NOTES AND COMMENTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13097, 9 February 1906, Page 4

NOTES AND COMMENTS.

PURITY OP RACE.

Speaking at Palmereton North, a. few days ago, Mr. Reddon made use of some very significant language. Alluding to the purity of race and the necessity for safeguarding it against possible contamination, the Premier said that, "Under the altered conditions that now existed there was a cloud on the horizon. It might be no higher than a man's hand, but there was a cloud, and lie wished to draw attention to it, and he would like Parliament and the people with no uncertain sound to say, We'll have no interference. We will sink political difficulties, and show a bold front to maintain the purity of the race, which had been a blessing to mankind, and which, if kept intact, would continue to be so.'* What is the danger which Mr. Seddon thus darkly hints at, and which he appeals to the people of New Zealand to be on their guard against? There can be no doubt that it refers to the Japanese. Japan and Great Britain are now allies, bound by treaty, their respective Ministers in London and Tokio have been raised to the rank of ambassadors, while Japan herself has taken her place unchallenged among the Great Powers of the world. That under these altered conditions she should be satisfied to remain passive under the immigration restriction laws of the colonies, which discriminate between the subjects of Japan and those of European Powers, is highly improbable. Indeed, it has been rumoured that already she has made representations on the subject to the British Government, and that the latter have been in communication with the various colonial Governments, including our own, with the view to inducing them to modify their legislation in accordance with the new amour propre of the Japanese. We do not know what foundation there is for this somewhat sensational report, but there is nothing inherently improbable in such a. rumour. At the time the Anglo-Japanese treaty was announced we pointed out that this question would have to be faced by the colonies sooner or later. That it is both, a delicate and difficult problem goes without saying. While on the one hand we have no desire to offend the national susceptibilities of our Eastern allies, there must be no shirking of our own clear national duty. Treaty or no treaty, New Zealand must be kept racially pure and this can only be accomplished by preventing Asiatics, whether they be subjects of the King or the Mikado, 'from pouring into the colony in numbers large enough to constitute a real menace. We do not think there can be two opinions in New Zealand on this question. At the same time it is clearly the duty of the colonies to open their doors wide to all suitable immigration. While self-governing colonies have undoubtedly the right to regulate the influx of population from outside countries, it is a prerogative which must be exercised with intelligence and common sense, and in a spirit of broadmindedness. DUSTLESS HIGHWAYS. _ The Engineering Magazine, in a recent review, saya:— question of the treatment of the roads has been under practical consideration for a longtime, and the ordinary watering cart is doubtless the earliest example of this department of the work. The effect of the water is but temporary, however, and when 'the water is used in excess, as is usually the case, the result is injurious to the road. Other'materials than water have been tried, deliquescent salts being suggested, while a certain measure of success has been attained by treating the surface of the road with oil. Mixtures of petroleum and ammonia have been used with some success, while in California the treatment of the roads with crude petroleum lias been very effective in preventing the formation of dust. The nature of the oil employed seems to have a material influence upon the success of the operation, and it is necessary that the petroleum and the road material should bind together to form a tough and strong

surfacing.. This probably explains the nonsuccess, or only partial success, which has attended attempts at oiling raids in Great Britain. A similar experience is had with the use of tar. A permanent result can only be obtained by the formation of a waterproof crust to a fair depth, so that the dust-forming materials cannot work up, and this can be obtained only by combining the tar with the materials used in the construction of the road. Such a material as granite or syenite can be improved only temporally by the application of tar. the coating rapidly wearing off. -A surfacing of porous furnace-slag and tar is found to give a good dustless road, the broken slag being thrown into the tar while hot, and the pores becoming .«o thoroughly impregnated as to render the material a dust less surfacing. All method.'? of treating the- surfaces of the road are necessarily limited in scope, owing to considerations of cost and time, and while the roads within and adjacent to towns and villages may be thus improved it. isimpracticable to give the same attention i.o the- extended country routes so extensively used in touring." These considerations lead the writer to the belief that, except for towns and cities and for outside roads of limited length, the solution of the problem lies in modifying the shape and construction of the car itself; in other words, that we must seek our remedy in the ductless motor rather than in the dr.stless highway.