TOPICS OF THE DAY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1798, 22 August 1906, Page 64

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

(From Our Speoial Correspondent.) LONDON. June 30. GERMAN JOURNALISTS IN LONDON. Fifty German editors, representing the leading journals of the Fatherland, have just concluded a week a visit to England as the guests of a number of well-wishers on this side of the jatei. The visit was promoted by Mr vv. 1. Stead, of the ‘ r Review of Reviews, and was backed by members of the Government and many leading publio men. The visitors made an excellent impression, not only as men of high intellect and wide culture, but also as good fellows. They were entertained royally during tliedr brief stay in England, and an enormous amount of sight-seeing and banqueting was crowded into one brier voek. The programme included a visit to Sitratford-on-Avon, where Germans laid a laurel wreath on Shakespeare’s tomb, while one of them delivered an eloquent panegyric upon the world’s greatest poet. They also laid a wreath on the grave of Queen \ icvoria at Windsor, a tribute which the ting acknowledged in a gracious message. The keynote of the innumerable sooechen delivered during the visit was he liopo that this friendly intercourse would make for that better knowledge which is the surest foundation of all friendship. The foreign editors were profuse in their thanks for the great hospitality accorded them, and vied with one another in their expressions of goodwill town rds England and the English >eople. Dr Barth, one of the most eminent members of the party, appealed to the press of both nations to work for the maintenance of peace and friendship. If, said ho, there should ever be a war —lie would never believe it possible —between England and Germany, what would be the end of it? There was not a penny in the pound in such an enterprise. The end of it would bo the abdication of Europe in favour of vho United States of America. Such a war would ho a crime. Herr Ernst Posse, editor of the ‘‘Cologne Gazette,” one of the leading journals of Germany, expressed the belief that the impression, engendered by all this hospitality, of the sincere desire to cultivate good' relations between England and Germany, would prepare the platform on which in future the debates on political matters can take place. ‘“The German journalists who are of this party will certainly,” he said, “prepare this platform in ' Germany, and so I hope that the trip of the German editors to England will be largely successful in promoting peaceful intercourse and peaceful rivalry between the two nations. Herr Runge, editor-in-chief of the semipolitical “Norddeutsche Allgemaine Zeitung,” notefd numerous evidences of good feeling towards Germany in private conversations and in the spontaneous welcome accorded to the visitors by the public when driving through the streets. “As similar sentiments exist in wide circles in Germany, there is,” said he, “a broad basis for a mutual understanding between the two nations, which can only be strengthened by unprejudiced communication with one another. Wo all know how often in the past misunderstanding and strained relations have arisen from false representations of aims and intentions, representations to which “Much ado about Nothing” is applicable. Many in Eng. land are perhaps inclined to see in the efforts towards the advancement of our people endeavours which are not reconcilable with the welfare of England. But, this also is a misunderstanding. The truth is that our need for expension lias since 1871 been entirely of a peaceful nature, and we only want in peaceful competition to win the benefits necessary for the economic development of our sixty million people. As regards our visit here, we regard its aiin and purpose only in the light of a friendly rapprochement which is directed against no other nation whatsoever.” To judge from all these friendly, not to say flowery sentiments, the editorial tour "has amply justified its inception. If it is going to have the extremely beneficial results that are claimed for it why not enlax'ge the scope of the idea and have a series of such visits? Tire one that is most badly needed is a visit of Hie London editors to the colonies. It is a pity someone does not send a party of them for a tour round the British Empire. THE SUFFRAGETTES. The Gilbertian comedy of the suffragettes—the ladies who are agitating at street corners for the female franchise —proceeds apace. Last week Miss Teresa Billington, Commandant of Suffragettes, earned a happy martyrdom by being sentenced to two months’ hard labour for riotous behaviour and an assault upon a constable in front of Air Asquith’s house iu Cavendish square. She was offered the alternative of a £lO fine, but scornfully declined to pay, and refused to allow the fine to be paid by her friends on her behalf. She insisted upon going to gaol, and so to gaol she went, and was happy. But the happiness was short-lived. A day or two afterwards she was informed that half of her sentence had been remitted by the Home Secretary, and

