NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 18, Issue 149, 18 March 1924, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

With not unnatural anxiety the British Press is voicing some alarm that tho Prince of Wales continues to risk his life caieenng over steeplechase courses. The Prince, in his first public appearance since the recent accident in which he broke his col ar-bonc, seems by a sheer miracle to have escaped serious if not fatal injury in a bad spill at the Army Point-to-Point Steeplechase at Wokingham. On merely personal grounds, so great is his hold on the public imagination and affection an injury to the Prince would be widely regretted but there is another side to the case. The I RINCE of Wales, as heir to the Throne, is in a sense responsible to the public for his. own pe - sonM safety A general officer commanding on active service would lav himself open to severe censure were he to expose himself need Icssly on the field. The Prince of Wales, in a constitutional sense, is no less important, than the general on the field. But, more than that, his personality has proved to bo an extremely valuable constitutional and Imperial asset. From those who occupy high positions, society demands many sacrifices. In the case of -H IS Royal Highness, the public, perfectly satisfied with his qualifications to fill a grekt position, asks no more than that he should be more careful of his life.

Strong opposition has been put forward by tho representatives o'f the Church in the House of Lords to Loud Buckmaster 8 Divorce Bill which was read a second time by 88 votes to 51. Under the B l the grounds for divorce have been extended to include causes w ich have long been provided for in New Zealand legrs ation. Our own divorce laws are indeed much more extensive in that respect. The Church’s concern for the permanence of the marriage tie is based principally upon the authority of the Scripturcs-accordiug to Lord Daryngton, president of the Church Army, upon the literal interpretation of that authority. The case against easy divorce can b c argued much more convincingly if presented as a sociological theory based upon practical necessity, a necessity capable of proof. The family is the unit of the social State. The success of the family is essential to the well-being of the State. Any hmg calculated to impair the efficiency of the family as a social unit is, therefore, to bc condemned, whether the cause be due to incompatible unions or lax divorce laws. If the divorce laws be made too easy the parties to the marriage tie will, in some cases, be tempted to relax their efforts to make the best of what theoretically is a permanent bond. On the other hand, if the way out is made too difficult cruel hardship may be visited upon undeserving indiv.duals. The best solution of the eternal problem of marriage is the creation bv education, knowledge, and discussion of a popular standard of opinion as to the value of marriage and the necessity for preserving as far as possible the permanent character of the bond.

For what probably will bc tho first and only occasion during his official stay in the Dominion, His Excellency the Governor-General has had to administer a public rebuke by way of. emphasising his insistence, as the King’s representative, that His Majesty shall be treated with proper respect. On the occasion of a ptevious visit to Runanga, in 1921, an official call was made to the local convent, and on that occasion the National Anthem was not sung. Last week His Excellency paid another visit to tne West Coast, and remembered the incident when ho saw that the Runanga Convent was included in his tour of the local institutions. Inquiries, were made as to whether the usual tribute, of respect would be paid to the King’s representative on arrival at the convent, and His Excellency was informed that the children had not been taught the National Anthem. Remarking that as representative of His Majesty he would not have the King insulted, Lord JellicOE declined to visit the convent. There is not the slightest doubt that at least 99 out of every 100 of the people of New Zealand will heartily approve of His Excellency’s attitude in this matter; and there arc many thousands of loyal Catholics who will join with them in resenting the attitude of the authorities of the Runanga Convent. These people take full advantage of the liberties and privileges they enjoy under British rule, and they only bring discredit on themselves by their disregard of. their obligations as citizens. It is pleasing to contrast tho behaviour of the Greymouth Convent and Marist Brothers’ Schools with that of the Runanga Convent.