THE
ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD.
BY EVELYN WRENCH.
MR. CALVIN COOLIDGE'S accession to the office of President, as a result to Mr. Harding's death, has caused an entirely new political situation in the United States, and apparently one which is by no means unfavourable to the Republicans. Three weeks ago, as I indicated' in these notes, the political situation was, to say the least of it, obscure, and it was generally anticipated that Mr. Harding would have been defeated unless the unforeseen had occurred. But to-day, as the Washington correspondent of the Obseruer remarks, " with Mr. Coolidge now in the White House, the Republican Party has a clean slate and a new leader." The new " silent " President has had an extraordinarily favourable Press so far, and there seems every likelihood that he will be re-nominated in ten months' time. Should President Coolidge show any inclination to enter into " European entanglements " he would probably have to face the opposition of a section of his party under the leadership of Senator Hiram Johnson, the out-and-out " isolationist." The two most formidable candidates for the Democratic nomination appear to be Senator Oscar Underwood of Alabama and Mr. McAdoo. There remains the enigma of Henry Ford. Will he try for the Democratic nomination or will he emulate Mr. Roosevelt's attempt and appeal to the American people as a third party candidate ?
Nothing better illustrates the difference between the mental " complex " of the English-speaking peoples and that of the Latin races than their respective attitudes to the " colour " question, as all travellers throughout the British Empire, in North and South America and in the French Colonies are aware. Exactly why there is so little " colour " prejudice in France, for instance, is a subject which could not be dealt with adequately in these notes ; the fact remains that nothing surprises visitors to the French capital from the United States and the British Dominions more than the French attitude towards the whole subject.
During the present tourist season there have been a number of " episodes " ; American visitors have on several occasions protested against Black French citizens —it must be recollected that certain of the French colonies elect their own coloured deputies and send them to Parliament in Paris—frequenting public restaurants and places of amusement accompanied bywhite women. Last week a scene was caused by the expulsion from a night dancing establishment in Montmartre of two princes from Dahomey—one of France's West African dependencies. So bad has the situation become that the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement requesting foreign tourists to respect " our customs and our laws " should they find " men of colour from the French colonies sitting near them." It is doubtless the French attitude towards " colour " which makes it difficult for many Frenchmen to understand why so much fuss has been made concerning the utilization of black troops in Germany.
At the beginning of this week one of the last strong holds of the twelve-hour day capitulated, when eighthour shifts were introduced into the works of the United States Steel Corporation at Gary, Pittsburgh and elsewhere. Thus ends a controversy which has occupied public attention for many months in America. At a moment when the eight-hour is steadily winning its way in the United States the Trades Unions in New South Wales have been meeting and are making a number of demands on their State Legislature. Among them are a statutory 44-hour week for any industry ; a universal Saturday half-holiday ; annual holidays for all workers on full pay ; better protection for female workers, and the provision of proper lunch and rest rooms, and the protection of girls from doing a man's work for a woman's rate of pay.
Mr. Woodsworth, member for Central Winnipeg in the Canadian Parliament, has received, according to Reuter, an intimation from Mr. Arthur Henderson that it is proposed to hold a British Empire Labour Conference next year during the Exhibition. One of the anticipated results is the formation of 'a Labour political organization for the whole Empire. A gathering together and intermingling of the Labour men from all parts of the British Empire should be all to the good, and have the effect of broadening the outlook of those who attend.
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