TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVI, Issue 138, 10 December 1908, Page 6

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

The British Government has x - eceived two mortifying blows Two Mortifying during the last few Blows. days. By an unhappy coincidence the Licensing Bill and the Education Bill, which were introduced in close succession in the last week of February, have gone to their doom almost simultaneously — the one destroyed by the House of Lords after the popular chamber had passed it by a majority of nearly three to one, the other abandoned in the House of Commons because a compromise which was expected to ensure its passage even at this late stage of the session proved to be defective in a vital point. But in the second case no less than in the first the slaughter of the Bill really lies, at the door of the House of Lords. It was the Honse of Lords which destioyed Mr. Birrell's Education Bill of 1906, after it had safely weathered ;ill tho perils of the Commons, and but for the fear of a repetition ol this performance Mr. Runciman's measure might oasily have been pioceeded with and put through the House of Commons even after the serious disagreement over the' financial aspect of the " contracting-out " clause. With the House of Lords blockirjft tho vrp.y, tho C4pvornniont must deal with this obstacle balora It can expect

to make satisfactory progress. Very significant is the warning of the Westminster Gazette that "submission to rebuffs from the House of Lords and the Church involves the extinction of the. Liberal Party." In default of courageous action to cope with the obstructors, the Westminster Gazette prophesies such a dwing of the pendulum in the Conservative direction thai Tariff Reform may secure a large enough majority at the next general election to make it "the sole political issue for years." Before the opening of next session Mr. Asquith may be expected to have matured his plans, which will doubtless include some spirited device for getting even with the Lords. He has been turning the other cheek to the smiter long enough. President Eoos&velt's new message to Congress appears to Tho President's be occupied chiefly Message. with an indication of the measures that are in. liis judgmeaat demanded by the existing situation in the United States. It is left to Mr. Taft-, as the [President incoming in March next, to give practical effect to these ideas so far as the power of the Government will permit. It if, noteworthy that nothing is said of an alteration in the tariff, and from this hint it may be inferred that Mr. Taft's administration will be, like the 3?resicLent's message, unsensational. Thero will be a period of what the Hon. James Carroll, in our own. case, affectionately describes as "legislative rest." If only a single one of President Roosevelt's far-reaching schemes is carried 1 into effective law, a sufficient advance will be made during the next four years. The essential thing is that industrial prosperity shall continue undisturbed. The message is distinctly weak in regardi to anti-com-bination legislation, as compared with some of the President's previous utterances. Bad combinations should be prohibited; good combinations should be permitted; and the difficulty of distinguishing flesh, from fis-h legislatively remains as vast as ever. The development of Government control of interState communication, by railways, telegraphs, and telephones, i» a sound idea, and on© which is likely to make practical progress. The progressive tax on inherited wealth, is a popular idea. The old-age pension scheme, relying on private initiative, ?s in Germany, and the development of the law of employers' liability, help to make a staunch platform for the future. We notice that President Roosevelt refers to \ Labour leaders in America also as waging a class war, regardless ot the community. The encouragement of- Pacific steamship communication is a matter which touches ourrolves. The occupation of Cuba is anrnunced as ending early next year, ?nd there aro doubtless many Americans who wish that the occupation of the Philippines could be similarly ended. At present that conquest is only a burden. Even at th© risk of wearying our readers, we return to The Immigration the attack on the Muddle. Government's apol- ! ogy for an immigration policy. The portfolio of this department has been thrust upon the Hon. J. M'Gowan, but it would be unfair to wholly blame him for remissness for which the Government of the day is responsible. There has been much vague talk by various members of tli3 Cabiuet, but the public stretch their ears in vain for a valuable utterancefrom Ministerial lips. Two or three days ago the Prime Minister announced that ho had cabled to London, giving instructions that assisted passages were to be granted to nobody except persons qualified as farm workers or 1 domestic helpers. For many months we have understood that the Government's scheme was to aid only such people as could help oii the land or in a household, and, therefore, Sir Joseph Ward's remark about tho cable message is slightly puzzling. It is persistently stated that individuals with no aptitude for farming or domestic work manage to get part oi' their passage money paid by the people of New Zealand. We have strong reason to suspect that the system of "examination" in London has loopholes through which a wily person may wrig. gl© without great difficulty. It is admitted by reasonable people that New Zealand has plenty of room on the land and in households for more hands, but some care should be taken to ensure that the right brand of hand is allotted the bonus of a cheap trip out. The Immigration Department is surely worth seriout thought by the authorities, but we cannot see that this necessary thought has been given to tho subject by the Ministry Mr. W. G: Atack, president of the No. 1 New Zealand The Contending Amateur Athletic AsAthletes. sociation, has fired a few projectiles at the No. 2 N.Z.A.A.A. from the battery of the Canterbury Times, of which he is editor, but the shells have done no damage. Both armies have now definitely taken the field, and are fighting in the open and in quiet places. Otagu and Southland seem to be firmly enlisted under the flag oi Wellington, but Auckland, with Canterbury, appears willing to serve under the Christchurch "Napoleon." The staff officers of each army have two objectives, which are identical, i They all desiie to secure the sympathy of Mr. R. Coombes, President of the Australasian Union, and each faction wishes to command a majority of the clubs of New Zealand. The Christchurch brigade is getting out circulars for distribution throughout the islands, . and, of course, the Wellington force will make a counter move. The Australasian Union can recognise only one governing body in New Zealand, and it will naturally be inclined to acknowledge the one which has the majority of members. | Whether Wellington or Christchurch ' wins the battle, the result will not altogether be pleasing. What will become of the defeated minority? The. generals of the contending armies should agree to abide by the decision of the clubs. If a, majority favours Christchurch, Wellington should cheerfully resume its allegiance to No. 1 council, and if Wellington wins' in the battle of the clubs, Christchurch should gracefully bow to the inevitable and allow No 2 council to bo the governing body. Between the market "bears" and "bulls" of London and Fighting the other places the "Bears" and "Bulls." producer, the man of the "primary industry" in New Zealand and Australia, constantly runs a risk of being clawed or gored. For many years New Zealanders have complained about the moagreness of the details available about the world's supply and demand. The middlemen have talked glibly about "gluts" or "scarcities," according to the way which they desired the market cat to jump, and the people here have been left largely in tho dark about the real stale of affairs, in spite of the efforts of the High Commissioner's Office to illumine the gloom. A larger lamp, with more^oil in it, is required, and it is hoped that this lamp will be furnished by the International Agricultural Institute. A cable message yesterday mentioned that the Victorian AgentGeneral bad hopes that the speedy universal publication of Government figures relating to wheat, wool, and other products, would "check to some extent the speculation of the middleman." This

middleman, who has the happy position of standing as the "candle-stick" on the trade see-saw which has the producer at one end and the consumer at the other, can uplift cither one by giving the other a bump, and all the time he has good fun himself. The very comfortable middleman, of the magnate brand, has had a very long innings, with the producers and consumers bowling and fielding for him. It is time for him to be given out leg-bef ore-wicket.