TOPICS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 49, 28 February 1927, Page 8

TOPICS OF THE DAY

So long as triangular candidature, runs ;a risk of disfranchising a, large majority in Greater Wellington, "The Post" will view with suspicion any tactics that bear the complexion of personally-motived vote-splitting. If two men, having municipal policies similar in principle, engage in a contest on such terms that their mutual hostilities endanger the principles of both, it is hard to resist the conclusion that their personal ambition is stronger than their public purpose; and unless some particularly good reason be shown for their persistence in splitting the vote, citizens are entitled to confirm that conclusion. Therefore it is satisfactory to observe that Mr. C. B. Norwood and Mr. G. A. Troup have mutually attained peace with honour, and that Mr. TrouD will contest the Mayoralty •of Wellington, with. Mr. Norwood's blessing. Mr. Troup is a man of experience and constructive ability; has civic, patriotism, and the leisure to apply it; is controlled by no class or section. While.it is of first importance to place the Mayoral duties in the hands of the right type of man, equally important is it to appoint a strong Council. The Greater Wellington municipality is one of the biggest industries in New Zealand. There is much room within its wide range of action for ideas and achievement. »'■»■* President Codlidge's vetoing of the legislation passed by Congress to subsidise the control and marketing of farm produce was expected, but his argument includes a; new point—unconstitutionalism. According to Mr. Pol'son's estimate, the Bill approved by Congress, and vetoed by the President, is capable of applying the huge vote of public money to a price-fixing scheme that will charge the American consumer more for, farm produce than the oversea buyer. It would probably not^ be difficult to build up a ease against this under,the American Constitution; and as,, oil the face of it, the control proposal evidently involves compulsion, the prospect of securing the help of the Courts against the Bill appears to be at least as good a3 in New Zealand, and probably better. Meanwhile, the New Zealand farmer is beginning to sit -up and take notice. He is also interested in the Australian (Paterson) export bonus on butter. What is the political future of the New Zealand farmer in the matter of tariffs-and bonuses? Will he fight jrigh protection to the last ditch? Or will he "come in" -with -the secondary industries to divide the spoils, per medium of Paterson Plans, producer boards, price-fixing, and cheap State loans? Some of our bankers do not like high protection, but possibly they like cheap State advances still less. ■

Any situation in human affairs is always safer when a man of keen intelligence, and of some independence of character, is in charge. To that extent, many people may rejoice at the. forecasted election to the Commonwealth Parliament of Mr. E. G. Theodore, formerly Premier of Queensland. Mr. Theodore will be either Leader of -the-Fed-eral Labour Party or a strong force in its development and guidance, and in either capacity can hardly fail to influence the course of . Commonwealth polities at a time when the NationalistCountry Party Government is faced with the threat of a rural breakaway that may put Labour in office at next General Election. One of the main differences between ..a constitutional Labour Party and a Communist clique is that the former throws up strong leaders, the latter throws them down

(example, Trotsky). "While Communism stands for machine rule, constitutional Labour at the best breeds men of nation-wide importance, and one of the proofs of fcheir leadership is the bitter attacks they have to sustain from their own left wing. Labour parties will remain on side with democracy so long as they uphold the principle of leadership. There is safety so long as the Labour Leader has sufficient intelligence and integrity to see both sides of a question, and to regard his mandate as coming from the people and not from tho clique that work's the machine. - '*' * *

"Hot voice ia perfect music." Surely this is one of the highest compliments ever paid to woman, fit to Tank with that supreme tribute paid (in Shakespeare) to Cleopatra: "Age cannot wither her nor custom stale her infinite variety." Miss Ellen Terry, whose speaking voice inspired an eminent London critic to pen the first-quoted sentence, was a star aB long ago as the 'seventies, and though it would be optimism to hope that she is unwithered by age, yet the note she sounds on her 79 th birthday rings with a serenity proclaiming that though the body is old tho heart is young. Life is still "wonderful." Ellen Terry lives sufficiently in the past to regard tho lato Sir Henry Irving as having forever

fixed tho standard of "Hamlet," with vast superiority over all challengers (including her own son) —so much so that she refuses to see new "Hamlets." But she has left behind such a striking pen-picture of Irving that the bias is pardonable. Miss Terry is a link with the artistic world of the Victorian era. How many such links are left?