NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 988, 1 December 1910, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The best substitute for the judgment of _ posterity that any nation can obtain, it has been said, and is generally allowed, is the contemporary judgment of' foreign opinion. What, therefore, posterity will think of tho recent performances of Mr. Lloyd-George and of the present policy and activity of the Government of which he seems to have secured tho control may be gathered from the comments of the French and German papors. Some of their opinions are summarised for us today. The Gattlois .observes that English statesmen have heretofore prided themselves on their courtesy to their adversaries, "but Mr. LloydGeorge goes in search of personalities, and infuriates his opponents with gibes, sarcasm, and insolent persiflage." The grave Debals stresses tho fact that ' while Mr. Lloyd-George might by his merits elevate the commonalty, he prefers to coarsely and brutally sink to the level of the mob. The Allgemcine Zcitung finds it_ "repellent to hear an English Minister openly praise revolution," and another German journal sees in the Chancellor of the Exchequer "a hot-blooded English Mirabeau.". It doo3 not in the least matter what Europo thinks, or what posterity may_ think—if it chances to remember him—of Mr. LloydGeorge, but the comments wo have quoted have a serious significance. Englishmen arc inclined to forget tho enormous influence of British .standards and British jjolitiealideaa.

upon tho Governments of the rest of the world. Although there are few countries willing to admit their dependence for inspiration on Britain, nothing is more patent to the student of international affairs than tho evidence that "the British example" is in world politics what "Greenwich time" is to the mariners on all the seas.

It is unfortunate that the debate on tho findings of the Hine Committee should have been conducted on strictly party lines. The issues involved are of great national importance, and when "party" creeps in on such occasions it is quite hopeless to expect anything to be treated on its merits. Even tho plainest facts are liable to be lost sight of in the heat of party strife. What cannot bo overlooked, however, in the present case is the fact that out of ten charges presented by MR. Hike, the Committee, composed of six Government and four Opposition members, found seven charges proved; that as a result the Government felt itself called on to take action against a member of Parliament, and that the Committee found, as the result of the disclosures made, that was desirable to introduce legislation to prevent a recurrence of similar land dealings to those proved. However much tho issues may be covered up with wordy irrelevancies, these are the outstanding facts; these not only provide the justification of Hit. Hine, but they entitle him to the thanks of Parliament and the country.

A very marked improvement in tho conduct of the business of the Houso of Representatives has resulted from the strong stand taken by Mn. Speaker on Tuesday morning. The disorder which so frequently arises out of the bad habit of members incessantly interrupting speakers with interjections and comments has almost entirely disappeared as the result of his expressed determination to suppress excessive interruption. We must congratulate Mn. Guinness and tho House on the improvement already noticeable. It is very much better for everyone that the Standing Orders of the House be strictly enforced. Business will proceed more smoothly and rapidly, and proper order and decorum will prevail. There cannot bo any doubt that the strong' and stern manner in which Mr. Guikness handled the Houso during the stormy passages of the past two sittings averted 'what in all probability would otherwise have developed into very unpleasant "scenes."

■ "We can't have too much inspection" was a retort made by the Minister for Agriculture during a debate in,the House on Tuesday, Mr. T. Mackenzie, in his Ministerial capacity, has not demonstrated that ho is the possessor of any greatamount of tact. He has an unfortunate knack of saying the wrong thing at the ! wrong time; especially is _he given to blurting out something which his colleagues would' very much prefer to keep in the background. His remark referred to concerning tho impossibility of having too much inspection was one of his unhappy efforts. If there is one thing more than another which the average man in New Zealand thinks is overdone it is the Government's inspection habit. Tho country is fairly overrun with inspectors of _ all kinds, and it is one of the things which tho Government is striving to live down by keeping it in the background as much as possible. The impetuous Mr. Mackenzie, however, could not restrain himself yesterday, and in consequence gave the Leader of tho Opposition an excellent opening to emphasise this obnoxious habit of Ministers of continually adding to tho huge army of Government inspectors.

A member yesterday, referring to the envenomed speech of Me. T. E. Taylor; delivered in the early hours of Wednesday morning, referred to him as "a political scorpion." Another member spoke of him as "a spent force." Curiously enough, to anyone who has followed the political career of the member for Christchurch North these seemingly conflicting opinions will appear to sura him up, politically, very accurately. There was a time early in his public career when Mr. Taylor really looked like being a force in politics. He never has actually been a force, but he gave promise of rising above the ' average. . Time, however, proved his weakness. An unbalanced judgment, hasty and reckless , speech, intolerance of opposition 'and bitter peranimosities have lost him whatever influence he possessed in Parliament. He is a spent force so far as political influence is concerned, but his sting—the sting of the political scorpion, as described by his brother member—remains. He' still retains all his old bitterness, and, like tho scorpion, he stings indiscriminately —as often as not ho himself is the greatest sufferer. It is, we believe, a characteristic of the scorpion when injured to sting itself. ,No ono has done Mr. Taylor greater injury than Mr,. Taylor himself, and mainly through his attacks on others. For all his years in Parliament he cannot claim a single follower, and although still one of the most interesting speakers there ho carries no weight with the House. Yet no one lectures the House with greater assuranco or with a higher regard for his own oratory. Everything he touches politically fails. Recently he was being talked of as a coming leader of the Labour party. We know' how ho led Labour in the Auckland by-election—and how he split it. The Opposition -would be well advised to take Mr. Taylor more seriously. If they could induce Sir Joseph Ward to give him a scat in the Cabinet an early disruption of tho Ministry could bo safely prophesied.