The British Empire

Mr. President and Gentlemen

Before I left England I read an article 'n The Spectator on the "Wicked habit" in Englishmen of self-depreciation, and especially in self-depreciation of the Empire, and the editor in a note said that this article was inspired by _a letter from some good Canadian, who had given him a fairly bad half hour by a letter inserted in the journal on this subject. Now, when I read that, I thought it might not be amiss for me to do a little boasting in Canada. It is good for us sometimes to brag a bit, and pray the prayer of the old Scotch woman, that the Lord "wud gi'e us a guid conceit o' oorsel's."

I am sometimes inclined to think we do too little cockcrowing. It would have a moral effect and be of material benefit to the Empire, as well as to the persons who seem to depreciate the British Empire. The first question I was asked by a newspaper reporter when I arrived in one of your cities was: "Well, I suppose the Old Country is doddering along as usual!" My feelings can better be imagined than described.

I want to speak first of the growth of the British Empire. We can hardly realize the extent of its recent growth. When Henry VIII died the only British possession was Calais, and we did not hold that long after his death. When Mary came to the Throne, Calais passed out of the hands of the British people. It was not until the reign of Elizabeth that we began to acquire any part of our present Empire. The reign of Elizabeth, as you know, was one which produced not only great men of letters, but great sea captains--those courageous adventurers who sailed far-off seas and planted the British flag upon alien soil and among new peoples. And yet, even with those acquisitions the Empire was very small indeed, and it was not until one hundred years ago that we really began to move towards the mighty possessions now held under our sovereignty. When we read that at the present time we possess one-fourth of the habitable globe and rule over one-third of the population of the world, we begin to understand something of the extent and greatness of our Empire.

One hundred years ago the total population over which we claimed rule and sovereignty was 150,000,000; today the British flag flies over a population amounting to about 500,000,000 of people.

One hundred years ago the British language was spoken by 20,000,000 people; today 181,000,000 people use that language.

One hundred years ago, in Europe, the English language was spoken by the fewest number of people. The French, German, and Spanish languages were used by vast numbers of people compared with the English, but now we stand at the top of all languages spoken by European civilized nations. That is worth remembering, that while other nations have progressed, we have progressed to such an extent that we have passed from 20,000,000 speaking English to 181,000,000.

Now, the thing which appeals to you men of business will be the commercial growth of the Empire, and I will only give you a few figures, because after luncheon figures are not very digestible. In 1909, according to a Blue-book just published, two-thirds of the shipping of the world is carried in British bottoms or under the British flag. Take in this connection the traffic through the Suez Canal, the comparative figures for the different European nations are: French, 160 ships; German, 260 ships; those flying the British flag, 2,260.

A remarkable statement was made the other day in the House of Commons by Mr. John Burns. It was •n answer to some question in connection with the unemployed and the trade depression. He said that in the year 1908 more new ships, according to tonnage, were turned out of the Clyde shipbuilding yards than from all other shipbuilding yards in Europe combined, with Japan thrown in! I want you to see what a startling statement this is, for we have besides the shipyards on the Clyde, those at Portsmouth and Newcastle-on-the-Tyne, and in other parts of England. Yet, John Burns, in the presence of the House of Commons, stated that the tonnage of the new ships turned out of the Clyde alone was greater than all turned out by the rest of EuropeGermany, France, Italy, with Japan thrown in. You would hardly suppose that a nation "doddering" to its doom would be so lively in producing ships in this manner?

Now, in these four ways--extent of her possessions, increase in population, advance in commerce, and keeping to the front in shipbuilding--the British Empire stands foremost among the nations of the earth. But, after all, it is not material prosperity that makes a great nation or a great people, and so when we think of the growth of the British Empire we ought not to forget that the glory of the British Empire is in its moral strength, not its material wealth-that manhood is more than money and moral manhood the bed-rock foundation of permanent greatness of national glory.

