LOCAL GOSSIP

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17651, 11 December 1920, Page 1 (Supplement)

LOCAL GOSSIP

by HERcrno.

F.gns of Christmas are multiplying Among the most welcome of Nature's reminders is the pohutukawa, which is now showing red in sheltered spots in and around Auckland. Few trees observe the ralendar more closely than the New Zea Jnnd Uhnstmas tree. There are no Christ. maces when it is not a blaze of crimson un at least some of the beaches near the city. In more exposed positions it is often at its best early in the New Year, an anachronism that, may readily be forgiven * tree that is buffetted during the Ion" winter by salt gales, and yet dons by the early summer a- mantle of a brilliance whhb any hothouse plant might envv.

There would seem to be more convmrd spiritualists in Auckland than most uf us thought. A friend who went to tear Sir A. Conan Doyle the other night landed in a nest of them. They were only identifiable from other people by their applause, and the stranger in their midst compares his feeh'ngs to those of a foreigner surrounded by Britishers singing "God Save the King." Not that he harboured any hostile feeling, or that he was even severely critical, but his neutrality and lack of conviction was entirely foreign to his surroundings. The crisis came when Sir Conan Doyle threw on the screen a slide " The Second Thomas, ' winch was a reproach to the doubt fu!. The stranger says he applauded that heartily. He was able to do so c n th 6 ground that it was rather a go-xl ■ ke.

We are quickly getting back to normal. This -week,, our Wellington friends have been exercising their ingenuity to revive the so-called Auckland-Wellington controversy that formerly contributed so much tn our gaiety. We can smile when they talk ibout tie dark conspiracy in the Yorth, to despoil the Public Works Fund, nor are we gTeatly concerned if they choose to regard a claim for £4,000.000 worth of Wellington city—that is another pre-war friend—as a cunning scheme of Aucklanders to divert attention from doubtful land titles in Tauranga. But when it is gravely proclaimed that Auckland wants to be the capital of New Zealand—that port of joke should be banned in such hot feather. On their own arguments, the idea, is foolish. They say that Auckland makes the Cabinet and pulls the strings, fo that Wellington gets nothing. If that is truewhich is not admiitea — why should we risk the substance of political influence in grasping at the shadow of political grandeur?

Whenever there is a question of superiority in any other field, the rivals meet in friendly trial of strength, but in this perennial contest of political grievances, the combatants are satisfied to engage at long-range, and as all parties are entrenched in fortifications of self-confidence and self-importance, much of the gunnery is wasted. To get an. effective conclusion, v;c should have a sort of Davis Cup contest between teams of debaters from the various provinces. Brought face to face, they would have to drop assertions and suggestions, and give fact for fact, until the best case won. These oratorical contests might very well be arranged as curtain-raisers for the Davis Cup matches

It would be ungenerous not to acknowledge Mr. . Brookes' explanation of his earlier attitude towards the selection of Auckland as the sceiTe for the Davis Cup contests. The suggestion was that there was a greater risk of unpropitious rain in Auckland than in Australia, "and Mr. Brookes having confessed his fears that this observation had made his name "mud," it is only fair to assure him that nis name shines as brightly as ever. The only thing is that we do not regard him as a professor of meteorology. His reputation is a matter of shots on the tennis court, not long shots in weather forecasting, for which we rely upon another celebrity, and so far as Davis Cup week is concerned, upon the tradition that racing at Ellerslie is a guarantee of fair weather.

There are more ways than one in which ft politician may become famous. There has just died in the United States a senator, who was never guilty of the indiscretion of a speech. The American newspapers, apparently not having beard of our Mr. Dickson, hail this record as unique, and to their credit, be it said, they commend it to the notice of the rank and file of voluble Parliamentarians. In quite a different fashion the Prime Minister of Australia has attracted public attention. Mr. Hughes has not lapsed into silenceone imagines that would be rather uncongenial to Mr. Hughes— he startled the House by employing, in the course of debate, the adjective which is known the world over as being peculiarly Australian. Mr. Hughes carried it off, hut his example is not to be commended to lesser lights in the political world.

There is, after all, not very much to be said for the deliberate use of strong language in public _ debate. Much more excusable and amusing was the slip which is associated with the name of another Australian politician, Sir John Robertson. He had been receiving deputations in his room and, assuming he had met the last, sat down at his table to overtake arrears of work. Presently someone entered the,room and said diffidently, " Sir John." The old man was immersed in his work, and without looking up, exclaimed petulantly, '* Now what the — do you want?" An exclamation of horror then claimed his attention, and he sat up to find himself confronted by the Bean of Sydney at the head of a forgotten deputation.

There are some curious inconsistencies ] ii the cost-of-living figures. For instance, according to the statistics, pork chops are extraordinarily dear in Auckland, and ?ery cheap by comparison in Wellington. Brit if you want pork sausages you can have them as reasonably in Auckland (/>n paper) as #anywhere, except Dunedin. This, of course, may either be a reflection on the sausages made in Auckland ?nd Dunedin, or an evidence of profiteer,n K in, say, Christchurch, where sausages are dear. Then you have cheese cheap in Christchurch, where it is» not made in great quantity, and comparatively dear in Auckland, and still dearer in Hamilton. Jf)« cheapest place in New Zealand for cheese is New Plymouth. This is as might be expected, but those who search the wntieties for information do not alwavs meet with what they expected.

There appears to be no end to tlie controversy over the Health Department's •"•heme for the employment of women dental Tiui-?es in the schools. The Dental ftohool m Dunedin is solid against it, and As ni;htin ? it very hard, but it would be TOore to the purnose if the authorities of *ne school would c:ve us something constructive— some substitute scheme -which ls practicable and within reasonable limits , « cost. As to the dental profession, it be said to be divided, but in all the r ""curnstances the support ?iven from that quarter in wonderful. From a purely hellish point of view every dentist might ft « expected to be an opponent. It :s "Ot so by a long wava fact, which says a mod deal for the dentists—and for the scheme. The danger of the whole gabble is that the scheme never gets beyond- the stage of controversy, and that Scause of professional disagreement fiothinjr -win b done or the children*