and of national defence why the pres- preparations for war. The enor-ent system was a bad one, he said mous, Increase, amounting to tens of there must always be a minimum millions in a few weeks in the value of armaments below which it was of the properties of the armament not safe for us to sink in an armed firms in this country, on the In-¦ world.

It. they under-insured. timation of a programme of rear, they were taking "unjustifiable mament on a great scale by the risk in an incalculable inter Government, was in itself a starti. | national situation, a situation Ing demonstration of this peril which, judged from reports in the These concerns were no longer the Press, was aggravated by the fact property of a limited number of that peace was disturbed by the partners; but thousands, maybe capable and defended by the feeble- scores of thousands, of shareholders minded. On the other hand. spread all over the country either they over-insured they were incur- held or dealt in their shares. Rear-

Fring unnecessary expenditure mament doubled the value of the 'which was unproductive in so far holding of every shareholder, Disas it was not essential to protection armament would either halve it or and they were also provoking a reduce it to nothing. It was not a competition in armaments which healthy state of things when a led to fresh, expenditure and en- large, and on the whole, influential body of men, scattered all over the kingdom, should have a direct pecuniary interest in war or agita- tions which led to war.

17

dangered universal peace. But past experience demonstrated that they could not altogether rule cut of ac- count sinister contingencies, how ever improbable they might be at the time. In 1914 tew-anticipated a world war, He could not recall we should have to send an army of one who ever thought it possible several millions across the seas" to fight in three Continents. We levi- ed and trained mililons of men, but they were not fully equipped for battle for nearly two years.

THE DREADNOUGHT "PANIC"

There was a good deal of direct. and even more indirect propaganda conducted by these enterprises., Sometimes it took the subtle form of inculcating the horrors of war with suggestions that people must prepare

to protect themselves against them. It more often took

The War had taught them the the form of an exaggeration of pre- importance of being ready for all parations made by other countries.

contingencies to the extent to be in with more than a hint that they were directed against our security resources into operation as soon as a position to put all manufacturing The pre-1914 Government had an

war declared. When they conten- "Ulustration of the latter method.

plated the possibility of another They would remember the dread-

great war, what mattered most nought panic. The naval program- were the facilities for speedy ex- me of Germany was exaggerated pansion on the most effective lines. in the press and on the platform. Here nationalization of armaments There was an exaggeration as to

had an enormous advantage over the number of ships being built a system of private firms. When and the size of the guns, The ad- in 1914 It came to the need for in- vice given, the Cabinet as to the creasing the supply of munitions Importance of small craft rather

on an enormous scale, than monster ships was deprecated. firms broke down completely. And private There

great agitation in in war, time was often decisive. If this country for an immense pro-war came there should be no delay gramme for the building of huge beyond what was invitable in the battleships and battle cruisers. The provision of all the necessary equip Cabinet was divided about the needment for carrying it on effectively. for building so many of these costly ships because some of them took the view, held by so many ad- mirals, that what we stood most in need of was small craft.

was

CAUSES OF DELAY "What," he asked, "were the principal causes of the delay in the Great War? 1 Designs, pat- terns, and specifications of essen- cials were not ready: (2) oven when the designs were there we had not sufficient gauges for ac- curate manufacture. and that alone accounted for months of all important. Shortage of gauges

delay: (3) we had no survey of the available machine tools in this country, and, if we had, here was

9

A Cabinet Committee was ap- pointed to investigate all the facts with regard, to German shipbuild- ing and German guns. The arma- ment Arms tendered evidence in their possession, based on secret information which they had re- ceived all of the most alarmist character. They had already pass- ed it on to the Admiralty. This demonstrated that the Germans nothing like a sufficient number

to meet the demand. They took months to manufacture even with the aid of America."

were laying down ships consider- ably in excess of their "*published. statutory naval plan. There was no doubt that this evidence con-

"I am blaming no one," Mr. siderably influenced the Cabinet, Lloyd George's statement continu- It turned out to be completely

ed. "No one had contemplated a Inaccurate, but it diverted the Ad- war in which we would be called upon to play so vast a part. Had we possessed such a organization

miralty from the building of the small craft essential for our com-

gest of big ships. There was much more profit in the building of these gigantic ships with their guns. A torpedo boat destroyer would only cost about 1-20th of a battleship.

monster

1

end

stant research and experiment. The question may be asked: Why cannot private dima prepare de- signs: pasterns, and specifications, and engage

research elaborate experiments just as well as the State? One reason is that it would land them in expenditure on a great scale with only pro blematical commercial resulta It is only a war or a war panic that would pay them for efforts which alone would in practice prove èqua: to the heed. They are trading concerns for prof The State has ᏝᏅ Lake precautions for con- angencies that it is doing its best to avert and to preven: from ever arsing without reference to trad- ing profits."

com-

PRESS MONDAY, MAY 25, 1936.

