Part 13 (1/2)

Canada for the present rearrisoned with her own troops Halifax and Esqui no attention to the question

During the general elections which followed shortly after the Conference of 1907, neither Sir Wilfrid Laurier nor Mr Borden said one word about naval defence Nothing but a draive {302} the support necessary to enable either leader to take a decided stand

The Kaiser provided the crisis During 1908 and 1909 cries of alardoin of safety was being dangerously lessened, that the Mistress of the Seas had been challenged The British House of Cohts and the Admiralty continued to withdraw shi+ps from the ends of the earth and to concentrate the fleet in the North Sea

Since the eighties international affairs had shown increasing tension

In Europe the struggle for national freedom, which marked the previous era, had in many cases been perverted into an endeavour to impose one nation's will upon another Not only did France cherish the memory of Alsace-Lorraine; not only did Italy dream of her lost provinces; not only did the Balkan states plot to co out the Turk; but the Geryar the Slav, while Italy swelled with visions of the Eastern Mediterranean once more a Roman {303} lake, and Pan-German and Pan-Slav drew and re-drew the

But it was not in Europe alone that these nations sought expansion

The belief that ereatness, and that sea-poas thethe thirty years following 1880 France added three and a half million square miles to her colonial possessions, Germany a million, and Italy a quarter-million Even the United States was carried away by the current, and Great Britain, already the greatest of colonial powers, picked up nearly four ression stirred sleeping Asia, and japan gave proaht friction and often threatened war For years a conflict with Russia was believed inevitable in England Then France becah felt at fewer points, her rivalry was more serious A state with the ideals of ht of apower of industry and science at the disposal {304} of a ht,' and a military aristocracy which h control of school and press and arhbours Gerressive than those of the western democracies, and its methods were her ideals

True, the deround in Germany itself, while elsewhere the folly and waste ofunprecedented efforts towards peace But no way out was found

It was clearly ihbours armed to the teeth A few fitful efforts, in which Great Britain took an honourable part, to bring about a concerted halt ca

The world appeared convinced that the only statesroup of states to roup The war of armaments went on unchecked

Europe slept on a powder-mine

In every Dominion the new sense of peril stirred instant response If Britain's rivals had counted on the Do aloof in the hour of her need, or had held their {305} resources negligible, they were speedily awakened In Australia, in New Zealand, in South Africa, and in Canada, press and parliaer and the new determination to face it more effectively

At first the prospect in Canada of speedy and harave notice in the House of Commons of a resolution in favour of Canadian naval preparations, and the leaders of both parties eneral course to be followed Late in March 1909 Mr Foster moved his resolution and supported it with powerful and kindling eloquence He dwelt on the burden which Britain bore alone and the urgent need that Canada should take a ly the policy of a fixed annual contribution The certainty of constant friction over the amount, the s soht to do, the failure of such a plan to strike any roots, were fatal objections A Canadian Naval Service was the only possible solution, though for hiht as {306} a preliminary step Mr Borden emphasized the need of action, and advocated 'a Canadian naval force of our own' Sir Wilfrid Laurier declared that Canada ations of a daughter nation by rising to any sacrifice that ht be needed to maintain unimpaired the power of the British Empire, essential as it was not only for Canada's safety but for the civilization of the world As to the for stampeded into any spectacular policy inconsistent with the principle of self-govern a series of resolutions, which, with soested by Mr Borden, were unaninized the duty of Canada to assuth, declared that under existing constitutional relations money payments to the British Treasury would not be the most satisfactory solution, and expressed cordial approval of any expenditure necessary to promote a Canadian Naval Service to co-operate in close relation with the British Navy

