OBITER DICTA.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17585, 14 October 1922, Page 10

OBITER DICTA.

(By K.) An estrafct from the of P>Mliamenfc's proceeding on Wednesday. A Mombar: W. h*vo bc« her. a long Another Member: Too long. \nd go say all of us. Not that we miss tlio dear creatures; on the cemtnuy, wo Should not feel unhappy rf the* stayed in Wellington so long tM Jho flagstones of Lambton quay were uorn into grooves, and the carpet m Bellamy's worn into hole,, by thou- fort. But the longer thoy remain in session the later will be that bkssed day of deliverance, polling day, for whicH .o many of us are waiting with the joyful earnestness with winch the Irish moonlighter waited for the coming of the landlord in tho good old days vhen slaughter was an amateur a pastime, and not., £ls it is now, everyone s professional occupation. .Alas, regardless of their doom, the little victimsi tak while we are longing: to be at them. Politics is a .hateful thing, because politics makes politicians, but politics has one most admirable and ftlhirmg merit: the politicians must ponodieal!v surrender themselves to the public's axe. I have never yet been able to imagine why Providence made bluebottles, but it is long since I discovered why Providence made politicians. They were made in order that we might enjoy the exquisite pleasure of pitching them out.

What have they been doing all this time? Plunging blindly at "Hansard," I took up number 22, and glanced down the index: "Wairau Harbour Bill," "Pharmacy Amendment Bill," many other Bifle, "Railway Freight on Coal," "Mandate over Nauru," and then "John Steel," an entry followed by a perfect eruption of speakers' names. I did not ken John Steel, but evidently he was something of a "crisis, no I turned to page 1010. (Believe mo, it really was page 1010.) John Steel was, it turned out, no mora than the first name on a petition "praying for legislation to enable the acquisition of tho freehold of national-endowment lends in Tauranga and Itotorua Counties." Perhaps you remember Mr Lucas's article on Diana Shoal, and your disappointment when you found that this charmingly named lady, whose romance you had in your impulsive way begun to jjuess, turned out to be a mere shoal which the Admiralty had re-surveyed. Well, that is how I felt over John Steel. Greatly disappointed, I turned over the pages. By page 102" the discussion concerning John had reached this stage: Mr M-mey: It ia wo who are bring charged ivith being disloyal. Mr Holland: Oil I la that bo? Mr Mauaoy: Yes. What about that old saying l of Dr. Jobaaon'# th&t you Iwvo hurled &i us hfolf «t dozen times tiki® session? Mr Holland: If the jRt. Hon. thn Prima Minister likes to apply that to himself end Liti colleagues !b« may do so. I am satisfied 1 hit it won to man of the typs ho* on the Government benches that it 'was nysant to apply. Mi- Maesay: Very-well; will you let me reply to that? Mr Holland: You may reply vrhen I Jiave finished. I iiavo the floor juat now. He had. And by page 1028 he was explaining (again 1 beg you to believe that ,is really true, as for id, the price of Hansard No. you can discover for yourself) lie was explaining that . . If th& Itusfilaae vsro prepared to recognise avcry' debt of the Tear's Goverataeut tomorrow—and for thosa debts they were not responsible—then cutely it would b» » corol-' lwy that all the pledges and promises m&dd to tho Tsar's Gom*am»nt should b» hon-

cured by tf* otto «ife, 'llllßl pledges would m«aa ovir to Russia. Mr Ke«d: Whtt W .ui'il tho uubject. I like to think thut Ki Steel, flitting ; a up and should "Hw loudly, twing instantly tho orderly in co is what Parliament h*i# That is why they IiRVQ with % love of old "***■» *asßH Last week I of an American thoatw i&il&H han all "dry-wet" knowing the reason for of music-hall humour, it. My old colleague Williams—my readers aa I do gratefully, thft uiied to sive me in notes—unkindly told letter printed this week, fault, but obligingly tho veto. The jokea it appeitis, have brought complaints from tfatron»' , « VSaBP been "overdone," and the Prohibitionists. not lie used for political ptc2yi|§| it tvas added, quite in tWmlraffl Judge who eays, "Thjg Vflwljjjjß Justice, not a theatre." 'l|||ra9 news, or bad naws, tionista can go to to music-halls, at least, in joSh holiness of cocoa is not will say one thing, asd What tLe still small vofa Jjrafll tellu me is that the the onward march of tWil||jra prtasion, Having shall drink, the what on© may laugh at, matters appetite grows there are no assignable liatj|li® the Prohibitionists will late and forbid. On® day yourself forbidden even notea unless I can regoia towH cocoa^operation—and in th*t L s|Hj doubt, thero will ]». a .g^jUlllj The advertisements wmm is pending & beauty need hardly be 6aid that thing to do with the although you might b» thinking it has. For h»a said that "Beauty is tragm! beauty," and is not a a contest between telling the truth ? Sincslsjji|m however, we have got on, jj§jH means nothing more, ttfflflfflß man, than a f«minin« plenty of these pleasant and it is high time brought into agreed To-day that yon less you am competing vit>h]|il9 The winner of thin ' oorajH£i§M9 reoeiv® To-day's great porturiity to become * 6m|ra9 the cinema world everything, at least 99 This ha# led many stiiMefcjjgmß speak very "'scornfully' 4f||l||ra[[ I am a iowbrow, said before in these fttors are as good" as uptijjwjgm am not sure that the ties of the screen are atffJgfffiH the ladies who &o. ■#ise man would make yclpplßßß only books, but tfcoy best hooks one can st'At®™® lows, jrjfo' say speare and tho Bibl& if ttieif on a desert kland 'dfli'.n6feM||B They would take Clafibftl ;|jHO