PASSENGERS

ARRIVAL

ATSUTA MARU

ar-

The following passengers rived here yesterday, by the Atsuta Maru from Melbourne:-

Mrs. Catherine Balley, Mr. Ernst G. Guthrie. Miss Margaret Guthrie, Mr. Albert L. Maloney, Mr. Donald L. Mathews, Mrs. Theresa' O'Cal- laghan, Mrs. Mary Western.

·

DEPARTURE

"

S.S. PRESIDENT VAN BUREN

The Yollowing passengers left Hong

Kong

on Saturday for Victoria and Seattle via Ports by the s.s. President Jackson:----

Mrs. J. W. Fisher, Mr.

1

OVER BRITISH

ISLES

Airship's Homeward Voyage

TRIBUTE TO DEAD DROPPED

London, May 23. The German airship Hindenburg appeared over the, British Isles last night on her return "trans- Atlantic journey from 'Lakehurst to Frankfurt. She was first seen over Ulster at about six o'clock inst night and later several English towns had a good view of the air- ship.

A parcel was dropped from the airship as she passed low over

contain a bouquet of carnations scouts picked it up and found it to Keighley. Yorkshire. Two boy

and silver cross with a letter from a German priest asking that the cross and flowers be placed on the grave of his brother. a German of war at Keighley. officer who died while a prisoner

The boys went to Morton Banks Cemetery. about two miles from Keighley, where about 20 German prisoners were buried during the war, and placed the tributes on the grave.- British Wireless.

With regard to the case of ex- periments. Mr. Loyd George re- ferred to tanks, and said that in

Mr. LH. Gourley, Sr Hugh the final stages of the War they Miss E Blunde, Mrs. E. Austrian, Stephenson. Comdr. T. A. Hussey, played almost as great a part in Mrs. E W. Wile. Mrs. G. Cullen, ensuring victory as any other Dr. and weapon. Those used in 1918 were Mrs. C. J. Spiker, Mr. B. L. Tsal,

Mrs. S. Berman Friend. | a wonderful invention. but they Mrs. W. Western Mrs. W. L. Ma. were crude and clumsy in

Miss C. Best, Mr. T. T. Chang, Mr. parison with their

successors of Benito H Lopes. Mr. Abdul Azim, to-day. The casualties among the Mr and machines r. 1918 were exceptional- Fong York Sang. Mr. Chas. A ly heavy. At the famous battle of Gunn, Mr. J. C. Wu, Mr. and Mrs. August 8, 1918. 60 per cent. Di M. S. Pang, Miss Peng. Mr. T. P. them were pus out of action and Hwang. Mr. Seto Ka. Mr. anti-tank devices had then hardly Jackson. Mr. Thomas Jung. Mr. J. S. had time to develop. Constant experimentation was

A. L Gach. Mr. C. D. Stamp. Lady essential if stephenson, Miss P. Blundell, Mr. they were ultimately to work up and Mrs. Arthur M. Sidebottom. 3 machine that would overcome

VIGIL IN THE AIR Mrs. E. Stonehill. Mr. Denton E. traps or anti-tank guns and other Fox, Mr. N. B. Faranja, Mr. F. J.

Berlin, May 23. The airship Hindenberg landed these experiments, large tracts of Mr. counter-measures To carry out Sullivan. Master Richard J. Spiker, this morning after her second land of every kind and conforma-Lafrenz, Miss Candida Morene, Mr. She

A J. Percival" Miss Irma Voyage from the United States. tion must be available. It would W. K. Ho.. M. Mabel Y. Chan, hau

forty four and a half not be possible for private firms Mr. Mohammed A. A. Siddiqi. Miss the

.r the trip, but remained in to, command sizable and suitable Sheridan. Master J. R. Fisher, Jr., hours waiting for dawn before over the airport for four

Gann, Mr. S. 8. Chu Kort, Master Beuter'e Bulletin Seruico,. Mr. Fong Foo Yul. Mrs. Chas A. landing.