she would only be allowed to stay in prison for a month. It was a cruel blow, and nearly reduced the commandant of suffragettes to tears. Judge, then, of her emotion when on the sixth day of her imprisonment she was informed that some unknown lady sympathiser had paid her fine for her and that she was, therefore, a prisoner no longer. Miss Billington was furious. To remove her from her prison cell was, she declared, “an unwarrantable outrage upon her private liberty!” She resisted desperately every attempt to make her change lier prison garments for her own, and get her away from Holloway Gaol. Matron and wardresses, doctor, and deputy-governor implored, cajoled, and pleaded with the defiant little prisoner for two hours and a half. At last, after a great struggle, site was dressed in her own clothes, put into a hansom cab. and driven to the suffragette’s headquarters at Chelsea. She was too upset with sorrow and indignation to talk. But her comrades, as usual, talked freely enough to the inevitable reporter. They, too, were furious at this unexpected and unwarrantable seizure of the martyr’s crown. Miss Parkhursl: said that Miss Billington regarded the unknown admirer as her worst enemy, and her friendly act in paying the fine as “the cruellest possible outrage.” “Well, never mind.” added the suffragette, “she’ll soon get tired of paying our fines. It is a mean trick. We won’t say what we will do next, but we have a complete plan, and we mean to carry it out, whether we go to prison or death. I would rather have been in prison for twelve years than that this should have happened. Why should anyone interfere with Miss Billington? If she wants to stop in prison, why shouldn’t (die? It is cruel and wicked and unmanly to make her come out.” The suffragettes held an indignation meeting in Hyde Park next day, and launched torrents of invective at the heads of those who persisted in preventing them from becoming martyrs to their cause. Incidentally the newspapers came in for a- fair share of abuse, and especially the sub-editors. Miss Billington said reporter after reporter had come to her and explained that all the nice things lie had written about her and her comrades had been cut out by the sub-editors. It was against the latter that their efforts must in future be directed. Sly dogs, those reporters! ON TRAMCARS’ MISCHIEF. Accidents to electrically propelled tram cars in the metropolis are few and far between, and until Saturday last, London had been immune from anything in the nature of a real disaster in connection with its many services. The spell of freedom from fatal accidents was broken on that day, for a big double-decked car, weighing many tons, got out of its driver’s control, and rushing down a somewhat steep incline at express train speed, carried devastation and death with it. The car was one of a service running on the overhead trolly system from the Archway Tavern through Highgate and Finchley to Whetstone. The district traversed contains a good many stiffish gradients, one of the worst being near the Archway terminus. This is a very busy spot at all hours of the day. and the wonder is that the tale of killed and injured should be only three and twenty respectively. The cause of the accident lias not been definitely ascertained, as yet, but it is clear that something went radically wrong with all three brakes with which the car was equipped, the hand brake, the magnetic brake, and the slipper brake being each applied by the driver without result. The car had left Whetstone and travelled through Finchley with a fairly full complement of passengers. It stopped near the top of Highgate-liill, to allow a passenger to alight, and then proceeded on its way. It was soon seen that something was wrong, for the drivers are enjoined to come down the hill at a very moderate pace, and it was clear that the motor man had lost

control. Peelostrains stood aghast at the ever-increasing speed, and it quickly became apparent that an accident wax inevitable. The first obstruction encountered by the runaway car was a funeral procession returning from Finchley cemetery. Warned by the shouts of the cardriver and the screams of the onlookers, tho drivers of the mourningcoaches managed to get out of the wav, but the hearse was struck squarely by the tram, and smashed like an eggshell, the driver being thrown unconscious to tho ground, and the horses sent spinning. The impact did not check the car in tho least, and a few seconds later it overtook a big furniture van which was just about to turn into a side-street. The car, which was now tearing along at over thirty miles an hour, treated the furiv.turevan a.s it had done the hearse, and sent the ruins of it flying against a lamp standard, which promptly came down with a crash. Tho van-horses wore thrown to the ground and badly cut about, but the two men on the vehicle escaped injury. One of them, hearing the warning cries of the horrified pedestrians, leaped from the van just as it was struck, whilst the driver foil back among the ruins of the vehicle, and sustained no worse injuries than a few scratches and bruises. The tAvo collisions had naturally created a panic among the passengers in the car, and many of them jumped off. At the speed the tram was going, it was impossible for them to keep their feet, and nearly all avlio jumped AVero injured, most of them lying stunned in the roadway till picked up. The collision with the furniture-van did not check the car perceptibly, and at an ever-increasing speed it ran on until it overtook a Vanguard motor omnibus —a big, solidly-built vehicle on an iron chassis, weighing probably between three and four tons. So groat avus the momentum of the tram car that Avhen it struck the ’bus it seemed to lift it bodily, and literally throw it through the plate-glass window of a shop near by. This impact did check tho car momentarily, but resuming its Avild career, it again struck the ’bus, the hack part of Avliich Avas not. quite clear of tho tram-lines, and slewing it round* threw the hind part of the ponderous vehicle against the window of a restaurant adjacent to tho shop already Avreeked. The omnibus had been fairly avoU filled, and many of the occupants Avero hurt, as Avore some pedestrians on the pavement. Tho next vehicle struck was a cab, Avliich was brushed aside as if it were a mere nothing, and then came the end. The traincar left the metals, and came into violent collision with another car Avaiting at the terminus. This car was fairly Avell filled, and tho shock was a heavy one. SleAving round at the impact, the runaAvay struck a large electric light standard on a refuge in the middle of a

