The Star Delivered every evening by 5 o'clock in Hawera, Manaia, Normanby, Okaiawa, Eltham, Mangatoki, Kaponga, Awatuna, Opunake, Otakeho, Manutahi, Alton, Hurleyville, Patea, Waverley. FRIDAY, JUNE 20, 1913. THE WEEK

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 20 June 1913, Page 4

The Star Delivered every evening by 5 o'clock in Hawera, Manaia, Normanby, Okaiawa, Eltham, Mangatoki, Kaponga, Awatuna, Opunake, Otakeho, Manutahi, Alton, Hurleyville, Patea, Waverley. FRIDAY, JUNE 20, 1913. THE WEEK

The Marconi controversy, transferred from t_e Press to a committee of enquiry, has been reported on, and is now on the. floor of the House. There has been little or nothing judicial at any stage, nor is there likely to be in Parliament. The attacks and the defence and the decision will all be in the main of a party character. The* facts are fairly simple, as stated by the London correspondent of the Melbourne Argus. Mr Godfrey Isaacs, as chairman of the English Marconi Company, knew all about the launching of the American Marconi Company, and gave some Ministers, through Sir Rufus Isaacs the hint that it would be a good thing. This- American flotation was mentioned by Mr Godfrey to his brother Rufus, with the offer of a large block at £1 16s. This was refused, but some days afterwards Sir Rufus xv J?' 000 'ihares at £2 fmra his bro*S c,_-! la",' V- On the same day (April 1.) Sir Rufus passed 1000 shares each to Mr Lloyd George and the Government '"Whip"; and on the 19th the! American company was brought out. When that stage had been reached the! PuWip. had. to pay. £3 or more for stock which the favored speculators had obtained for £1, £1 la 3d, and £2. The I •gambling" had been going on weeks before the public were allowed to "come "•V ,a, nci wllen the contract of the British Marconi with the- Government -.was* undecided;. . '

(To-day*> cables show that Ministers have come round to the view, that their action was not .wise, and that having been conceded,, probably Tittle. more will now-be heard of the matter.)

The violence and outrages still reported m connection with the suffragettes continue to support the view that the militants suffer from a species of insanity, or malignant mental conditions, due to disordered nerves and diseased wills. Such an act as knife-slashin^ hundreds of vaulable books at St. Johnfs College library, Cambridge, cannot surelyjbe accounted for under any other hypothesis ' than the virtual insanity of the depredators. Indeed, a learned German doctor, in a letter recently addressed by him to the Frankfurter Zeitung. especially declares that1 the militancy of the'suffragettes is the! result; of a psychical epidemic of the! kind ;that "carries away certain nervour systems by mere force"; and he adds f_at ''the Flagellants, the Child-ren-Crusaders, the movements for tbe extermination of witches in the Middle Ages, and other agitations are all variations of the same theme —the .inaction of brain after brain by tiie suggestive effect of ideas coloied hy the feelings of those who are prepared to receive it. There is a strong vein of hysteria in the movement- of the suffragettes in England." The doctor who writes this also expresses surprise that the British authorities have not grappled more firmly- with the movement, an.d says confidently that in Germany it would soon be overcome. , "The hunger-strikers." lie soys. "would be medically inspected, and. if necessary, sent- to hospital, or to an asylum, or would be forcibly fed without any illeffects." But, admittedly, the madder people are, and especially when they are mad by the thousand and in different degrees, the .harder it is to deal with them, though no doubt in a bu-

reaucratic country like Germany it would bo easier than in an individualistic nation like England.

One of the events of the week has been the celebration of the Kaiser's jubilee as German Emperor, his Majesty was born in iJerlin on January 2v, 1t.59, his lather being the Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia, and his mother the Crown Princess Victoria of England, eldest daughter of Queen Victoria. Twenty-five years ago last Sunday he .succeeded hia father, who had reigned only for a short time as Emperor Frederick, in succession to the Emperor William, who was the first German Emperor. _ The present Kaiser is therefore the third of that designation, as he is also ninth King of Prussia, which, however, is now only a locally free unit of the German Empire," and* as such subject to the Empire, as all the other States have been since the great work of federal unification was accomplished in 1871, when the Kaiser was only thirteen years of age. When he came to the throne 25 years ago he therefore inherited a mighty Empire, which had become great largely through the terrible war with France, yet still more largely through the diplomacy and statecraft of Bismarck, who continued the chief adviser of the Emperor Frederick as he -had been of Emperor William. However, soon after his accession, the Kaiser set the whole world wondering by his action in dismissing the great statesmen, who had made the, German Empire, -from bis councils, and all manner of direful things were expected to happen in consequence

However, nothing material did happen. Tne fact-is that- Bismarck had, unified and consolidated Germany, and given so definite a direction to great national tendencies that, humanly, it was hardly possible for anything dreadful to befal the Empire. Curiously enough, too, the Kaiser.has in the mam earned out the Bismarckian policy of. maintaining Germany., in a-jiigli scate of military efficiency, and ho and .his advisers may be .said.to have added to that, by developing corresponding conditions' with respect to naval defence. Yet during the whole of his reign Germany has°been at peace with the world. It would seem to be an instance of assuring peace by being always ready for war; and though the Kaiser lias, like Hamlet, talked daggers he has, also like Hamlet, used none. Mankind will have reason to be grateful to him if he reigns for another 25 years in the same way and with the same results.

