PRESS CONFERENCE.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2548, 8 July 1909, Page 3

PRESS CONFERENCE.

THE OPENING SESSION. , A STRIKING GATHERING. TTnitki> Press Association—copyright SYDNEY, July 7. ; The “Sydney Telegraph” publishes an interesting account from its special •correspondent of tho opening session of the ' Press Conference. Tho writer says: “It was a striking gathering, called for memorable reasons, at a portentious time, held at .a place of great associations. Here at last was Downing Street, the home of splendid, dreams, m'credible misconceptions and mismanagement, but still unrivalled achievements Every editor present had tilted it, ridi - culed its importance, condemned its lollies, torn it to shreds. Here, too, was its director for the moment, Lord Crewe, with courteousness, hailing, and bidding them welcome, inviting them to stand up to him and say their worst. It was a strange, significant meeting, which will surely make history. Both sides were painfully self-conscious. Lord Crewe halted and. halted, threatened repeatedly to die entirely in the middle sentence. He. realised to the full the critical nature of affairs in the sense that it was a bad start for the Mother Country to have to put up Lbrd Crewe, and perhaps his weak’opening will go "far to convince all Governments of the fact so nobly appreciated by Mr Chamberlain, that the colonies are the strong end of the Empire of the very near future, and worthy of the. administrative talent, not of one of the weakest, but of one of the greatest men any Ministry can command. Not that Lord Crewe strikes one as a weak man, but he is far from brilliant; not the sort of man to consolidate the Empire. He stumbled along, saying things which read much better than they sounded, and set the conference open and on its legs. But he had failed to sparkle it as the occasion demanded, and matters on the first day went heavily. After welcoming the remaining delegates to their surroundings, Lerd Crewe got to business by declaring that he thought cable facilities should be placed first. There were countless prescriptions for bringing the various parts of the Empire closer, yet whatever their form, cheap communication lay behind them all. What the Empire wanted next, almost above all other things, was the increase of what in private life we should call ease and intimacy. Important as frequent communication between the Mother Country and oversea dominions was, intercommunication between the various dominions was equally important. In liis opinion, the Empire was not really united until the average citizen of Australia was in a position to learn easily all about the development of our great protectorates, such as the two Nigerias, and from the point of view of the British Government that absence of easy communication had its serious side. It was extremely difficult as matters now stood for really accurate accounts of what was said or done here or overseas to be reported at once all over the Empire. After discussing the limitation ofcodes and their liability to break down on great occasions, lie referred to the Pacific cable. In a technical sense it did not pay, but they worei certainly not going to forget in its favor that it both instituted and caused elsewhere a) very substantial reduction of rates. Touching on the question of press messages, with incidental mention of the large increase’ when a cricket team is ’touring, lie decla , ’ , 'd that though lie would be very sorry to see the number, of words devoted to reports of inter-im-perial cricket diminished by one., he would be very glad to sec words on subjects of even more serious importance multiplied by many hundreds; even thousands. Mr Kyffin Thomas, in-thanking Lord Crewe for the welcome, justified the newspapers in the remote parts of the Empire. They spared no Expense in obtaining news of matters of great importance, and it would be given in a much more extended way if rates were cheaper. He defended the cablegrams from i any extensive coloring to suit party purposes. In his long experience of Australia he had never been able, to discover any such prepossession to be shown, whatever the politics of the paper which interpreted the cables. Mr Reid, Indian delegate, in moving the first resolution in favor of cheaper and improved cable service/ painted an amusing. picture of mutilation by the Indian cable. Journalists in India never dared express an opinion on a cablegram, because it was practically certain t<frequire a correction when fuller news came. J Lord - Rosebery had asked tho Indian delegates to give some •guidance to democracy in ‘dealing with India, but how could they guicle a democracy in regard to Indian affairs with cables at a shilling a word? Mr Sydney Buxton, in a happy speech, cleared Australia of Lord Crewe’s reproach about the cables on cricket.- A large number of. messages were devoted to cricket, but that was clue not only to its prodigious popularity but to fact that an important message on cricket would go into very brief space. If the Prime Minister made a speech about a Dreadnought it could riot be condensed in the same way as information about Trumper getting 100 runs. The British post office had, shown its sympathy in regard to flie cables. That sympathy had been on a . i:; ; ■ ■ i ■ :

cash basis. He was inclined to think that as regards the British press the post office had been rather too liberal, because it carried their'goods at a loss. He concluded by foreshadowing a reduction of rates. A general discussion on Mr Reid’s motion followed. Mr Austen Chamberlain had a great reception when he mentioned the name of his father. The cheering lasted several minutes. In the course of his speech Mr Austen Chamberlain dwelt on the necessity for co-operation in instructing the public throughout the Empire by all Government cables and existing cable companies. He hoped that whatever Avas decided the cable companies which had been the pioneers of the Avorlc AA’ould not be ungenerously treated, but the cable companies must make up their minds that times were changing and fresh needs rising, and that it Avould be Avell to study to meet neAv necessities. The first day ended Avitli the. appointment of a committee to evolve a definite proposal. THE SECOND DAY. The second day’s proceedings of tho Press Conference were presided over by Mr McKenna, First Lord of the Admiralty, who, in opening, said that it AA-as only from a defensive point of view Ave ever consider ourselves in relation to other . nations. “The great object in the maintenance of the Navy,” he said, “is to keep open the highroad of the seas. So long as we can keep that highroad open our difficulties of mutual defence and mutual assistance in common defence are not so great as those AA’hich years ago confronted the Government of any great European country Avliich had the problem of local transport to encounter. The remotest dominion is nearer to British shores to-day than the North of France. Avas to the South of France a century ago. Dealing with local differences in regard to the defence schemes of the various dominions, we. recognise that in the development of the naval idea in every dominion it is essential tho mainspring should come from the dominion itself. We cannot force our strategical ideas upon you. We will assist in every \A-ay in our poAA’er, Avliate\ r er be the method by which Ave are asked to assist. We are sure that in the long run this process of self-development of every dominion avDI come ultimately to tho same conclusion, that all the problems of defence are one and the same the. Avhole Avorld over, and that tho. maintenance of supremacy at sea means the maintenance, of supremacy in all seas alike.” SIR EDWARD GREY’S’ SPEECH. (Received July 7, 5.20 p.m.) SYDNEY, July 7. The special correspondent of the “Daily Telegraph” refers to Sir Edr ward Grey’s speech, on the second day of the Press Conference, as a most tactful deliverance. Touching the ■question of press criticism, the Foreign Secretary said: “Within the Empire let our criticism of each other be always that criticism which makes clear that it takes no pleasure in finding fault. T AA’Ould deprecate very much any idea that the. Foreign Office is more ready to compromise with foreign countries ’Avhere the interests of the colonies are concerned, though iioav and again, the ’self-governing dominions beyond the seas may think that, in some settlement With foreign countries, the British Foreign Office has not been stiff enough in upholding British interests. If Ave Avere 'to exert our poAver to the extreme .jettor and once hold that Ave ought to get 'everything AA’hich we claim, the. BiitLh Empire would become impossible. Ido not mean for a moment that Ave should give up what Ave have got; you will find in every part of the AA’orld, that oui interests are so great that aa hen any changes are in .prospect avc are to have ’the greatest share.”