REAL DEMOCRACY.

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 147, 22 June 1923, Page 7

REAL DEMOCRACY.

THE INDEPENDENT CANADIAN.

AMERICA'S OVERFLOWING PURSE. "No, people in Australia don't know ] the first thing about democracy," said the Hon. D. F. Denham, this morning on board the Niagara by which he and his wife and daughter are returning after .a lengthy visit to relatives id Canada. Mr. Denham was formerly Premier of Queensland, and naturally ho took a keen interest in political events both in Canada and in the United States through which he travelled extensively. He considers Canada the most indWiilualirtie country hs has ever been in There tiiey j did things for themselves; they were j the embodiment of self-help, and did not I wait for the State to help them. However, Mr. Denham couH not help realising that Canada hiiii some very diflicult problems ahead of She; was losing large numbers of people every year —the number crossing the border into the United States w<l3 moro than the number that came into the Dominion by steamer. The trouble was that the | wages over in the States were so high I that the people could not resist the ! temptation. For instance, he knew of a case where n young bid was getting six dollars a week in a shop connected with motor-cars. He knew very little ' about machine shop work, but he went i across to Detroit and there ho at onre 'got not six dollars a week, nut six dollars I a day! It was impossible to compete ; against attraction like that. Canada's famous north-west had perhaps been ! rather too much boomed, and would be a problem that would cause come i thought. Taken altogether Canada, I which was a wonderful country, had ! serious problems to face. In the North 'she was blanketed by that great white , stretch that ended in the Arctic regions, I and in the South she was bordered by |rich, prosperous America, which was ' attracting thousands of her settlers over the border every year by offering high wages. America impressed the Queenslander J very much. "They talk always in the superlative degree," said he, "and ' British as I am, I am not sure that they have not reason for it." Nothing daunted them, they feared nothing, and if a thing I had to be done and were possible they would spare neither effort nor money. ;If a deviation in a railway line had been shown to be necessary for economical working and the saving of time, and it the engineers said it was possible they j would spend millions of dollars in carryling out that work. There was no doubt 'the Americans were the wealthiest nation in the world, and the courage with which they tackled problems, and the money they were prepared to spend was an eyeopener to anyone from Australia or New Zealand. He found many Americans selfi centred, very well satisfied with themi selves. Mr. Denham was astonished at J the. lack of knowledge of Australia and i New Zealand even among people that one would expect to know something about this part of the world. The Ameri- : can was singularly prosperous, wonderfully self-reliant, capable and daring. 'Questioned about non-material things. Mr. Denham said he was doubtful in that ! respect, and feared that such astonishing worldly prosperity was not conducive to the things that were essential to a nation's true greatness.