NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 561, 16 July 1909, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

Although the supporters of corapul-. sory training may well feel disappointed at the refusal of the House of Lords to give a second reading to Lord Hobehts's National Service I3ill, there is one aspect of the debate whioh cannot but cause general gratification. 'We refer to tho absence of any inclination to make the question'a party ono. Tho Unionist peers rofrainod from using tho occasion to attack the Government through Mr. Haedane, and Lord Lmjsdowne even stood up in dofenco of giving tho War Department a fair trial. There is unfortunately no clear evidence in the cable messages to .show whether tho voting amounted to a verdict against tho principle of compulsory training or whether it was a declaration, without prejudice to that principle,, that the possibilities of voluntaryism have not yet been exhausted. Probably a number of those who voted against the Bill have no objections to compulsory training, hut are disinclined to deny a thorough trial, to Mr. Haldane'B plans. Even if only a dozen of them took this view, there would bo a majority of the House in favour of the compulsory principle. However that may .be, it is pleasant to know that tho question is'so little a party one that such eminent Unionist Peers as Lords Cromer and Lansdowme were on the opposite side to such keen party friends- as 'Lords CunzoN and Milker. To-day's cable message gives us n brief extract from Lord Crewe's spooch with the observation that the Unionist newspapers are amazed at it. ,It would be foolish, however, to pretond to comment with confidence on a phrase or two wrenched out of its con-' text. We have seen too many of, our colonial contemporaries make themselves ridiculous by rushing into ( , comment on an ex -parte cable message and talking of "indiscretions" without having tho lull case before them.

- V The discussion. which,'.- ; preceded . ;tho, ■City Council's 1 decision■; last • evening j.to carry its own risks in the'matter of ac-. cidents to employees, and also to•■■ the public who patronise'the tramways, does not'Jßtriko. one as/ disclosing, any "deep knowledge of the.-' risks /involved. -... The idea. is ; reasonable /enough;.'The..Vcp'st.of insurance '.against accidents. to_ employees is a heavy!aniiual; toll on 'private, .b'usinosses'as' well as public corporations, and where 'the risks-aro'sufficiently, large and Tcidely-spread, 'there if;iio;reason; why a' company or a* corporation /not carry its own t risks with? safety and perhaps ; profit..'%The;,,Union Steam/ Ship Company, for'- instance, has,/ wo believe, for years worked' bii- un insurance, fund, of its own: in regard;ta.its.vessels/'; But whereas it might pay '. a; company! with a large'number, ; of : : vessels/, to dp this,/ 'it would not pay a smaller, company with few/vessels';to take the risk.; /What we should have liked to have heard a little more about in ;conhecti6n.with: tho City. Council's schorire is the extent' of /the risks: also; thb annual cost: of ''cover.''' for those ."risks .-at the ,time. What has boen' the amount of-/'.the. claircm met by the insurance'companies in. the. past? Is o doubt the;committee;of the which dealt with the matter had r alj this information before/it, ; but:.it. docs 'not appear to havo beon thought worth whilt> to prepare ,'a definite statement, on .the subject for : the bendfit of ~the Council ana., the public. The; amount; which:it is .proposed to pay: into .the iuhd 'as a'Jre.serve would■ seem to bo:based on/an.unduly optimistic belief iri : the immunity of the corporation- from serious accidents, A brief run of comparatively .'minor. Ac; cidents.' would ./shatter the '.-lurid ", hopelessly. -If the scheme'is being put forward with th'oidea of establishing a permanent insurance fund, it will need to bo; placed on a firm basis; from tho out set. Insurance companies no _doubt pray for. luck, especially at times like the pro ;! sent,, but tnoy find it/safer, and more businesslike and more satisfying to the public, to., rely on their reserves, rather than to trust blindly l ;in the workings of; Providence. The proposal to,'place the; funds, connected V with; the,. insurance scheme in the general, fund of the. Council was awrong one.' Reserve funds such; as : that now proposed to bo established may \be okpected to accumulate, Pyor a period, and they are a)source of,temptation 'to ; any enterprising public body. If they aro gct-at-ablet" they .arc taken; forothor purposes,: and when the emergency for which they were created eventuates, they aro not available' It is certainly necessary, if 'the scheme with', that a. special fund should be created and carefully safeguarded, ; ; .'■-.,.-•

A copy . of the Tonga \ Government Gazette- which Our correspondent haß sent us bears abundapt.testimony to_tne thoroughness of the work of the missionaries in the South Seas.'■', In' almost every, sontence of'the King's opening ,and ing Speeches; to Parliament and _ of the Address-in-Rep]y. there is a Bihlipal 'allusion; The Speeches and tho Address are very odd and amusing, but it is apparent that the Biblo has made a strong appeal to.the. Tongan,mind as a,.storehouse of practical .political wisdom. Even, if the King and his advisors have' gone to a mistaken length in. ascribing temporal ovents and changes to,tho work-o ings of a spiritual agency, their mistako is moro admirablo than the current materialism of more sophisticated Governments, which, if they do, not asonbo material set-backs', to the Opposition, Vet claim all the credit .for any progress that has been mado or any good fortune thai has boon experienced. ' Kino George,. like ' Sin JosErn , W/uin,:.;is • an /'optimist,; but he is ail optimist-'w'jth a difference. Our Pnniß Minister's optimism, consists in denying, actual facts. King : George's-is of the sort that admits the facts, but . rejoices that .matters arc jiot worse,- and that. Tonga is comparatively 1 happy:' "It is true that Niuafoou has been 'visited by a disastrous; hurricane,

hut our «ufforing Ims been slight as compared with the disasters,in other countries," And surely there is real wisdom in this amusingly primitive expression of satisfaction: "I am astonished, but gratified, to be in a position to open the proceedings of the present Parliament. How many of the people of other countries have had their lands alienated, and how much sorrow there is in consequence of thoir being compelled to resign; their right of Government." The people of thiß country hardly realise their privilege m having a frco system of government: if they did realise what a privilege it is, they would not allow their governors to abuse their functions. Kino George, in closing the session, 'dwelt op the uncertainty of the future. By 1012, ho asked, "what will have happened to the Government of Tonga r It is inconceivable that tho New Zealand Government should doubt for a moment that tho future is boyond its control. But wo are bound to say that in his siraplo way Kino Georoe has-got nearer to safety by/not taking too much for granted than some' of his more up-to-date, competitors in the art of government.