ALLIANCES OR COLLECTIVE SECURITY ?
SIR,—Mr. J. A. Spender in his reply to Sir Norman Angell does not quite put the point which has long troubled me. At various crises prominent men have reprimanded us (the British people and Government) for not helping the victim of the time. I remember the Archbishop of York as one of these. In old days we befriended Greece, Italy and the South American States, because we felt so inclined. We got Allies, if we could ; but if we could not, we acted alone. Now the collective security principle cuts both ways. Not only were we bound by the League of Nations to act against an evil- doer if the League so decided, but we were also bound not to act against an evil-doer unless the other States joined in such action. Our old liberty was gone and with it our old moral responsibility. Some get out of the difficulty by talking about our duty to give a lead. It is easy to save face by
eloquent speeches; but is that the way to get things done? Was not the British Government bound to its own people not to act alone or without at least a preponderance of Allies?— Yours faithfully, F. GATES. Cade House, Heath field, Sussex.
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