ECHOES of the WEEK

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 51, 23 November 1929, Page 21

ECHOES of the WEEK

PRESS OPINIONS ON :: NEW ZEALAND TOPICS

The tribute paid to the Hon. George

Forbes by his colleague the Minister of Justice was well deserved. The illness of . the Prime Minister has thrown a very heavy burden on the shoulders of the deputy leader, and Mr. Forbes has carried it most capably. Mr. Forbes has quite the right temperament for the task, because he knows when to be firm and when to be conciliatory, and he has a downright way of answering criticism that is. always impressive. He has been supported very loyally by his colleagues, if not invariably by all the members of his party, and he will be just as ready to acknowledge their share in the successful work of the session as they are to pay their tribute to him. Of course, the major credit for the good work belongs to the Prime Minister himself, but it must have been a comfort to Sir Joseph Ward to know that during his enforced absence from the House the leadership was in such competent hands. —Christchurch “Tinies.”

Long observation has convinced us that there is too much relative speeding over crossings. The pre-motor generation will probably remember signs at busy corners commanding drivers of horse vehicle to “walk over crossing.” To-day the motor has immensely speeded up ail street traffic, but the negotiation of crossings has not been made a sufficiently pronounced exception in the matter of slowing down. Most motorists appear to dislike them and to try and put them behind with as little delay as possible. The interval between the pedestrian’s sighting an approaching vehicle and its arriving at a spot which has to be traversed by both has been reduced to a matter of a few seconds, but the pedestrian of to-day has not been equipped with powers of acceleration superior to those possessed by his forefather. He is entirely, dependent on the compassion of the motorist, and, in a small percentage of that genus, consideration of others has either never existed or has shrivelled till it is hardly discernible. —Dunedin “Star.”

The results of the land and income tax collection enter into the whole calculation, and these are not known, and will not be known until well into the second half of the financial year. Land tax last year produced £1,140,000, and. income tax £3,310,000. It is difficult to ‘believe that the Budget estimates of £1,493,000 and £3,400,000 will not.be realised and even exceeded, since the. natural increase to be looked for is supplemented this year by special taxation extensions imposed upon the farming community and intended to realise a very large sum. It will be poor comfort to those prejudicially affected by the new burdens to discover, as they very likely will, that their special contributions have been applied, not to wipe out the deficit which was their excuse, but to give the Government the financial backing required by its policy of borrowing.—Christchurch “Press.”

It Is unfortunate that a way has not yet been found to dissipate an atmosphere, born of the native unrest, which has been hanging too long over the mandated territory of Samoa, and must be a hindrance to its prosperity. Patience is, after all, a negative quality, and it is very desirable that in the exercise of it the Administration should find, if possible, some inspiration that would enable it to appeal successfully to the Samoan mind, for the peculiar quality of which a certain allowance must no doubt be made. The Samoans must, after ail, be capable of understanding that the Administration exists for their benefit, and that it is only reasonable and necessary that they should submit to its authority and not allow themselves to be led in a contrary direction by persons who may be actuated by interested motives. —“Otago Daily Times.”

During the past few months the totalisator returns for the leading, race meetings throughout the Dominion have been showing a tendency to rise, and it may be assumed from this that money is more plentitful than it was, and there is a greater public willingness to circulate it. There was a heavy increase in investments at Addington for the three days’ trotting this week. A sum of £201,312 was put through the totalisator, representing an increase of £25,000 on the same days last year. At Riccartori there has been an increase of £13,000 for the three days’ racing already held, arid if there is a proportionate increase to-day, it will mean that the totalisator this week will have handled approximately £40,000 more than it did for the same week in 1928. While this will distress many people who hold strong views about racing, it cannot be denied that it is a hopeful economic sign. Admitting, of course, certain exceptions, it may be taken for a fact that investors do not put more money on the totalisator than they can afford to lose. So .it would seem that money has grown considerably more plentiful than it was—Christchurch “Sun.”

Froth the elimination of some level crossings, which were notorious deathtraps, to the exhibition in railway stations of posters luridly depicting the fate of a motorist who tried to beat, an express over the permanent way, much has yet to be done, and it is only right that the board should be prepared to spend portion of the revenue derived from motorists on poviding reasonably effective warning devices at dangerous crossings and on improving visibility where this is necessary. With the co-operation of the Railways Department and local bodies the board should be able to accomplish a great amount of valuable work, and, when every level crossing in the country has been improved in the manner indicated, that: work can be extended further with the substitution of subways or overhead crossings for level crossings in these populous areas iu the Dominion where such a step would make for greater safety and tend to decrease traffic congestion.— "Otago Daily Times.”

