NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 48, 20 November 1928, Page 10

NOTES OF THE DAY

Those who have seen the special fish trains thundering past, on their daily trip of two or three hundred miles from Scotland and the North to the markets of London, will appreciate the impoitance attained by this commodity in Britain. Fish caught off the coasts of Northern England one day may be found the day after sizzling on the breakfast plates of the Londoner and indeed in many distant parts of the country. Round New Zealand we have been supplied with seas on a scale peculiarly lavish. Those who understand the ways of fishes have told us that fish are there on a scale nearly as lavish. Eventually, perhaps the quicker the better, the time must come when we in New Zealand must learn to co-ordinate our methods so that this harvest, which requires no sowing, shall reach the breakfast tables of the whole Dominion with the utmost efficiency.

It Is to be hoped that it may be found possible in some way to consider the case of those students who recently had to pass through the ordeal of their University examinations under the very trying conditions that prevailed in the Wellington Winter Show building in which they sat. The weather at the time was extremely cold, the building was draughty and leaky, and added to the general discomfort was the noise of hammering by workmen employed in the building. To these conditions many letters that have appeared in cur columns bear abundant testimony. It is admitted that it is a difficult matter to find suitable accommodation for the very large number of candidates who now present themselves annually for examination. The University authorities no doubt did what in advance seemed best. The weather and other circumstances, however, militated against the success of their efforts, and the students suffered. Failure means the loss of a year. The loss of a year out of what may be the most valuable decade of a young man’s career is a serious matter, and if he is on a course of study which involves considerable expense it is an additional hardship. If such failure occurs through some disability imposed upon him under the conditions of his examination he has a just grievance. There can be very little doubt that the conditions at the Winter Show building were distinctly unfavourable to good work, and may conceivably be responsible for the breakdown of candidates, who in more congenial circumstances would have done much better work. If there are any means whereby the University authorities can review the results giving fair consideration to the circumstances and possibly to the reports of the professors on the work of the candidates during the year, this is eminently an occasion for such consideration.

Auckland busybodies have brought rivals into the field to challenge Sir Joseph Ward’s claims to the Premiership. The fact that neither Sir Joseph Ward nor any other party leader can claim a majority in the new Parliament does not seem to matter. The Government can be beaten by the combined votes of the United Party and the Labour-Socialists, and so already the spoils of office are being parcelled out and distributed. One gentleman, apparently lacking a sense of humour, has suggested Mr. Polson as Prime Minister, while another advances the claims of Sir Charles Statham, the Speaker in the last blouse of Representatives. Mr. Polson has never sat in Parliament and his party is covered by his own hat. Sir Charles Statham is also an Independent with no following, but he at least has the advantage over Mr. Polson of a long Parliamentary experience. It is, of course, absurd to attempt to set aside in this irresponsible fashion the claims of Sir Joseph Ward. The Leader of the United Party is the only member of the opposition with any pretensions to consideration. Next to the Reform Party his following is the largest in the new Parliament, and it would savour of the basest ingratitude on the part of his followers to pass him over. Nor do we think for one moment that they have the slightest idea of doing so. What is of more practical interest is what is going to happen after Sir Joseph Ward, with (he aid of (he LabourSocialist Party, carries his no-confidence motion. At present he has 24 followers; he may gather in four or five Independents—and what then? Will the Labour-Socialist Party keep him in office so long as he docs what he is told? Mr. Holland says his party holds the balance of power. It will be very interesting to see whether he is right, and if so how he will exercise it.