ECHOES OF THE WEEK

Dominion, Volume 15, Issue 182, 29 April 1922, Page 3

ECHOES OF THE WEEK

PRESS OPINIONS ON NEW ZEALAND TOPICS

“If we are contented to sink back into the selfishness, greed, and godlessness of pre-war days, to be satisfied with a low standard of life and duty, to turn our backs upon service and sacrifice, to allow our one talent to become atrophied, to think more of getting than giving, rights than duties, then indeed we are unworthy of the sacrifice made on our behalf. In conclusion, wo do not want to have a morbid commemoration of this Anzac Day, but a real uplifting of the soul to God in thankfulness for what He enabled the boys to do, and the splendid legacy which they have left to pi esent to future generations bv revealing the great potentialities of human nature and by interpreting life in terms of service and sacrifice.—The Anglican Bishop of Auckland (Di. Averill), at the Anzac Day Memorial Service.

Anzac Day in the years to come will have no resemblance to a day of mourning. It will be a day when the invincible spirit of the youngest sons of a most ancient race will be remembered with pride alone. Sadness must be for many the predominant feeling in the present celebration, when losses of those, the “loveliest and the best” whose lives were laid down’on Gallipoli are still freshly felt; but one thing is more certain than all others. Those who are mourned now will be the only living when the generation which now moves and breathes has passed away. Thev will always be their country’s possession and its best inspiration. On Fame’s eternal camping ground Their silent tents are spread ; And Glory guards with solemn round ♦ The bivouac of the dead. —Dunedin “Star.”

AVhat that much-quoted and misinterpreted and abused philosopher, Adam Smith wrote about the affairs of princes in the eighteenth century would appear hardly less applicable to the affairs of peoples at the present day:—The agents of a prince regard the wealth of their master as inexhaustible; are careless at what price thev buv, are careless at -what price they sell, and are careless at what expense they transport his goods from one place to another.” In whatever measure this indictment is applicable to individual governments of to-day, it is established fact that a modern government seldom accumulates capital; it is a brave borrower. In this is food for serious reflection in face ol current heavy government commitments. Government financial operations under the present depression (which, -be it remembered, is closely inter-related therewith) are diverting vast slims of private capital, that it untapped must have gone the sooner to turn again the tide of industry and tiade It was the growing accumulation of private capital, that, in providing material appliances for ■ manufacture and transport, enabled nearly the whole population in every modern country to enjoy a greater amount of comfort than was to be had by any but the verv rich a few centuries ago. —“Otago Daily Times.

It is quite easy—indeed, quite unnecessary, so obvious are the facts father defiance of law mockery of monarchy, contempt of the flag, and ridicule of religion, upon Labour or a certain section of Labour 111, say, Great Britain or Australia. No one has ventured to attribute originality to such efforts in New Zealand, wherever in this country such activities have been suspected. Let. it be granted that all these developments in Labour propaganda are importations, that they are only slightly present, that the bulk of Labour men and women are not m sympathy with them. The question remains—and it is an urgent question —what are our Labour leaders doing about it? Are they earnestly striving to cope with the menace, a menace no less to themselves than to the country 2 Or, are they content, ? tongue in cheek, to devise smooth things for utterance, in the hope of allaying suspicion that an attack of a revolutionaiy order is being systematicaHy organised against society? Beneath the guise of sweet nothings about fraternity, are they sedulous!" cultivating class-conshiousness view to violent pillage? The country is restless in the knowledge that, by various means, efforts are being made to undermine obligations of citizensh l ? long tried and highly valued. Its resth.ssness and suspicion of Labour s aims will not diminish unless there is foitlicoming some more authoritative and convincing statement of its designs and methods than has yet been given. —“New Zealand Herald.

In former times, when supplies of outside money flowed into the country, there was a tendency—very human perhaps—to make the first instalments fly in rather reckless fashion. Ihe desire of Government spending Departments and of local bodies to participate in the plums brought about first a general attitude of mendicancy, and where this succeeded it was too often followed bv a spell of extravagance. . . ■ The spending habit dies hard and revolts against check, however imperative and wholesome. Mr. Massey appears to realise the need for a powerful brake and to possess the strength to apply it. But he must have the support and co-operation of his fellow Ministers, of the Public Service from the heads of Departments to the messengers, nnd of the community as a whole. There must be no unseemly scramble for the loaves and fishes. There must be no agitation for higher salaries and wages or for the multiplication of lucrative posts. Sinecures must bo weeded out of the service. Expensive transfers of officers in order to comply with stereotyped ideas of promotion must be reduced to a minimum ; this continual reshuffling of public servants has reached a stage which no business firm would countenance in the conduct of its own affairs. —Dunedin “Star.”

The craze which seems to affect a certain type of colonial for anything American is illustrated in the proposal to adopt the American “junior high school” as an integral part of our educational system. Why the pupils could not be drafted direct from th* primary to the secondary school is not clear: and a reference to educational text books indicates that the American system is due .'to the peculiar circumstances of the country, and is largely intended to retain children at school after the legal minimum age of 14. That aim has been achieved here and in the Old Country in other ways; but our authorities seem quite ignorant of what is being done in England or Scotland, where we might naturally expect them to look for guidance.“Hawke’s Bay Herald.”

