The Machine Age

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 54, 26 November 1938, Page 13

The Machine Age

Sir, —In your issue of November IS I read with interest tbe statement by the .Minister of External Affairs under the above heading. As 1 do not agree with quite a lot that the Minister has eaid, 1 don’t think that the article should be allowed to pass without comment. 1 note that the Minister goes on to quote that the days of toil and labour have passed and that with the aid of our engineers and scientists we have completely changed the conditions of life to what prevailed 50 years ago. _ Well, as I was at hard work oO or more years ago I should have more than a passing idea of the conditions that then prevailed. I know only too well that machinery and science have played a most important part. I also claim to know that a stupid education and a more than liberal government have played a much more important part. It's a well-known fact that while directly machinery does away with work, indirectly it makes work —machines are not made, remodelled and destroyed without work. In addition to that we have thousands of new that were totally unknown to the world 50 years ago. Let us take for example motor-cars and trucks, electric machines, wireless apparatus, following on with millions of cash registers, to say nothing of the millions of typewriters, etc. I maintain that there is as much work in the world' as ever, but unfortunately the people don’t go to their work with tlie same spirit as they did 50 years ago. And the reason is this: 50 years ago one had to rely upon one's own resources; there was no pandering government to run to. In those days our workers respected their superiors and their positions for the simple reason that if a man lost a good position it made him realize that, he had made a grave mistake. It’s long past time that the Ministers of our present Government realized that the Great War was the cause of our people slipping as they did. Let me tell Cabinet that the principal difference between 50 years ago and today is this: In those clays people went to work (not because they loved work) but for the simple reason that there was nothing else for it. Just let the members of our Government ask themselves these questions :— First: Have our people improved physically? . Second: Have they improved mentally.' Thirdly: Have they improved morally? Fourthly: Have they improved in honefity and everything pertaining to good citizenship? I sav no. And the reason is because we never received the common sense eduat.ion that we should have received. Those who had good parents to instil sense into their children fared not so badly. But, alas, what about the bulk who were brought into the world by parents who had never received a sensible education. They received the present-day so-called education with little or no common sense to back it up. And upon leaving school they were forced out into this world to toil for a living among all classes. Hence the chaos that exists today. The present Government are no doubt trying to do the correct thing,_ but the question is are they going the right way about it? I am like the Scotsman—l hive my grave doubts about it. It is necessary for all of us to realize that this is a hard and cruel world and if we don t see to it it will soon be worse. I am confident that spoonfeeding the masses won’t mend matters. The people must have slipped in past ages and unless ye ire extremely careful we will slip again. I know excessive usury is a nigger in the woodpile; but it’s like.a drop in the ocean when compared with dishonesty, laziness, selfishness and drinking.—l am. etC ” F. J. RYDER. Otaki, November 20.