The selection of Mr. Wilford illustrates how persistently parties in power look to the political world for a High. Commissioner. It has always been done, and if the latest indication is any. criterion it always wiU be done. If ever there were circumstances suggesting a different course, they exist now. The party in office is less able to spar* a vote or to risk the loss of a seat than any has been since the position was first created; yet it takes a man from active political life and sends him to London. The party itself can be left to judge the wisdom or. folly of this course from the party viewpoint , To all others the appointment is outstanding as an example of the way the office is made a political, generally a party gift.—“ New Zealand Herald.”

Progressive cities have long ago abandoned this primitive system, of milk det livery. It may or may not be a menace to health, but it is certainly dirty. The universal adoption of the bottle system, would make for a cleaner supply, and.' the difficulties it presents are comparatively small when compared with its benefits. Milk suppliers may say that it would cause them trouble, but this could be avoided by the establishment of a few bottling depots—-that is, if the suppliers were unwilling to do the botr tling themselves. Whatever tiie diffi- * culties, they are insignificant in comparison with the virtues of the bottle system.—Christchurch “Sun.”

When the salaries of members were augumented a good many years ago'by the passage of a vote on the Estimates, granting them an extra sum of £4O each, the transaction was widely described as a “£4O steal.” The procedure which has been followed this year may not be similarly stigmatised, but .it will be regarded with distinct disfavour by a great many people who are prepared to admit that the salaries of members are lower than they should be as well as by those —a large section of the community—who may hold that, the legislators should not help themselves to increased emoluments at a time when they have pleaded the state of the finances of the. Dominion as a reason why the salaries of public servants should not be advanced. —“Otago Daily Times.”

Mr. Wilford, apart from the Prime Minister, is the only member of the Government with Cabinet experience; and some of his colleagues are as new to Parliament as to their portfolios. His leaving diminishes the Government’s resources of knowledge and debating strength; it means that his portfolios must either be carried by Ministers who have as much as they can doto carry their own, or be given to a new Minister, who will not be easy to find; and it means, as likely as not or more likely than not, the loss of a seat the Government cannot afford to lose.. Mr.' Wilford has held the Hutt seat largely by the aid of a personal vote, which he will not be able to bequeath entire to his Party’s candidate’ in the by? election.—Christchurch “Press.”. ’ .

Motorists in general are now more careful of their liquor consumption than ever before. Being aware of the responsibility in their hands, many motorists have become abstainers. Others are scrupulously careful never to drink if they know they have to drive a car immediately afterwards. There are, however, circumstances in which a man may unintentionally take more than he should. In such cases many motorists stop their cars and wait until they are in better condition to drive. Unfortunately both the police and the magistrates have in the past shown a tendency to classify these cases with the worse ones in which the' man was actually driving his machine. If greater allowance were made for the man who has enough good sense to stop his car and "sober up,” perhaps more erring motorists would be encouraged to do so.—Auckland “Sun.”

Politically, the appointment of Mr, Wilford as High Commissioner is a mistake. He is one of the ablest, and most experienced men in a Ministry which contains only three men with more than a year’s experience.of office, and one of the best debaters in the House. His departure will therefore weaken seriously the party and the Government. The ends of party ad-, vantage and general efficiency in Government would have been better served by leaving Sir James Parr in England: for another year or more. Mr. .Wilford, however, has excellent qualifications for the post; probably there is no one: in New Zealand with a better claim’ to it. He has many years of experience in public affairs; he is an excellent speaker and a capable administrator; and he is a student of world affairs, a qualification that is more necessary than ever now that the League of Nations is in being. He will represent New Zealand worthily both in'London and abroad. —“Auckland Star.” '

There is a confusion in the publie mind between education and examinations passed, a position that was assailed iu the report of . the Royal Commission on university education in New Zealand, when it was stated that “examination separated from teaching does not by itself adequately test the quality of the work-, and can be more effective; ly and easily prepared for, by means that, arc not educational.” The fundamental indictment against external ex-' aminations is that the learner’s attitude of mind is changed from creative activity to the memorising of undigested facts or of generalisations framed' for him by other minds, and from the necessarily slow attempts to acquire knowledge, to the accumulation of materials which will help to answer examination questions. There is therefore' widespread support for the view that/ to a considerable extent, certain types, of examinations are hindrances to educational progress and the sooner efforts are made to minimise the evil by other methods of assessing efficiency the sooner can teachers, from primary school to university, employ the soundest teaching principles, and students of all ages apply themselves to the acquiring of real and usable knowledge.—. Christchurch “Times.*