crossing, and carried it aAvay. Th# standard, however, brought the ma 4 caroer of the traincar to an end, for, turning half round, it skidded across the road, and finally stopped within a few feet of a large shop, at the top of HolloAvay road, the back part of it on tho pavement and the front in the roadway. Had not this standard done its work so effectually the car might have gone further down tho hill, and in the crowded crossings opposite tho Archway Tavern, full of vehicular and pedestrian traffic, the damage done must have been appalling. GENEROU9 GUARDIANS. The revelations concerning the flagrant Avaxto of ratepayers’ money in connection Avith the administration of tho Poor L-uv in Poplar have had one very beneficial effect already. They karo roused the auditors of tho Local Government Board to a proper sense of their dutieo towards those who have to find the money for the upkeep of our Avorkhousos and infirmaries, and items

in the acooimtn of Boards of Guardians, which have hitherto been passed Avithout question, ’ are now being closely scrutinised by the L.G.B. auditors. Surcharges against guardians and officials promise to ho the order of tho day during the audita now in progress. One of the first Boards to come under the auditors’ lash in that of West Ham. It is of course, one of the poorest district! in London, ami one of the moot heavily rated. These facts may nowadays be taken as prima facie evidence that wanton extravagance rules the roost there, for it is m the poorest parishes that guardians and officials ii"near to be most “ generous ” in their dealings av ith contractors, and most lavish in their expenditure on both nocossaricn and luxuries for the use of worklioti.se inmates and officials. At West Ham the auditor qmotioned a number of cheques paid bv the Board for poultry and stationery, amounting to £17,000. and has Issued notices of surcharges upon seven of the Guardians. His first discovery vans that tho Board had purchased no less than 41.38 fowls in nine months for use in the workhouse and infirmary, and had paid for them the astonishing price of 4s Gd each. Ho rightly characterised such a price as " absurd,” and decided to surcharge the Guardians responsible Stir their purchase Is for each fowl, which means that among them the delinquents will have to pay over £‘23o. The auditor considered 3s Gd a fair price to pay for good fowls. Even that figure is an extravagant one for tho West Ham Guardians to pay Avlien buying on tho scale indicated by tho figures aforementioned. These indicate a consumption of over «ix thousand fowls per annum, and any poultry-breeder Avould be glad to contract, for such a supply at something considerably loss than 3s a head for first-clans fowls all the year round. Notepaper for minor officials at 17s a ream also appeared “absurd” in the auditor’s eyes, but the breath Ava-s knocked out of him when he struck this item:—Throe dozen letter book oil-sheet® at. £1 Is, £3 3s. It was explained afterwards that this was a mistake on the part of the contractor avlio had put £1 Is per dozen on his tender instead of a shilling. The account, however, had been rendered at a guinea a dozen and bad been paid! The auditor criticised many other items in the Guardians’ stationery account. He admitted that they might have been getting value for money, but they had been purchasing goods of an unnecessarily high-class quality and wasting money in stylish and expensive printing. Ho also surcharged one of the exofficials of the infirmary for the cost of erecting a greenhouse and some ten or eleven pounds paid by the coroner for the use of room® at the infirmary. These fees it seems Avero treated aa official perquisites instead of being placed to the credit of tlie Board. A TURF GOLD-MINE. Is there any race meeting held at which so much prize-money is at stake as at Ascot ? At the meeting held there Last week-—a four-day affair—’twentyeight races were decided, the prizemoney ranging from £SOO up to £3370. The aggregate value of the tAventyeight races was no less than £36,003 10yi —an average of over £I3OO per race. 11l accordance with the rule “ to him that hath,” the bulk of the Ascot thousands was taken by the wealthiest patrons of tho turf. Lord Derby secured over. £4OOO by the success of his mare Keystone if. in the rich Coronation Cup and Bridge of Cannys’ victory in the forty-eighth Brennial; and the South African millionaire, “Solly” Joel, Avon £3370 by reason of Bachelor Buttons victory over Pretty Polly in the Gold Cup. ' The multi-millionaire, Duke of Portland, scoured £2200 odd, very, luckily, his colt Wombwjell winning the HardAvicke Stakes through the