We put it in our own way as preachers, and we say it is righteousness that exalteth a nation, and with that word "righteousness" we cover a great many moral relationships in human life; righteousness in its broad sense exalteth a nation. I was only reading recently an article by Sir John Seeley, and he puts it in a very quaint way when he says: "No nation will ever find its place permanently in the world that has not something of the church about it." What he meant was this, that the religious principles which are behind all morality must be in a nation's life and in a nation's thoughts if that nation is to remain amongst the permanent forces of the world's civilization. The historian, Froude, says the same thing in another way: "As an historian I have noticed after all that it is character that tells more than men's cleverness (which means business astuteness) and more than the commercial prosperity of the people." When the world knows that the British merchant and the British manufacturer stand for honesty, stand for making the articles they profess to make, the time will come in spite of clever shams used in all kinds of commerce today, that the British merchant and manufacturer will find, if he faints not, that "honesty is the best policy." If he is true to the highest and noblest manhood, he will find a comfort and success in his business that cannot be got out of it with sharp practice seeking to get trade into a country or into a city.

As regards the glory of the Empire, 1 cannot forget the last utterance of King Edward in the city of Liverpool. He paid us two, visits within a few years, the first to lay the foundation stone of our great Cathedral which will cost about $6,000,000, and his second visit was to review the Territorial forces of Lancashire, of which we are very proud. He was standing on the platform at Lime Street, just before entering the train for London, and turning to the Lord Mayor he said: "My Lord Mayor, and gentlemen of the City Council, the last time I came here I came to lay the foundation of a great centre of the Christian faith. I now come to review the Territorial forces of the British Empire. Patriotism is the glory ,;If our flag and country, but there never can be true patriotism unless it is based upon religion. It seems only right that the review of my Territorial forces should be completed after my laying the foundation stone of that which makes a nation great."

A very striking thing occurred in connection with King George V. when receiving a deputation from the North of England-of course, we think the North of England is England, that what Lancashire thinks today England thinks tomorrow and the British Empire thinks the day afterwards. King George said in reply to this deputation: "The foundation of the Empire is in the homes of the people. So long as these homes are pure and simple and true, so long will the foundation of the British Empire be permanent, and so long shall this Empire be great."

I am afraid sometimes that the public at large hardly realize how our Kings and Princes have at the foundation of their lives this strong sense of true religion. They are like most of us, they do not always talk about it, but in the supreme moments of life they and we are not ashamed to let the world know that our Empire is built upon God and the things of God. William Watson, who wrote the Coronation Ode of 1910, said:

"Time, and the ocean and some fostering star In high cabal, have made us what we are."

I think that this vast star means nothing but the living God, and our Empire rests upon the great and glorious fact, that God himself has been behind our statesmen and princes in giving us this growth and this glory of which we are proud today.

What is it the British Empire stands for? What is its great glory amongst the nations? Civil and religious liberty. Any man under the British flag may worship God or not worship according to his conscience. The British Empire stands for justice and righteousness, and so long as we stand by these principles, so long will the British flag fly over an Empire consolidated, not by mere aggrandisement nor love of wealth, but because we fear God and have done our duty as Christian men.

I have spoken of the growth and glory of the British Empire. Its greatness lies in its ideals-lies in its manhood and womanhood. Here in Canada you have great and vast possessions. In those mighty Rockies, out of whose sides you dig gold, silver and copper; out on your prairies which I have seen teeming with the "bread sent down from Heaven"; teeming with wealth and prosperity; but you have something greater. The asset you have in this land is not only wheat or gold, but men and women

and it is men and women that are going to make the British Empire greater, and build up a new Empire in the Dominions beyond the seas.

