73

A.—s

Now, the suggestion made by General Botha appeared to me to be bound up with the proposal which some of us have been recommending. Our idea was that the Prime Ministers at the head of the various Governments would act through their Agents-General in making such representations as they chose through such a secretariat. If it had been a joint department, and a joint secretariat, such as that I have been describing, to which we all contributed, and in regard to which we had some voice as to the selection of officers, the Agents-General would have had the utmost freedom, the fullest right and title to enter the office to communicate with it and use it when representing their Prime Ministers. Both they and it would be agencies of their Governments. For that reason I cordially support the practical suggestion made by General Botha, which I have no doubt will be given effect to whatever the decision as to the secretariat may be, though it would have been expressly• provided for if our idea had been accepted. Even when this proposed secretariat, instead of being a joint body, is to be part of your Colonial Office under your direct control, there will be an open eommunidation from the various Governments through their Agents-General. CHAIRMAN: I said so. Mr. DEAKIN : Exactly. Our suggestion was based on the assumption that it would be so. In the same way, the question put by the Premier of Natal is also answered. Our proposition implies the widest and completest freedom on the part of any Prime Minister to propose matters for investigation and preparation by the secretariat. On that, also, I have no doubt he will receive a satisfactory assurance from his Lordship. In addition, it is plain that the answer to his question was also supplied by the proposition we have been submitting, which would have given every right and title to obtain every kind of information. I may be pardoned, perhaps, for making these comments before replying to the inquiry put by our senior member, Sir Wilfrid Laurier. I have taken out a list of the resolutions passed at previous Conferences, some of which appear to have been pursued a short way, and one or two of which I think have been scarcely pursued at all. If such a secretariat as we proposed had been in existence, when any resolution was arrived at by any Conference in relation to a particular subject the duty of that secretariat would have been to bring that matter to the notice of all the departments concerned-- the Board of Trade, the Admiralty, or whatever branches of the British Government might be affected— and also to communicate with the several Colonial Governments affected, either to ask them for information or to present them with the information it had collected. The duty of the secretariat would be to take care that a resolution should not remain a dead letter, but should be followed up to its fullest extent. Any Prime Minister who was not satisfied with what was done would communicate, either with the Prime Minister who started it, or those who agreed with it, and would again apply to the secretariat contending that certain information supnlied was defective, or that certain action indicated or requested had not been followed. He would say that his Government would take action or declined to take it, as the case might be, and he would ask to be informed if other Governments had acted upon it. or not. The secretariat ought to do whatever is necessary to keep the resolutions alive until they were finally disposed of to the satisfaction of all Governments concerned. Sir WTLFRTD LAURIER : T am quite satisfied with that reply as to the meaning of the words T asked about.

11—A 5.

Third Day. IS April 1907.

Future Constitution of the Conference. (Mr. Deakin.)