MANAWATU DAILY TIMES. MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 1918. THE CENSORSHIP.

Manawatu Times, Volume XL, Issue 13791, 21 January 1918, Page 4

MANAWATU DAILY TIMES. MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 1918. THE CENSORSHIP.

We join with an Auckland journalist in the hope that the discussion regarding the attitude of the censorship toward mail notices may lead to a review of other restrictions which the Government has imposed “at the request of ,the Imperial authorities. ’ ’ Reasonable caution in withholding information which might, by some accidental circumstance, imperil the safety of a transport, for instance, needs no excuse, but New Zealand Ministers have long inclined to a reticence which has often resulted in depriving the public of information to which it was entitled. A recent instance has been afforded by the announcement in Australia that the 'New Zealand Division in France has parted with the Australian Division after a comradeship in arms dating from the Gallipoli campaign. When that statement was made Sir .Tames Allen said he had no official information, but a fortnight has elapsed and still he j has not satisfied the desire of the public i to know what new arrangement has been made. It can hardly be argued that the enemy will be greatly concerned by the knowledge that the New Zealand Division now forms part of a particular army corps under the command of General Godley or some other officer. Considering the opportunities open to the Germans to obtain such information by their own efforts, this apparent refusal to satisfy the very reasonable curiosity of New Zealanders is almost grotesque in comparison with some statements that have been made publicly In Britain—such as the strength of the British Army in the field, and the personnel of the Navy. A FOOL DEPARTMENT. The Railways Department continues to believe that every day is the Ist April. With one hand it encourages horse-racing; with the other it forces the traffic off the railways and on to the roads. The railways are Being delibor-

ately run at a loss; the public is being put to a maximum of expense and i * convenience. Trains can be found . A ' picnickers, but not for racegoers. disposes of the idea that the •], stalling is not adequate to c extra traffic. It confirms ' ,'°L )C Wlt 1 that Air Hiley is not ast °' hc ™mour resourceful administrate’ 'f 0,1 o' hram\, factotum. It intensifir a but merely a to what we are get' a year and expense aur Department not yS ; 1,0 5 iustance > its trains to-mo Qn h T refuses to delay racing people ' £To ™ to accommodate the Sandon lig l J * but 'vill not allow the light lin r railway people to run their route f J cars ovor fbe accustomed other » roin Himitungi to Foxton. In r y . words, the Department will not g j for revenue itself, and it deliberately refuses to accept revenue from tfAiy other source. This sort of thing is i <s, parody on administration. The people J are denied the use of their own rail- • ways. And yet the Massey-Ward Ad,i ministration professes to be amazed at ; its unpopularity! Somebody ought to wake the somniferous Merries up and tell him that if this is his idea of running railways it is about time ho stepped down and out. Personally, wo wouldn ’t give a persistently wrong-headed administrator charge of a public toll bar. LLOYD GEORGE AGAIN. ! Once again Air Lloyd George has felt I compelled to indulge in some perfectly ; plain words in regard to the Avar and issues relating to the war. This time he has been speaking to the Labour organisations, and particularly the section of them that imagines that the Avar can be won by passing resolutions. The Prime Alinister has put it in the plainest possible way that avo are in such a position now that wc must cither go forward and fight for terms, or else capitulate and take the consequences. The Germans are not prepared for peace; their professions in that direction have been characteristically subterauean, disingenuous and illusive; they have not gone so far as to offer us a scrap of peace paper. And Him denburg (representing the predominant militarist party) has, as Mr George points out, given no indication that he is prepared to cash our cheques. As to whether the censor was justified in allowing a speech made behind closed doors as part of a conference in camera to be published abroad in this manner, opinions will differ. It seems to us that nothing could be more calculated to depress the Allies and give courage and comfort to the enemy. GERMAN MONEY IN AMERICA. The American Government has set in. motion machinery for searching out and confiscating enemy propertymoney, securities, inheritances, merchandise, and the like. Mr A. M. Palmer has been officially commissioned as custodian of such property, and he has already uncovered holdings aggregating in value upwards of a billion dollars. Any property located in the United States and belonging to any person or corporation that is an enemy, or ally ctf an enemy, except such as rests upon special license, is

subject to confiscation. German subjects and subjects of German allies resident in the United States do not fall within the affected classes, although the President may confiscate their property if he deems it wise. Mr Palmer’s investigations, while yet incomplete, indicate that the American war chest will be enormously swelled by this gathering in. In Pittsburg alone something over £200,000 in Ger-man-OAvned money has been found. Avhile in the banks of Now York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and Cleveland deposits of hundreds of dollars are available. The value of cotton and other commodities in storage in the United States will run avoll towards a million dollars in value. Patent rights held by Germans and subject to seizure will not a large sum. Securities based on American railroads have long been a favourite subject of German investment. Aloro than 75 per cent, of the stock of a prosperous Western road was held by Germans in Germany at the outbreak of the war. Several years ago German capital was invested heavily in Western farm lands. Since the war started feAv remittances have been made to Germany. Dividends from investments held in America have gone unpaid and estates bequeathed to Germans in Germany have remained unsettled. All such property Avill go into United States Government bonds. Air Palmer beb’oves that further scrutiny will develop German property vastly in excess of any estimates heretofore made. He proposes literally to comb the country with the purpose of uncovering much which he believes to be concealed. There have been reports that the Raiser has largo investments in America, but up to now Mr Palmer has boon unable to discover any evidence tending to identify William with the OAvnership of American property.