Of course' in international, as 111 other aifairs, the elements of vicissitude are I etc: tally at work, and sometimes the' I actions of a few selfish or hot-headed men defeat the designs of a'thousand ! wise ones, if their actions are in the ' nature of appeals to the passions or the prejudices of whole peoples. At the pre•seut moment appeals of this kind are unforuunately being made in France. At least, at the first blush it would seemnot unfair to say this con?, r.;;:--, statements like that made at a public meeting the other day by M. Etienne, the Minister of War. The German Army's sudden increase indicated, he declared, that Germany had designs on France' and that it was necessary to adopt the tnennmm service, if Frenchmen did not want to become Germany's vassals and satellites. Then, a day 'later,- the' Premier, M. Barthon, stated in the Cham- ' ber ot Deputies that the Triennium Bill —to extend service with the colors three years beyond the present limit—was not the outcome of an agreement between j the Czar and the President last summer, ! bub he pledged his word that their ally j (Russia) was making a parallel effort, I so that both armks-shoakl be ready for ! all contingencies. It is added that this J announcement "created a tremendous ! sensation, - and evoked enthusiastic j cheers.'-' All this was capped by the j Minister for War piously declaring that ' the present hour:was a solemn one for ; France, and that "the "country's safety i was at. stake. ; •" .'•"' * I

But, after all, it would perhaps be a mistake to take these matters just at their face value, or exactly for what they appear to be. It is very likely a solemn hour for the present French Ministry, that its safety is at stake, ar-d may go entirely unless the Triennium Bill becomes law. Hence, perhaps, these virtuous and solemn .'appeals'of "Ministers to their countrymen. Then, too, the Triennium Bill is doubtless an excellent measure in itself, calculated to improve France's readiness for war, and so to provide another guarantee for peace, after the manner of the German Army and Navy, and our Own' systems of universal training and Empire defence schemes.

The trouble between America and Japan is less acute tkan it was a lurtiught ago, theugh it is not yet settled. Japan, however, seems wining, oij. ; "general international • grounds-, to remain friendj ly with America, aa she*haa-_et'lared her | readiness to renew the agreement for arbitration which expires' omi-the Ist of August, it is, however, said that the senate is likely to'oppose the renewal. This recalls the fact tnat at the height ot the recent controversy there were fiery spirits on both sides-that deplored the agreement as a barrier to a" settlement by the sword,, wnich was spoken, of as inevitable, sooner or later, in any case. In America there were high military authorities that went' the length of pointing out how little the States had to tear in-the event of a'conflict. And yet tho late General Homer _Uea, an American;, held quite a different Opinion. In his well-known book, "The Valor oi Ignorance"—after showing the- weakness of the American army', and insisting on the uselessness of the American coast defences—he. en"deavored to prove -that if the Japanese landed a force in San Francisco or Seattle- it wouhl be impossible to dislodge them for a considerable time, owing -to the weakness of the Pacific Coast 'defences, and the isolation of the coast by the great desert across which help from the east must £?"-?* . c demonstrated how easily the 1 Inlippiiies, Hawaii^Samoa, and Alaska might be taken. The majority of the American ships being 1,000 miles away on the Atlantic Coast, would be useless and even when.the Panama Canal was finished he was doubtful if it would be worth the strong force that would be necessary to guard it. His conclusion was that Japan,would have no difficulty in acquiring as much American territory as she would he pleased to take. ! Holding these convictions, he deemed it ' bad policy for the United States to enter ( into an alliance with Japan, and considered that it would be wiser to remain free for warlike coalitions with other States against that country. There are indications that this view :_ spreading in America in consequence of the strained relations in connection with California's Anti-Alien Bill.

A casein factory is to be. erected immediately at Terapa, three miles from Hamilton, by the New Zealand Dairy Association. ''There are too many people in New Zealand," said Mr Primrose McConnell in his paper delivered before tke National Dairy Association at Palmerston on Wednesday, --under the impression that all other countries are asleep except,their own. and it is just this kind of feeling that in -the 'end leads to stagnation and stimulates a .pride which is not desirable." For Influenza, take Woods' Great Peppermint Cure. Never fails, ls 6.d.