During the summer a special Conference was held in London, attended by ministers fro the orthodox Adle navy, now recognized that other considerations had to be taken into account, and that 'room must be found for the expression of national senti the foundation of future Dominion navies to be maintained in different parts of the Empire, these forces would contribute immediately and materially to the requirements of Iratulated Australia and Canada 'on their achieve at last educated the Admiralty up to their own point of view' Unfortunately the convert was soon to backslide, but for the present hearty and ready aid was given in establishi+ng the Doreed to fore armoured cruiser, three unarmoured cruisers, six destroyers and three submarines, with auxiliary shi+ps Canada, not an island like Australia or Great Britain, had two seaboards to protect, ten thousand reeing that a second fleet unit in the Pacific would be desirable in the future, requested suggestions, which were given, for the expenditure, first, of {308} an equivalent and, second, of a lesser amount on two squadrons

When the Canadian parliament met in January 1910 Sir Wilfrid Laurier submitted the Naval Service Bill, which provided for the establish to the plan finally approved by the Admiralty The shi+ps were to be under the control of the Doency, place the parliament to ratify such action The bill was passed in March In the autumn the cruiser _Niobe_ (11,000 tons) and the _Rainbow_ (3600 tons), purchased from the Admiralty, reached Canadian waters, where they were to serve as training-shi+ps

Recruiting for these shi+ps was begun and, while not speedy, was reported by the department as satisfactory The Halifax and Esquie was opened at Halifax; and in May tenders were received, ranging from eleven to thirteen millions, from six British and Canadian firms, for the construction, in Canada, of four Bristol cruisers, one Boadicea cruiser, and six destroyers In June (1911), at the Ireement was reached as to the boundaries {309} of the Australian and Canadian stations The naval services of the two Dominions were to be 'exclusively under control of their respective governments'; but in time of war any fleet or shi+ps placed at the disposal of the British Governral part of the British fleet and re the continuance of the war' Training and discipline were to be generally uniforn at the stern as the sy of the Doht, the blocking of supplies by the Conservatives, and the general elections of Septe before any tender had been finally accepted

Long before this tiiven rise to bitter party controversy The unanimity of parliament in 1909 had not truly reflected the diversity of public opinion Mr Borden was not able to carry his party with hi provinces many Conservatives denounced a Canadian fleet as 'a tinpot navy,' useless, expensive, and separatist, and called for a gift of Dreadnoughts Mr Borden's lieutenant froainst either Canadian navy or contribution, unless approved by popular vote So, after a loyal attereee his position By attacking the Laurier navy as inadequate, and at the sa that no permanent policy should be adopted without an appeal to the people, he endeavoured to keep both wings of his party in line

The opposition in Quebec was strengthened by Mr Henri Bourassa and his following--'Nationalists' in sohtly labelled Colonialists or Provincialists They dealt a shrewd blow in defeating the Government candidate at a by-election held in November 1910 for Druh in all the other provinces the general elections of 1911 were fought on the issue of reciprocity, the navy was made the chief issue in Quebec

Conservatives for alliance with the Nationalists, who attacked the prilish imperialists, and pictured to the habitants the horrors of the _

A little over a year after his accession to {311} power in 1911, Sir Robert Borden brought down his naval proposals, providing for a gift or loan to Great Britain of three Dreadnoughts to ency, and promised to submit later on his permanent policy to the electorate What that permanent policy would be he did not reveal It was stated that the Governainst a Canadian navy, but the insistence upon the difficulty of building up a naval organization in Canada, and other remarks, made it appear that some plan of per body, was under conteorously opposed the proposals and adhered to the policy of a Canadian navy And, not to be outdone in bigness, he now advocated two fleet units After a prolonged discussion and determined obstruction by the Opposition, the Governh the Commons, only to see it rejected by the Senate on the e Ross, 'that this House is not justified in giving its assent to this bill until it is sube of policy was in part due to the activity of the first {312} lord of the Admiralty, Mr Winston Churchill Whether moved by his own impetuous temperament or by the advice of others, Mr Churchill threw overboard the M'Kenna memorandum, and endeavoured once more to revive the contribution policy He was not content with laying before the Canadian priic questions involved, and advising on ht to influence public opinion in the Dominions by word and act The memoranda sent at Sir Robert Borden's request in January 1913, e battleshi+ps in Canada--which was not proposed by the Opposition--and the difficulty of helping to h at the same time men were declared to be available for as hts, if contributed--were preceded by pressure on the Malay States to contribute a battleshi+p, and were followed by Mr Churchill's announcement of his intention to establish at Gibraltar an Imperial Squadron composed of Dominion shi+ps, under the Adested that a special Dominion Conference to discuss the matter should be held in Canada, New Zealand, or Australia, {313} the United Kingdom would not consent It was made emphatically clear that Mr Churchill was in favour of contribution, not as an eency but as a permanent policy It was his doubtless well- the principles by which imperial har else stirred up resentment in Canada

