NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 21, 19 October 1922, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

One of to-day’s cablegrams observes that it is considered that stable government will be impossible in the United Kingdom unless some party or group of parties commands 325 votes in the House of Commons. As the House is constituted, the Unionists, (including about 50 “dichards” outside the Coalition) hold approximately 3<o seats. The Liberals, including about 34 “Wee Frees ” number something over 160, and the Labour Party about 70. With the House of Commons reduced bv the exclusion of Irish seats to a strength of 615 most of the constituencies now represented by Unionists will remain in being. It is taken for igranted, however, that many of these constituencies will be captured by other parties. In. spite of their present predominance the odds are against tho Unionists gaining an .independent party majority. There are obviously strong grounds for believing that after the election only a combination of parties will be able (o set up a stable Government. As the position is outlined, the resignation .of Mr. Robert Donald from the management committee of the British Empire Exhibition appears to be fully justified. His action is stated to be in protest against a decision of the management committee that the restaurant attached to the Exhibition must depend in part on foreign supplies of foodstuffs. If the committee has in fact formed this humble estimate of the producing capacity of the Empire, its ideas evidently will bear revision. As much is to be paid of the ideas of the British Board of Trade, which has reported that the restaurant in question could not be run without drawing on foreign supplies of meat, fish, fruit, and cheese. Even this is surpassed by tho statement attributed to the general manager that it is impossible to get suitable timber within the Ejnpirc with which rto fence the Exhibition grounds. Persistence in such nonsense would be an obvious way of stultifying an otherwise promising Imperial project. An Empire Exhibition is evidently not the place to exhibit an unnecessary and humiliating dependence on the foreigner. A good deal of curiosity will no doubt be aroused as to the intentions and possible effects of the Bill affecting companies introduced in the House of Representatives last evening. It is generally assumed that this measure is designed to meet the emergency conditions which--have arisen in connection with some co-operative associations as tho result of the bad times through which farmers have been passing. The idea appears to be that under certain restrictions and safeguards such associations shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity of readjusting their affairs in such a manner as to ensure that the interests of the creditors as a whole will receive the greatest possible measure of protection. It will still be within the memory of many that when the financial crisis occurred in Australia in the early ’nineties special provision was made for the reconstruction of a number of financial institutions, and as a result many of them gradually worked their way back to a sound position, and to-day are again carrying on successfully. Apparently something of this kind is to be provided for under the legislation which the Government is now introducing. Under proper safeguards, and with the Supreme Court exercising adequate powers of supervision, the measure should servo a useful purpose. A fuller explanation of what tho Government has in view will be awaited with interest. 1

A piece of good news to hand to-day is the intimation that the Meat Export Control Board has succeeded in securing a further reduction in shipping freights to -London. The cable message on the subject is rather vague, and gives no details, but it would‘seem that tho shipping companies have met the representations of the board in a reasonable spirit. Coming as it does at the present time when there are signs of. improvement in other directions, this should put fresh heart into the farmers, and encourage those who are still struggling alorig under heavy difficulties to persevere in their efforts. There arc people who think that with the advance in the price of wool, and the excellent prospects of a good dairying season, farmers arc already well out of the wood. Such, of course, is far from being the case. Hundreds of farmers are still carrying a heavy burden of financial worries, and skimping and scraping in an endeavour to make ends meet. At the annual meeting of the Southland Co-operative Association last week, it was announced that provision would have to bo made for losses aggregating about £90,000, a substantial proportion of which was due to bad debts incurred amongst farmer clients who had been hard hit by the slump. That the situation generally is improving is admitted; and tho outlook is much better than it has been for some time past, but there is.still a lot of leeway to make up, and this latest freight reduction will be doubly welcome on that account.