Pang, Miss Betty Ny. Mr. Gokson, Mr. S. M. Tayob, Mr. C. Hung. Mr. H G. Rodine. Mrs. Koren Lund.

terrain.

equipped with the necessary powers --and, where necessary, the capita: -to provide the necessary ground for experimenting.

The Government were

LABOUR DIFFICULTIES

For

war ensued and expansion became necessary, there were serious labour difficulties to over- come when manufacture was in che hands of private Arms. LA dilution of skilled Labour with unskilled. and the training of unskilled men and women expansion of product.on on a great scale the number of skilled workers was quite inadequate. There muse heretore bé in the unfortunate event of war, a dilution of skied with the unskilled and a training of men and women for jobs hitherto undertaken craftsmen organized into powerful! by skilled

unions. During the War the' unions were prepared to suspend: their priv.leges for the country's needs, but they were most reluc- tant to make the same concession to private firms whose profits were swollen by the transactions. He would not pass any comment on their attitude. There was much to be said for it. But he was stating a fact with which they had to deal in the Great War. The adjust- men: occupied a great of valuable time and gave recurrent trouble.

America was an admirable Mus- tration of the system of private. The manufacture of munitions was manufacaire in the event of war.

left largely in the hands of private firms. After 18 months of war the Americans had no guns, heavy or

planes only came in two or three light, of their own, and their aero-

months before the Armistice. And yet

D

America was the greates: manufactur.ng country in the world. They wasted their time on devising new patterns which could have been instituted and perfected without very much cost by State arsenals before the War and could have been put in mmediately after war began and turned out in great numbers, had the specifica-

broke down in the War. tion been ready.

Private manufacture completely Orders were given and accepted, but not. fulfilled. It was ↑ In meritable story of failure. Dr. Addison had Even the figures of the promises and performances of the first few months of the War. No one who perused them would fail to realize why we were not only umable for nearly two years to make any at- tack upon the German trenches without appalling losses due to lack of artillery and high explo-

to defend themselves in their own trenches

merce into constructing the big- as Sir Eric Geddes indicates to sives, but our troops had not

his evidence, if our designs, pat- enough ammunition terns and specifications had been prepared." ready to hand it to the by retaliating upon the enemy's producers, we should have saved guns.

THE CASE OF RUSSIA several months not far from a year. You may say that it would "While promises of this kind Involve heavy expenditure at peace were given to us, heedless of any time. Not at all For a few hun reckoning as to the possibility of dred thousands it is wonderful executing them," Mr. Lloyd. what you could accomplish on George's statement these lines. These essent al pre- "similar undertakings were given minaries did not cost us much in to the Russians, with even worse money-not directly. But their results, Enormous orders for every absence, cos: us immense sums End of ammunition were booked and many hundreds of thousands by Russia with our of, casualties. All the important question of design involves con-

"INSIDIOUS PROPAGANDA”. This kind of propaganda was very insidious. The public had no protection against. In the case he quoted the public. did not even know that the information on which we proceeded was largely, if not entirely, supplied by repre- sentatives from armament arms who were pecuniarily interested in

went

on,

armament

¡Continued on Page 12)

A.

AIRSHIP'S VOYAGE

"Hong Kong Dally Press" Special)

Hamburg. May 22 The airship "Hindenburg." on return flight from Lakehurst new over the northern coast of Ireland at 5 o'clock on. Friday Afternoon The ar liner is ex- pected to reach Its home port,

The following passengers left Hong Kong for New York Mar- se lles and Round-the-World on board the "President Van Buren. Miss Paz Lopez. Mr. H. M. W. Lewis, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ing- versen, Mrs. H. M. W. Lewis. Mr. J. S. S. Carmichael. Mrs. Jennie Frankfurt, at about midnight.- May Higgis.

Transocean News Servier.

Insist on

Gordon's

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OCSILLS MY LONDON

THE

GIN

"

THAT MADE THE COCKTAIL FAMOUS

The heart of a good cocktail.

11

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