Elizabeth Ii

The Mission Of Queen

A CRISIS in human affairs, as well 1 as a very great event in the history of the British Empire, 5 marked by the arrival in the louth Pacific of our lovely and very ivable Queen, Elizabeth II of Eng md. , . * All the West European nations ave contributed much to the estab shment of the way of life which e call “Western Civilisation”; but le major contribution probably has ime from the British Isles. The inception of individual freedom, ommon Law, government by a arliamentary system based on one un-one-vote these things, hich have spread across the world i the forefront of Western civilisa on, are peculiarly British institu ans.

It is so huge, elaborate, complex, is structure we call Western Civi ;ation, that few can trace its his ry or see its design. Yet both are sar. They are based on the con ation that, whilst no two men are rn equal in quality, all men are titled equally to individual free m and opportunity. That is fun mental.

Western Civilisation was created d developed to serve the indivi al. The price of individualism is iustry, thrift, strict justice for e common man in every phase of man relations, and especially lss relations. While that prin ce was observed, Western civili an guided and ruled the world

and humanity as a whole made rapid progress towards higher stan dards of living.

GRADUALLY, under the growing complexities of life, individuals and classes lost their sense of moral obligation. The freedom of the individual has been sacrificed to the interests of sections and classes. Powerful groups prey upon weaker groups. The one-man-one vote system of government has been destroyed, because Parliaments no longer function as originally planned, as the direct representa tive of the common man their authority has been usurped by party organisations of ruthless power

Sectionalism, attended frequently

by corruption, increasingly domin ates most of the administrations based on the electoral system. The common man, bewildered and re sentful, knows not where to turn S , s °, me res P ects » the “Western World is like a mad house.

Upon this scene, to make confus ion more confounded, there have entered two new factors of grim significance the extraordinarily rapid rise of the world’s other two great races (the sophisticated Asiatics and the primitive Africans) to nationalism; and a cold-blooded conspiracy by a section of the Euro pean nations to substitute for the apparently discredited Parliamen tary system, which is based on in dividual freedom, a system of Total itarianism, in which the organised

State is supreme and the individual has no rights at all.

The Western European structure is not yet doomed; but it is now severely shaken. Unless it develops within itself a moral resurgence, so that greed, corruption and section alism can be thrust out of govern ment, and the protection of indi vidual freedom restored, the West ern European system will collapse, the horrors of Communism and inter-racial struggle will take its place, and humanity will suffer an other Dark Age, WESTERN EUROPE’S hope now lies in the English-speaking world. A combination of the British Commonwealth and the United States can save our civilisa tion But the call is for clear thinking, self-sacrificing leader ship, unity, and a merciless attack upon the evils which have cor rupted and partially destroyed our people’s faith in our governmental system evils like greed, nepotism, incompetence, dishonesty, and every form of corrupt sectionalism.

Above all, we need unity. We can save ourselves if we will forget internal dissensions and selfish class struggles, and stand together.

United, the “Empire on which the sun never sets” still can give secur ity and inspiration to the Western nations, in a world of terrifying politico-economic confusion.

British leaders are making a mighty effort to stop the social rot which has crept upon us in the stresses and exhaustion of two wars.

There have been many signs in the past year that British prestige is being restored, despite Red plot tings and the disconcerting racial

furies of blindly-developing nat ionalism.

But the unity of the British Com monwealth is vital.

And the first and chief purpose of the visit to us of our young Queen (the very first visit of a Brit ish monarch to the British coun tries of the South Pacific) is to seek our loyalty to remind us that to-day, as never before in our his tory, united we shall stand, divided we shall surely fall.