With your permission, Sir, I should like to make a personal explanation.
Censorship of Parliamentary Debates—Personal Explanation by Senator.
You have that permission, Senator.
In the debate on censorship in the House last week, I quoted a passage from a speech made by Senator Douglas, and commented that the quoted remarks showed a certain sympathy with Fascism and Nazism. I have since read the whole of the speech, and it is clear to me now that the passage I quoted was not fully indicative of Senator Douglas's views, for at a later stage Senator Douglas said: "They"—that is Fascism and Nazism—"claim an allegiance to the State which I, for one, am only prepared to give to God". I apologise to the Senator, and regret if my unintentional misrepresentation has given him reason for offence.
I should like to say that I very much appreciate the action which has been taken by Senator Hearne, and I accept without reservation the apology which he has been good enough to make. By drawing the attention of the House to this matter, I think he has played his part in maintaining the good feeling which exists amongst all the members of the House, even though we may disagree on various matters. At the same time, lest there might be any possible misunderstanding, I should like, with your permission, to read the whole paragraph —it is not very long—in my speech from which the extract was taken.
You may proceed, Senator.
I am not going to inflict the whole speech on the House, but I should like to read just this paragraph. The speech was in 1934, and the paragraph is as follows:—
"Dictatorships have grown out of mass movements of the people, and the shirt or badge has only been the symbol, not the cause of the success of the movement."
Senator Hearne read the first portion of that sentence.
"They have grown out of dissatisfaction with Governments and with political conditions, coupled with the desire of young people to do something for their country."
This is the portion at which Senator Hearne resumed his reading:
"There has been a great deal in these shirt or Fascist movements which cannot be criticised. There have been discipline, good-fellowship, readiness to sacrifice and the desire to reform, which are excellent things, and these have given the movements a wonderful appeal to the best of young men and women after the demoralisation of the war. I challenge anyone to deny that a great deal of good has been achieved in both Italy and Germany as a result of the Nazi and Fascist movements."
Senator Hearne stopped there. The rest of the paragraph is as follows:—
"But for my part, that good has been achieved at the cost of individual political freedom, and it is a price which I, for one, am not prepared to pay in this country if I can help it. What I most object to in Fascism and Nazism is the assertion of the absolute supremacy of the State over the individual. They claim an allegiance to the State which I, for one, am only prepared to give to God. Little or no recognition is given to individual conscience, minorities have no right to organise, and even the expression of individual opinion against the Government is treasonable. Persons who do not share the opinions of the majority are dubbed anti-national— traitors, undesirable people, who may perhaps be tolerated if they keep their opinions to themselves."
That, Sir, was the paragraph. May I just add that a very large portion of my speech was devoted to showing the reasons why I disapproved of the Fascist and Nazi movements? I pointed out that ordered democracy requires the type of mind which listens to every point of view and then forms its opinions freely. I also said that to my mind the spirit which leads to the suppression of opinion creates the very condition in which the idea of the dictatorial State thrives. I do not want to take up the time of the House by reading any more, but if, by any chance, there are any other Senators who are interested in what I thought in 1934, I would respectfully ask them to read the whole speech. Again, I thank Senator Hearne for what I think was a handsome action on his part.
If I may say so, I think that is a satisfactory ending to the incident.