RANDOM SHOTS

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 303, 20 December 1913, Page 18

RANDOM SHOTS

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come write a neighbour's name to las; j Some write—vain thought—for needful caah. t.oui£ write to please the country clash v And raise a din; t For mc, an aim I never fash. \, I write for fun. J i±ii£444£4 * t ■Now that the Parliamentary session has closed, the only remaining obstacle T to "Peace on earth, goodwill to men," is the continuance of the strike, after it <j has become manifest to most people that j its purpose has failed. But I hope "the j spirit of tie season" will assert its sway p before Thursday next, so that t-he entire ;, community may look forward to enjoy- n ing a (Merry Christmas and Happy Xew 0 Year. Let The joybells of Christinas _ this year ring out old forms of ancient s s strife and ring in the "nobler manners, g purer laws" -of a new industrial era, in o ■which "Jack" shall be duly respected c and rewarded by his erstwhile master, c and shall no longer need to have re- v course t.o methods that are injurious to everybody. A glance at that tentative vote of £100,000 to cover governmental expenses Tendered necessary by the T Toceiit strike ought to convince everyone j ihat industrial war is a "great illusion" q —the only substantial thing about it i being the bill of costs. s iiiiiiiiii r "The futility of syndicalism," other- c ■wise the general strike, has just been de- o monstrated by the citizens of Leeds, c England. The municipal employees went a on strike, and the whole social life of t (he city was in danger of collapsing il when a body of citizens, braving the dis- a grace of being called "scabs," took off * their coats and discharged. the duties n that the strikers had neglected. Eesult, * a collapse of the strike, and a stampede ° back to work. Of course, Xew Zealand c had a few weeks previously shown the T way; but all the same the men of c Leeds deserve praise ror shewing that no one section can threaten and domineer ? over an entire community, or attain their ends by coercion or anarchist c methods. _2_zi__z_z±_ri-t As regards Parliament, its record of 0 work done in the "record session"' does j. not break any records. The volume of g legislation is large, but very little of it p is of first-class importance. Xo doubt t the Government was much -hampered by t a powerful and persistent Opposition, v who played to perfection the part of a drag on the wheel. As a result, the t most important matters of legislation d - have been held over till next session, f when they have l about as much chance of c ■being passed as "Zhmiel" has of being t elected president of Mexico. Look at the names of a few of the. subjects: — Liquor Lajw Reform, Customs Revision, Electoral Reform, Local Government Reform, and 60 forth. Who expects all these to be dealt with in the expiring session iof a 'Parliament? 'What everybody does expect is that most of the time -will be spent in talking t-o the eonst.tuencks through '"Hansard" and the newspapers, and that the principal measures discussed will be shelved so as to form zQ "platform" upon which Ministers may go to -the country. Verily, I begin -to think an extension of the life of Parliament to four years will become necessary ere long. We might then get two years' good work out of the four, instead of only one out of three. We -might also get better representatives— a, change much to be desired, in some •quarters. 'By an amendment of the Municipal Corporations Act it is now lawful for Borough Councils to do a lot of things that were formerly forbidden, including the giving of concerts and the running of moving picture shows. The picture show permissive clause is the result of a request that ..was made by the. Foxton Borough Council and backed by a number of other small municipalities. For two years the Foxton Council carried on a picture show without permission, and made at the rate of £1,000 a year profit, with only a hundred nights open in the year. This demonstrates the popularity of the "fillums," and I expect to find quite a Tush into the show business of the smaller municipalities, who may by means of "movies" find a pleasanter" way of taxing the people than the method now in vogue. But there seams no moTe reason why local governing bodies should engage in this form of business than in- other private enterprises which experience lias shewn to be profitable. There is no essential monopoly about picture shows, as the keen competition for public favour experienced in Auckland and elsewhere prett-v well demonstrates. Ts the Caucasian played out? He may still claim to be leading in the arts of civilisation, but he lias no longer a I monopoly of enterprise, inventiveness, and go-aheadness. Even the whom we have been accustomed to consider the types of all that is* conservative and non-progressive, are marehin" step by step with us. A few years ago. when I first saw'a Chinaman riding a bicycle, I recognised it as a portent of coming change. To-day I saw for the first time a brand-new motor-car goin" round en a fruit and gree.n-grocerv delivery run in Auckland for a Chinese trader. And, "O tempore, O mores." it was driven by one of the superior Caucasian race, working for the Chinese owner! O, foolish Caucasians! We think we are teaching and leading Yuan Shih Kai and Co., and all the time they, with a smile that is childlike and bland, are getting ahead of us. How many Auckland shopkeepers have got a handy motor-delivery van? The great Larkin continues his career, but the fever from which he suffered is abating. He does now " d the Empire," but merely anathematises Mr. •Tohn Redmond and Sir Edward Carson. This -is a distinctly hopeful sign, though Larkin's excitement leads him to say " A curse on both your houses." instead of the milder Shakespearean expression, " a plague." Larkin is eminently sane when he proposes that Labour should " take over Ireland and use the country for the best interests of all its people." Ihis is certainly much better than setting Ulster against the rest of Ireland. It it is guaranteed to end the Home Rule strite. I would enthusiastically support -the handing over of Ireland to a Labour Government, with Premier Larkin in a position of responsibility, starting +£™£.?L d tt6 J Career Elding ten thousand houses for the workers of Dube't£nUr o m *° be wxse *"** **=