TOPICS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 2, 2 July 1926, Page 6

TOPICS OF THE DAY

Labour accuses tko Prime Minister of back-sliding, but, if the accusation rests upon evidence submitted by Mr. D. G. Sullivan, the information may be. dismissed at once. Mr. Sullivan is reported as stating:— The Prime Minister came back from the polls with the best of intentions, but immediately certain powerful interests combined to oppose some of the principles enumerated by him, notably in. connection with the bus regulations—the Prir'o Minister climbed down in one essential direction. As Labour generally supported the bus regulations, we assume that the "climb-down" was the withdrawal of the compulsory excess-fare provision. If that is what Mr. Sullivan meant we cannot agree that the change was due to the opposition of powerful interests. It was due rather,to the widespread public protest against a measure which would operate unfairly against private enterprise. From the outset, we have advocated the reasonable protection of public transport enterprise, but we have not desired to see municipal interests safeguarded by unfair methods. Mr. Sullivan scented "big business" behind the Prime Minister's alteration of the regulations. He is wrong, but possibly not more in error than Labour has of tea been in its attempts to judge public opinion. # # * There are more males than females in New Zealand. That is not a new fact disclosed by this year's Census, but the Statistician gives it added interest by his summary of the sex distribution position according to provinces. •Auckland, it is shown, has a male majority of 14,800, Hawkes Bay 2000, Taranaki 3000, Wellington 7000, Marlborough 1000, Nelson 2400, Westland 800, and Southland 2800. In Otago there is the even balance of a well-arranged- jazz party—nc Jadies sitting* out and no'men forced to the shelter of the smoke-room; but Canterbury has 2200 more females than males. It is rash to attempt to account for tftis irregular distribution—except with the generalisation that the older settled provinces keep a more even balance than the new, because young me:; can seek fortune, and careers in

new areas more easily than young women. It would be even more risky to speculate upon the effect of the preponderance of males in one part, and of females in another, even to the extent of suggesting that competition for wives would be keener in Auckland than in Canterbury. Fortunately (or unfortunately, according to the point of view) the question of economic dependence is not so pressing now as in the mid-Victorian era, and the man with a family of daughters can settle ..in Canterbury without feeling that he is endangering his children's prospects. But there is one aspect of'this matter which may be -garded quite seriously —that is the effect of our immigration policy upon the sex balance. Unavoidably we are, to some extent, increasing the malo majority. We balance that in a measure by offering special inducements to young women who will come aB domestics. Is it wise to limit the immigration to domestics or to women accompanying families? The most successful early settlements were by_ parties including all classes of men

and woven. Eecently it was suggested at th' British Commonwealth League Conference on Empire migration that New Zealand shoul.l offer inducements to university women. But the difficulty is certainly great when our own womenfolk aro quite ready to nil all occupations except the domestic.

Various references in the House of Representatives serve to emph--ise the difficulty of making rapid provision for the unemployed when no plans have been made in advance. It is pointed out, for example, that many of the workless cannot earn sufficient on tho contract system. If they are to receive a living wage it must often be at the expense of the State or other relieving body. In these circumstances it is more than ever desirablo that Parliament should consider some means of providing relief work suitable to all classes, so that when the emergency arises the plan may be at once put into operation. Afforestation of waste areas near the cities is, we believe, one of the best means of meeting the chief difficulties. Members of Parliament have individually expressed approval of this proposal. We hope that their action will not end with commendation, but that they will help to complete in detail a scheme so that it will be ready for the possible recrudescence of unemployment next winter. Such action will be of more value tr the unemployed than any amount of criticism of the Government.

In what appears to be a candid statement (reported in another column in this issue) at the annual meeting of the Waihi Gold Mining Company in London, the Chairman of Directors admitted the unsatisfactory nature of developments at the bottom of the famous mine (15th level), the apparent dependence on lateral exploration, the reduction of the "likely" undeveloped areas, and contraction of ascertained ore reserves. His remarks leave the impression that, though the outlook is somewhat less bright than in the past, development work, with an eye to the future, will continue. But one shareholder urged the directors "to get out of the mine what gold was in sight, and not look forward to prolonging the life of the mine." This is the sort of grab-everything-in-sight view that ill becomes an English capitalist engaged in winning an irreplaceable natural asset from a British Dominion; and such an expression shows particularly bad taste in the meeting-room of a company which has won so many millions from one small—and possibly not bottomless—New Zealand hill. The company's record hitherto has been an honourable one "of gold mining on industrial lines, not a greedy rush to "pick the eyes out of the mine." A development policy, as compared with an all-dividend policy, means winning gold—or coal, or timber, •as the case may-be—that would otherwise be lost. So much is due to industrial economics. Moreover, it has to be remembered that Dominion gold mines, were an economic pillar to the Empire in the War, and still are a factor in a currency crisis not yet ended.