The dispute in Canada turned partly on constitutional, and partly on technical, naval considerations A Canadian navy was opposed by so to separation fro Canada in a share in ithout any corresponding share in foreign policy It was defended as the logical extension of the policy of self-government, which, in actual practice as opposed to pessi basis of imperial union The considerations involved have been briefly reviewed in an earlier section It need only be noted here that the constitutional problem was no more acute in December 1912 than in March 1909 Whatever the difficulties, they had been faced and accepted by all the other Dominions Australia was irretrievably and proudly committed to her {314} own navy--'His Majesty's Royal Australian Navy'; New Zealand announced her dissatisfaction with the original contribution policy; General Botha declared that South Africa would prefer 'a navy of our own' Not contribution therefore, but local navies, afforded the only basis of uniforhout the Empire Given this attitude on the part of all the Dominions, there was little question that foriven its due place and weight in settling common issues of policy

On the ence A Canadian navy was attacked by so run

Canada could not build up an adequate naval administration in half a century Inefficiency and jobbery would ement

The sea was one and the navy should be one; concentration at the supreer point, defence by attack, were the latest ed that what Australia had done Canada could do, and that the German navy itself had been built up in twenty years The sea was one, but it was tens of thousands of miles in width; {315} the trade routes required protection, and the coasts ainst sudden raids

Greater stress, however, was laid on the 'short-run' arguments That there was only one possible enemy, Germany; that ith her in a few years was inevitable; that when it came Great Britain's fleet would be overmatched, or perilously equalled, were the insistent contentions of one party That the Pacific required watching as well as the North Sea; that relations with Ger and war unlikely; that if war ca of that of France and Russia, would be overwheled, also, that the Canadian Governed by its acts, not its words Had it believed war ierous that its three Dreadnoughts were required, it would unquestionably have been too patriotic to think for a eneral election in 1913 to override the Senate

That is now ancient history The outbreak of the Great War threw the Canadian naval {316} question, along with sopot The te of the international situation after 1912 was followed by acute tension again, and this tiave way The rivalry of Teuton and Slav in the Balkans, where of late the balance had tilted against the Central Powers because of the defeat of their quasi-ally, Turkey, provided the setting The ave the occasion, and Germany set the fatal drama in motion What part was played in her decision by drea heer foes, what part by the desire of a challenged autocracy to turn the people from internal reform to external policy, will not be certain until the chancelleries of Europe have given up their secrets, if certain then; but, whatever the reed that had she willed she could have averted the fatal ending of those tense days of July 1914

When the intervention of the United Kingdom was made inevitable and practically unaniium, Canada never hesitated for a hts of the immediate issue {317} were clear; the whole world's liberty was plainly at stake; the struggle promised to task, if not to overtask, every resource of the mother country Sir Robert Borden acted promptly and effectively, and parliament when called in special session unaniest force that had ever crossed the Atlantic sailed to England, and throughout the war ten thousand upon ten thousand followed The Dominions surprised the world, and not least thereatness and effectiveness of the efforts made in the common cause At first, distance or over-confidence prevented a full grasp of the crisis by the general public, and even by the leaders of opinion; but, as tireatness of the issue deepened, resolution hardened, and the only measures of effort hat the crisis called for and what Canada could give