favourite running out, and Dinneford’s Royal Hunt Cup victory placed £2OOO to the credit of Mr Ilekl Walker, another very wealthy owner. But the really lucky man of the meeting was Mr F. Alexander. He only ran three horses during the week, and all of them scored. making their owner £2OOO richer thereby. Lord Rosebery, Mr Singer, Mr W. Bass, ami Major Lode:* were also four-figure winners at Ascot, and-not one of the really “small owners” had a, look in. After all, however, it is only in accordance with the fitness of things that tho chief prizes at Ascot_ should go to those patrons of the turf whose support of “the sport of Kings' is lavish and sustained, and who- race rev tho love of the flung rather than for what they can get out of their bloodstock in hard cash. Many of the chief winners at Ascot hardly ever bet, and those that do usually confine them, solves to very modest investments with tho bookmakers, AN AUCKLAND BREWFRY. Ha acock and Co. (New Zealand) has been formed to acquire and take over as from March 31st, 1905. the brewery business of tire Captain Cook Brewery, Limited, which was founded at Auckland in 1802, and was lor many yeaio carried on under- the style of Hancock and Co. In 1895 the business (exclusive of the right to supply wines a’M spirits) was sold by the then owner, Mr Moss Davis, to the vendor company. share capital is £150,000, equally divided into 0 per cent, cumulative preference and ordinary shares of £1 each. The whole of the ordinary and nearly all the preference shares are al-lo-ttd to the vendor company in part satisfaction of the purchase-money, whilo an issue is announced to the public of £130,000 in 5} per cent, debenture stock, at par. The total purchase price is £224,310, of which £83,432 is payable in cash, and the balance in shares as stated. The profits of the business, apart from tho profile from the sale of wines and spirits, have risen from £15.433 for 18.95-G to £24.312 for 1905-6 before deducting debenture interest, directors’ fees, law chargee, English in-come-tax, and depreciation. The interest on the debentures will require £7150.

Tiro directors of the new company are Mr Albert M. Marks, who is a director of J. Lyons and Co., the big London firm of caterers; Mr Thomas R. Ronald, general manager of the Law Guarantee and Trust Society, and late director of the Captain Cook Brewery, Limited: Mr Ernest Davis, brewer, of Auckland; and Mr Moss Davis, of Auckland, late managing director of the Captain Cook Brewery. Mr Moss Davis has agreed to act as managing director to the new company for a period of five years, at a salary of £SOO, in addition to his remuneration as director. The assets acquired hy the company comprise the Captain Cook Brewery, twenty-six freehold and forty-one leasehold hotels and publichouses, and moieties or half-shares in three freehold and six leasehold hotels, all in the Auckland district. Mr Davis assigns to the company his right to supply wines and spirits to the tenants of the company’s hotels—a' right which he reseiwed when he sold the business to the vendor company in 1895. The company proposes hereafter to enter into a contract with J. Lyons and Co. (London) for the supply of wines and spirits on terms which will, it is confidently anticipated by Mr Davis, result in an increase in the profits of the company of not lees than £3OOO per annum. - WOMEN COLONISTS. LONDON, June 22. The aims of the societies for the emigration of women are frankly matrimonial, and Sir John Cockburn struck the keynote of the debate on “Colonisation by Educated Women” at the Caxton Hall on Tuesday when he exclaimed: “Talk of positions for women in the colonies! When there are 350,000 pairs of vacant arms awaiting

them, there are surely plenty of positions !”

The conference over which Sir John Cockburn presided was called by the Central Bureau for the Employment of Women. A number of speakers explained tho needs or different colonies. Mr W. J. Napier, of Auckland, said that New Zealand wanted 54.000 women. Dairy fanning had lately eleven oped greatly in Now Zealand, whi ! o in the North Island, where there was practicably no winter, fruit-grow-ing was being greatly extended. They wanted adaptable common-sense women, wi;o were not ashamed of doing the work of a household. He thought, however, that such women would find fruit-farming, or lit© like, only a temporary platform; their true career would bo matrimonial.