Now, what are these ideals we stand for? We stand for the ideal of peace amongst all people and all nations. King Edward the Peacemaker was not merely a peacemaker within his own inner consciousness, he was the incarnation of the British feeling, the British ideals-a pledge of peace. We see at the present moment that as far as our Empire is concerned, as far as its physical extension is concerned, it is at an end. We have enough to grapple with, enough to consolidate. We do not want more, but want to make the best of what we have. That is a matter of utmost concern to you and the rest of us who have position and authority in the land. Let me remind you that only on the lines of peace can an Empire be consolidated. We want peace. Thank God for the Hague Tribunal; for the fact that a hundred countries today are gathered there in agreement that they will submit to arbitration and to the intelligence of the civilized world their dispute instead of to the argument of bloody war--which no man who cares for his country will ever advocate unless it be in the last extremity to defend his person or property against the aggressor.

The second ideal we stand for is progress. The British Empire has never taken possession of any subjected race without endeavouring to lift them up into a higher life-a higher moral plane. Look at any of our subjected races. I had some of the young Nationalists from Egypt in my own house, and they expressed the opinion that if the British withdrew from Egypt there would be chaos and injustice. At the bottom of their souls they felt that it is the strong hand of British justice and British fair play that makes for the building up of their nation. Look at the Soudanese. Look at India and see what British civilization, British justice and morality, have done.

That great Presbyterian divine and well-known writer, George Adam Smith, told me he had taken a tour of the British Eastern possessions, Egypt, Palestine, India and other places, and I said to him: "What seem to be the controlling forces over these vast populations who, if they rose in their might, could sweep the British soldiers into the sea?" "Well," he said, "it is not the British navy or the British soldiers, it is the consciousness that in British dominions the legislators, judges anal magistrates cannot be corrupted, and that, when the people appeal to British law, they get British justice." Do you think we hold India by force of arms? We hold India because of those splendid men who represent Great Britain in that land, men who, in their lonely positions, hold the British flag aloft in spite of difficulties and dangers and stand there for British justice.

Last of all, the British Empire is great not only for the ideals of peace and progress, but because she stands for purity-for purity in politics, in civil government, in civic government. It has no dealing with graft, no dealing with political corruption. Men, it is the glory of our British Government that whatever may be the bitterness of party politics, no man ever has been charged in our modern House of Commons with corruption in the state, or with using his position or great influence for his own personal ends or personal wealth.

Now, the British Empire stands not only for purity in politics and in the state, but it stands for purity in the home. Somebody has said: "The keystone of the Empire is the hearth-stone." Men, we want, wherever the British flag flies, to stand up, for purity, as King George says, not only for simplicity in the home-life but for purity in the home-life. There must be no pulling down of the flag of morality to suit the passions of men anywhere. A man said tome the other day in the railway train coming from Winnipeg: "But you must make some allowance for men's weaknesses and men's passions?" I said to him: "No man would ask that question." If you are a brute and not a man, then do your brutish work, but manhood means self-control, means whiteness of soul, means purity for his own wife, and therefore for every other woman with the possibility of becoming another man's wife.

Well, I finish. Remember this, Rome, Carthage and Venice were mighty in their day. The two greatest maritime powers in the world were Carthage and Venice; the mightiest Empire with the greatest strength was Rome; and they all perished, not from without, but from within, from luxury and lust: read their history. Rome was never conquered until Rome lay prostrate in her own moral corruption. "Where the carcass is there will the vultures be gathered together," but the carcass must rot before the vultures descend.

I have spoken of the growth of this Empire, I have spoken of its glory, of its greatness. This heritage, with its great privileges and responsibilities, has been handed down to us by men who have fought and bled, men who have lived honest, pure, hard lives. Shall we pass it down to our children unsullied by corruption or impurity as British realms ought to be? Shall you who represent us in the oldest and greatest of our Dominions, who are keeping the flag flying through days of difficulty and days of stress; shall you not feel something of the old spirit of conscious chivalry, and stand sword in hand for England, home and duty?

Gigantic daughter of the West,

We drink to thee across the flood;

We know thee and we love thee best,

For art thou not of British blood.