A.—4

436

12th Day.] Concluding Speeches. [20 June, 1911. Sir WILFEID LAURIER,— cont. Mr. Harcourt has carried out to the absolute and most general satisfaction of all the members of the Conference. He has carried it out in a manner worthy of the great office to which you have only recently appointed him, and, I may add, in a manner quite worthy of the great name which he has the honour to bear, of the long line of ancestors which he now represents, who in their age and generation served the King in the councils of the nation, in the Church, and in the Army, and above all of them, the last of the race before him—his illustrious father, Sir William Vernon Harcourt—who, by the dignity of his character, by his great abilities, by his unfailing courage, and by his high sense of honour, has been in our own day the very embodiment of the best traditions of British Parliamentary life. It would afford us, and it does afford us, the greatest possible pleasure to proclaim, as we feel it, the deep sense of our appreciation of the many kindnesses and courtesies which we have received from His Majesty the King, from His Majesty's Government, from His Majesty's Opposition, and from the whole of the British people. Therefore, I beg to move, as the last act of this Conference, this resolution, which I have asked my friend, Sir Joseph Ward, he being, next to me, the oldest of the members of the Conference, to second : " The members of the Conference, representing the overseas Dominions, desire, before they separate, to convey to the Prime Minister and to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, their warm and sincere appreciation of the manner in which they have prepared, assisted in, and presided over the labours of the Conference, as well as of the many courtesies which they have received from them ; they desire also to put on record the deep sense of gratitude which they feel for the generous hospitality which has been extended to them by the Government and people of the United Kingdom." Sir JOSEPH WARD : Mr. Asquith, I want to say with what pleasure I support the motion which my friend, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, has just moved. No one could express in more suitable language what was intended to be conveyed on behalf of the whole of us than Sir Wilfrid Laurier has done. I would like to add that in my opinion the presidency of the Prime Minister, Mr. Asquith, at this Conference, devoting such an amount of time as he has to it, has added very greatly to the appreciation of the countries that we represent, in this recognition by the British Government that the first Minister of State should out of his very active and busy life devote such a large portion of his time in order to preside. I acknowledge, with Sir Wilfrid Laurier, how much we are indebted to the kindness, courtesy, and consideration of Mr. Asquith for the smooth running of the business of the Conference in the many aspects of the very important questions that have come before us. May I also be allowed to say how very highly we appreciate all that Mr. Harcourt has done for us, both officially and privately, and we will never forget how he has smoothed the way for us in the many important duties outside this Conference that have come our way, and which it would have been exceedingly difficult to fill had we not had the guiding hand and kindly advice and assistance of Mr. Harcourt, and, if I may be allowed to introduce it here, I do, with very great pleasure, say that his amiable wife, Mrs. Harcourt, has shared those responsibilities to an extent which we appreciate very greatly indeed. Mr. Harcourt has also from time to time in the absence of the President discharged the duties of Chairman in a most satisfactory manner. May I also, as one who has attended ten important Conferences of various kinds in my time, pay a tribute to Mr. Harcourt and to his staff for the care with which the preliminary work, so multifarious in its details, was prepared for the information of the members of this Conference. Speaking with a long experience of Conferences, I can say that I have never known the work to be so well prepared, and so ready for the consideration of the members of the Conference, so that it has been of infinite use to us in discussing the various matters that have come before us. I would for myself, and for the other members of the Conference, like to acknowledge how much we realise the great assistance which has been rendered to us in that respect, and Mr. Harcourt and his staff are to be highly complimented upon what they have done.