In the past new loans have not Involved new taxes, even although large amounts of borrowed money were spent on work which did n.it yield a penny piece of direct return to the Government. Between March 31, 1891, and March 31, 1914, for instance, over 11 millions sterling were borrowed for ’ purposes described in official documents as “indirectly productive” and “unproductive.” Yet tiie expenditure of borrowed money on these pur- ' poses was not, bad business. It would be very pleasant, of course, if w® could get money at 3) per cent., but in present conditions money at 5 per cent, is not at all bad. AVisely spent on only indirectly productive work, it does not involve ‘any real loss. Nor need it involve any real loss if wisely spent on directly reproductive undertakings. It is not because such undertakings cannot in the nature of things yield 5 per cent, that they do not -do so, but because there is something like a tradition that they cannot. Private enterprises manage to give, on the whole, something bet- | ter than 5 per cent, to their shareholders, and Government enterprises, which arp mostly largo monopolies, ought to do at least as well. —“Christchurch Press.”

The Bible in Schools movement in New Zealand was defeated some years ago because the clergy presented a system that did not appeal to the great body of the people. The votes of parents recently taken in different localities indicate that there is a general desire that some form of religious instruction should be imparted in the < primary schools, if only to prevent the ■ establishment of sectarian _ schools, which will bring about the disintegration of the national system. The moral tone of the community would probably be improved if the children were made to respect the basic prin- . ciples of religion, upon which the foun- ’ dations of society and of good govern-, ment are established. . . . The difficulty, if it exists, arises not among the children, nor generally among the parents of the children, but among the clergy and ministers. —“Manawatu Daily Times.”

Critics who day after day convince themselves that Mr. Massey is driving the country helter-skelter to the dogs of bankruptcy must have been disagreeably surprised to find their dismal views completely repudiated by the shrewd men of the City in London where they were asked to subscribe to a New Zealand loan of £5,000,000. If this country was in sore straits financially the financiers of London would not be so eager, thev almost tumbled over themselves in their hurry to ‘ get in. to take up New Zealand stock, on terms that are immeasurablv superior to any obtained by the Federal Government or anv of the Australian States. It must ’be admitted, of course, tha mnnpv is becoming cneaner, as Massey has said ; hut.the factt that the Government floated its £5,00 , ner cent, loan at par is. something about which the Prime Munster is entitled to boast to the d.scomfibire of bis critics .-“Southland Times.

The lenders of the darying industry -: n the North Island « re . “ movement fo improve marketingsmeth„d, • • The meat P° ol already been respons-ble for a, reduction in meat freights and it IB ,P r « that the pronosed dairy P noM may be equally successful. One. .thing is ‘certain, and that is the present charges and freights, which are double those of 1914, must materially, come down, as they are quite out of line with the country’s income from the sale of produce. Further, there must be an end to the delay in the dio. charge of dairy produce at Home, a delay which Mr. Goodfellsw showed had cost his company in respect of some of the earlier shipments no less a sum than £128,000. Probably if the produce were unloaded at other ports besides Ixindon the delay and loss would not have occurred. The pool advocates suggest the development of other markets besides London. This can be done by a combination; it is difficult, however, under present conditions. On the whole tlie scheme is one that merits the closest attention of all engaged in tho gftat dairying industry. —“Taranaki Daily News.”

Dairy farmers in. the AVairarapa have been rather exercised in their minds of late by the increased fees charged bv 1 the Department for testing the yields of cows, and the question arises whether the time has not come for the dairy farmers themselves, either through their, companies or through breed associations, to undertake the work. The value of testing must now be evident to every intelligent farmer. It is impossible to know what a cow is worth without testing on scientific lines, and it has been proved conclusively that tho cost of testing, even with the fees now charged, is recouped to the farmer over and over again in the course of a year. The principal argument against the farmers forming their own testing associations is that the tests would lack the authenticity that the Government certificate carries. Just at present that argument may look a sound one. and to overcome it the farmers’ associations could call in.the Government experts as often as they wished to verify and authenticate their own results.— “AVairarapa Age.

The appointment of Commissioners to carry out the provisions of the Urewera Lands Act has now been gazetted, and the work of opening up this famous district' 1 should be taken in hand promptly and vigorously. This is an important stage in the bringing into civilisation of a largo area of country that has many historical associations, and Jorms the last great stronghold of the original Maori. The arrangements for the division of this district into Crown and Native land 1 and its reading are the result of years of unsatisfactory tenure and negotiation, and the outcome dock credit to 1 Ministers and other persons concerned. For the Urewera Maori the division will be a test. One of the factors that caused the parties to come to this agreement was the claim of the younger generation of Natives to be allowed to farm land on a satisfactory basis of ownership, somethjng better than the clogging tribal and hapu system. It is hoped that the opportunity provided by this improvement will be seized. The Maori must emulate the industry of the European if he is io survive, and the cutting up of the Urewera Country is another reminder to him of this truth. — "Auckland Star.”