NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 249, 15 July 1920, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

v r— — It is a change, and a welcome one, to find Germany at last taking an interest in tho reconstruction of the devastated war regions of France and Belgium. The German proposal, however, is not set out fully enough in the oablo message to judge- of its merits. The extent of the injury inflicted on France is shown in some striking figures issued officially in Paris a few weeks ago. The number of towns and villages wholly or partially destroyed is 3720, and the population rendered homeless 2,712,000. Of these 1,583,000 havo returned. Of over 610,000 houses wholly or partly destroyed, 182,000 have been repaired. Of 3i60 miles of railway destroyed 2526 miles have been reconstructed, about 500 miles of canal have to be re-made, but of 24,375 miles of road destroyed only 1717 miles have been made good. The arable land rendered useless totalled 7,200.000 acres, and of this about 2i million acres has now been ploughed over again or dug. Of 11,500 factories destroyed 8540 have been rcconstructed and are at work, and 3812 more are in process of repair. Two million head of cattle were carried off by tho Germans, but only 300,000 have been reintroduced. Boforo the war the devastated areas produced over ninety per cent, of the country's woollen goods, linens, and mineral ores, 83 per cent, of its cast iron, 70 per cent, of it's sugar, 60 per cent, of its cotton manufactures, 55 per cent, of its coal, and 45 per cent, of its eleotrio power. In addition France has lost in killed's7 per. cent, of her manhood between the ages of eighteen and thirty, four. To-day, twenty months after the armistice, Germany for tho very first time begins to talk' in a practicable way of reparation—and we have yet. to discover whether her talk is not merely another effort to side-step her obligations. * * * * A disposition is boing shown by the trustees of some war relief funds to bring their work to an end with a distribution in lump sums of the money in hand. The unwisdom of sueh e. course is demonstrated by the experiences of the Wellington Association. Men are still breaking down as the result, of war injuries and weaknesses. They are likely to go on doing, so for some, years to come. A great many think themselves more fit than tliey really are, but sooner or later some overstrain occurs and their old injuries make themselves felt. In yesterday's Dominion Mr. Leach, secretary of the Wellington War Relief Association, gave instances of the sort of cases that are coming to hand in the city. In tho smaller provincial centres this aftermath of war disabilities may not be so noticeable, but none is likely to escape it altogether. An early distribution of the funds in hand will simply mean the passing out of money to men in no special need of it, and leave no provision against urgent and necessitous cases in the future. The trustees of many funds have given up a great deal of time gratuitously to the work, and no rtouUt desire to nrnig their responsibilities to an end, but tliey will fcb-wis© to watt awhile. * # , # * Complaint is made in Christchurch and Auckland- that, the Boy Scout movement is being strangled in red-tape. In Auckland the number of Boy Sooute is stated to have shrunk in five years from 1800 to 700. In Christchurch the business men on the No. 1 District Committee have resigned in a body. Tho Boy Scout training is a fine thing for tho youngsters, and the Boy Scout ideal has made such a world-wide appeal to go-owing lads in their most susceptible years that it will bo a great pit? if its usefulness is destroyed or weakened in New Zealand by dissensions on the administrative side. It is difficult for outsiders to say where the real causes of the trouble lie. The allegations are that the scheme of organisation is far too oumbrous, that grievances instead of being removed are hung up on routine points, and that arbitrary action is taken by executive officers without consultation with the local committees. Tho Deminion balancesheet of the Boy Scouts' Association shows that .£677 was subscribed by th« public, while £M was granted by th» Government. Tho bulk of the money spent appears to havo gone in salaries and travelling expenditure of "staff and financial organiser." In view of what is occurring it is advisable that evidence should be forthcoming that these administrative activities, financed by public money, are building up the movement and not disintegrating it as is alleged * it if k If the ox-Crown Prince of Germany had a better sense of the way ho and the part he played are regarded abroad he would not be compiaining of the irksomeness of being confined to Holland with a comfortablo home at his disposal. It was his own and his father's affair whon they cut and ran across the border, leaving their army and their country to> eot out of tho mesa they had helped to get them in to, and if the Holicnzollcnm dislike the Dutch atmosphere it is quite open to them to leave the country at any time they choose 60 far as the Allies aro concerned. Indeed the concern of somo of tho Allies has been to <lorie« ways and means of geting them nut of it. They are in the position of on absconding financier escaping with his plunder to a South American republic with no extradition law. and then gTumbling at: his now place of residence. It ia significant also that Holland, although «

tidy iittlo country, is beneath the notice of the ex-Crown Prince as a field for his future activities. One of his brothers has been more or less unsuccessfully engaged in business in Germany as a motor garage proprietor. It is possible that if the ex-Crown Prince really wants to do something useful he will find room for his abilities even in Holland. » k * If Light narrow-gauge railways of the typo advocated by Mr J. A. Young and other members of the floueo of Representatives yesterday are capable of serving an extremely useful purpose in this country. Tented as they Have been in war and peace, such lines undoubtedly offer a means of providing many outlying districts with salisfaotory communications, which they have,littlo prqsucct of obtaining in any other way. The Local RuilwaTß Act of 1914 authorised the formation of combined districts in which light railways were to be constructed and operated by elected boards. It was stipulated, however, that the lines must bn of standard gauue, though allowance was made for lighter construction, steeper grades, and sharper curves- thnn are permitted in the caso of the Government railways. It is perhaps not wholly due to the war that no advan< tago has been taken of this Act. A light railway of standard gauge would be apt to prove something of a whito elephant and might -ultimately have to be in all respects brought up to standard at heavy additional cost. On tho other hand a narrow-gauge line is eapa ble of performing economical and efficient service in areas which may never support a standard railway and cei" tainly will not do so for many years to come. The clause in the Local Hailways Act which demands a gauge of three feet six inches ought to be repealed without delay. At the same time, tho Government ought to ascertain whether any of the narrow-gauge railway material (used m the wtar theatres is still obtainable at a reasonable price.