Sept. 1.
To Rotarians yesterday Lord Marley, good-naturedly and tem-berately laid bare his political Soul. In the process he endea-Voured to convince his audience and, through it, authority outside that the "Anti-War Con-Press" is an organisation which, although catholic in its composition to the point of welcome ing communists as well as exponents of other opinions, might Properly be allowed to confer publicly in China. Few will be disposed to quarrel with Lord Marley's eloquent and logical demonstration of the futility of war, of the basic economic of its origin and of the inevitable losses inflicted by it on humanity. Nor is it necessary to refute some of the superficialities of Lord Marley's description of modern Western democracies, tied to the chariot magnates. and plunging blindly Wheels of capitalist newspaper
into war at the bidding of those creators of public opinion by mass production and suggestion, that. the Congress has its genesis in a movement of the latter stages of the Great War. It has selected China as its meeting-ground for 1933 cause its promoters believe that China is the danger spot of the world, On China the economic rivalries of the nations are discerned to be concentrating as the one remaining "free" market for the absorption of their products. Consequently the "Anti-war Congress" fs to be convened here in order to instruct the workers of China in the evils with which they are so gravely menaced. Lord Marley indicated that the movement had at its command notable writers and dramatists and was, therefore, able to put up some sort of resistance to the powerful "imperialism" of the press. He could not mention the names of supporters of the "Anti-War Congress" as he felt that recent arrests against which strongly protested showed that by such revelation he might endangering the liberty of Lord Marley's sense of logic seems to break down as soon a8 this point ig teache it unreasonable to maintain that an organisation which chief sponsor here cannot be more specific in describing hag but slender claim to the hospitality of a world-city like Shanghai with its complexity of administrations' and its variety of Trating the dense minds of the a population? Despairing of pene-
capitalist-dragooned newspaper readers of the West, the Anti-War Congress seeks the support of the more discriminating masses of China, And it brings that international gospel to this country without being able to cite the authority of a single government in establishment of its bona fides, unless deductions are drawn from the scenes at the welcome to Lord Marley when banners acclaiming the Soviet Government asthe real friend of China were freely displayed by his proteges. Lord Marley's well-turned phrases did not disguise the fact that he and his friends are proposing to follow the well-worn track of mass agitation. Before the Rotary Club it' might be propriate that the implications of movement should be discussed. No-one could seriously pretend that such a problem would be expoundable to the wider but less ratified audience except, in generalities leading to fantastic misapprehension. Lord Marley definitely based his mission on the theory that the "workera"—by which presumably he meant the mass suffered most from war therefore should be inspired to resist it. The theory is arguable unless misery is judged solely on a quantitative basis. "Even then it leaves out of count the undoubted fact that profiteers—no less than sufferers—in wartime are to be found among the Trade Unions as well as among the Capitalists. It shows, however that in accepting Communist cotion—the chief evidence of local, support hitherto available rd Marley may, unconsciously perhaps, be drawn into Communist technique.
With Lord Marley's view that Communist help is not necessarily to be rejected there may normally be no desire to quarrel, Conditions here supply cogent reasons for extreme caution in encouraging such an attitude, The so-called Communist Party of China, as local records show, has been' associated with a wide: spread conspiracy to overthrow the Government in the interior of China, It has in Shanghai comprised a terrorist organise tion which has been responsible for a series of ghastly murders—notably those of the eleven vic 3s of the assassination gang discovered in November, 1931. Moreover only the vigilance and courage of the Police of all three municipal administrations prevented the success of a conspiracy to murder foreigners and Chinese in this country on a grand scale. Faced with the always difficult task of protecting itself against murderous sub-ver sive agitations and of safeguarding the lives of its law-abiding citizens, the Chinese Government cannot treat Com: munism in the academic vein, It cannot rid itself of the respon: bility of taking preventive measures When such perils are in sight. the local support of the "Anti-War Congress" has been virtually Communist in character. "It has held out its hand to' Lord Marley's asso-clates who, according to the views put Defore Rotarians yesterday, are definitely in pursuit of mass-leadership in. circumstances likely to be exceedingly favourable to Communist orxanisers. The Chinese authorities have made arrests and retained eleven of the twenty-eight 8 pects. They are not disposed, apparently, to give the "Ai War Congress" a place of meeting. That is the practical issue. 'The other municipal administrations, realising as they do the value of collaboration with the Chinese authorities and, move over the obligations of courtesy to the Government, cannot but take a like attitude.' Beside such considerations which bear on the security and calm of this international City, Lord Marley's interesting elevations of his political and mental vicissitudes are plainly irrelevant.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.