Mrs Clare Fitzgibbon, speaking for Canada., suggested that the conference should communicate with tho National Councils of Women throughout the Empire in olearlv-defincd resolutions. They wore, she understood, discussing tho codnisat'on of women whose sole capital was a thorough education in one of the spheres of labour open to their sex. in Canada the supply for tho scholastic and clerical professions more than met the demand. The disi proportion of tho sexes in. England was | duo to unthinking Imperial expansion. ! Men had been given every inducement j to be pioneers, white women had been left at home to do as best they could. They had to set the balance right by a well-considered scheme for the migraj tion of women to the colonies. | A paper by the Hon. Mrs Joyce was read, in which the writer advocated a training in gardening, dairy work, and tho like, for women proceeding to Canada, and pointed out that in that colony there were abundant opportunities for women to have coml'ortab-'e homes if they chose. Tho Hon. Bernard Wise moved tho following resolution: —“That it is desirable in tho interests of the educated women of the British Isles to consider further steps for promoting their color nisation, and that the Central Bureau bo asked, in co-operation with other societies, to set up n channel of supply, and to form a representative committee to further the progress of the movement.” Speaking for Australia, Mr Wise said that it was essential that women who went to a young colony to undertake tho lighter work of agri- j culture should have training in Great i Britain, but should he prepared to 1 learn new lessons from practical ex- i perience on the spot. He believed that | there were openings in Australia for educated women for flower-growing, for scent-making, for bee-farming, poultry-farming, and the like. Sir Horace Tozer pointed out that ( Australia now offered opportunities for j women in butter-making and other j dairy work, and lamb raising, while j fruit-growing was even now only in its i infancy. The resolution moved by Mr Wise was seconded by Mr Fabian Ware, who, speaking from his experience of South Africa, advised educated women not to go out to the colony as missionaries oif culture. (Laughter.) After the training courses provided by Seanley College and others had been explained, the resolution was unanimously carried.

LINKS OP EMPIRE. The Victoria League, which aims at promoting the unity of the Empire, had Mr Sydney Buxton, the Postmas-ter-General, as the principal speaker at its annual meeting this week. Mr Buxton moved a resolution declaring the league to be deserving of continued and widespread support from all British subjects throughout the Empire. He said the Government desired as far as it could to eliminate party questions from its colonial policy and from questions of Empire, and, with the exception of one or two questions about South Africa, that really prevailed at the present moment. They had been able to take foreign questions out of party purview; and if they

could show, as he hoped they might before many years were over, that general colonial and Empire questions were also outside party purview it would be a feather in the cap of the league, which would have done something to bring about the solution which, they all desired. Postal facilities of various sorts were an inportant link in our system of Empire. The introduction of the Imperial penny.post was a great step in the right direction, and that policy had now been carried out to its full fruition, the only colonies left out being a few islands in the Pacific. In the last few weeks they had taken a step which would still further carry out the advantages that were to be derived from Imperial penny postage. Though the Government was unable to accept the proposals for universal penny postage at the conference of the International Postal Union in Rome, they induced the conference to adopt other proposals for doubling the weight of postal packets which, in his view, would, as far as the colonial question was concerned* be of dven greater value. NATIONAL BANK’S BALANCESHEET.

The directors of the National Bank of New Zealand will have a very satisfactory balance-sheet to place before tho shareholders at the annual meeting next week. Including the amount brought forward, £8 309, tlie net profit to March 31st, 1966, amounts to £76,167. An interim dividend at the rate of 5 per cent, was paid in January last, and a similar dividend is now recommended. which will, make 10 per cent, for the year, in addition to which the shareholders will receive a bonus of 2 per cent., equal to £SOOO on the paid-up capital of the bank. While an increased sum has been placed to premises account, £IO,OOO instead of £5060, the staff on this occasion have not been forgotten, and 3500 is to be distributed amongst them by way of bonus on their salaries. This is in addition to a similar amount sot aside for the officers’ pension fund. A further £20,000 is added to tho reserve, bringing the fund up to a quarter of a million sterling, and there is a balance of £9167 to carry forward. It may be mentioned that the whole of the new shares were taken up by the shareholders at a premium of £l.