SUMMARY FOR EUROPE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16415, 21 June 1915, Page 1 (Supplement)

SUMMARY FOR EUROPE.

POLITICAL AND GENERAL. The business of recruiting and speeding reinforcements to the training camp at Trentham ia still the main preoccupation of the and the response to the call of the Empire in the numbers enlisting continues to be highly satisfactory. The-heavy casualty lists that have been notified from the Dardanelles have very forcibly impressed upon the people of the dominion the need of having a constant supply of trained troops ready to send forward at suitable intervals to make good the wastage of "war, and also the need of making adequate provision for tlie welfare of wounded New ZeaJanders and of the dependents of those who have laid down their lives "at the front. Up to date the total casualties notified is close on 2700, including 555 killed and 218 missing. The Governor's Fund for the equipment of the dominion hospital ship and for the provision of comforts for the wounded at the base hospitals has now closed, the amount required "having been over-subscribed. Marked activity is now being displayed practically throughout the dominion in raising funds for the assistance of the sick and wounded, of whom manifestly a very large number will require help, upon their return to the dominion, and what has already been done in this direction is a certain guarantee that very considerable sums will be available for disbursement for this purpose in various districts. The severity of the struggle at the Dardanelles has undoubtedly intensified the desire of the people of the dominion to contribute in a practical manner to the needs of the situation and commendable energy is being displayed in various quarters to this end.

Parliament meets on Thursday next, June 24. The resnlt of the by-elections held at Taumarunui and the Bay of Islands dnring the present month has at length _ settled the question of the personnel of the House. As a result of the general election at the close of last year a Ministerialist -won the Bay of Islands seat, while an Opposition candidate was successful at Taumarunui. Successful election petitions necessitated a fresh appeal to the electors in both constituencies, but the sequel proved, as was generally expected, that the mind of the electors so far as their political allegiance was. concerned had - undergone no material alteration. A supporter of the Government, Mr W. Stewart, has been returned as representative for the Bay of Islands, and a supporter of the Opposition, Mr W. T. Jennings, as representative for Taumaranui. The Ministerialists in the House as finally constituted number 41, the Opposition supporters 34, and Labour members 5. Against a combination of the Labour and Opposition parties the Government will be able to count on a majority of one only, if—as may be, taken for granted—Mr Lang is re-elected Speaker. Such a majority is the narrowest possible, but it is one which at least enables the Government to exist, whereas it is manifest that a Government formed from a party which, as is the case of the Opposition, consists of 34 members only in a House of 80 members, could not hold office for a day except on sufferance. The Prime Minister has expressed himself as confident that:the Government ■will encounter no serious difficulty in carrying on the business of the country, and claims that the result of the two byelections shows that the Government stands even better with the country than it did six months ago. The Birthday Honours which were announced a few weeks ago have given satisfaction to the community. The bestowal of a knighthood on the Leader of the legislative Council, the son of Sir Francis Dillon Bell, upon whom a similar honour was bestowed 34 years ago, constitutes a fitting recognition of personal worth, professional ability, and public service on the part of the recipient, Sir Francis Henry Dillon Bell. To the circumstance that the Birthday Honours list included the names of a considerable number of members <-" the Australian and New Zealand Expeditionary Forces attaches naturally a special interest. With peculiar satisfaction the people of the dominion have noted that four of their representatives at the front,— two of them, Major O'Neill (of the New Zealand Medical Corps) and Major Waite (of the New Zealand Engineers Corps) belonging to Otagc—have been awarded the Companionship of the Distinguished Service Order, that two others again have received the distinction of the military cross, while eight have received the Distinguished Conduct Medal.

The gazetted public accounts for the past financial year, covering, as they do a period attended by exceptional and unprecedented circumstances, are of course not to be judged by the standards that ordinarily apply. But the reasonable conclusion to draw -from them is that the dominion has come surprisingly well out of the most trying year in its history. The two departments chiefly productive of revenue, Customs and Railways, both reflect the influence of the war. The Customs revenue alone for the past financial year was £259,461 less than for the preceding twelve months- and it is probably within the mark to Suggest that the war has made a difference in the past year of half a million or more in the revenue of the country. In the circumstances it must be regarded as decidedly satisfactory that, after providing for a transfer of £350,000 from the Tevenue account to the Public Works Fund, as well as for the maintenance of the usual services of the coun-try,-and after allowing for increased rates of wages to large numbers of public servants, the Minister of Finance has been able to show a credit balance of £149 047 at the end of the financial year. The most significant feature of the annual report of the Bank of New Zealand is the fact that during a period which includes eight months of the war the bank has not been less successful in it* operation than in any other of the recent years of its history. The figures reveal a position of gratifying stability, and an impressive illustration of the economic soundness of the dominion. That there has been a considerable curtailment of trade within the dominion as a result of the war is plain. The shrinkage of imports has been heavy, but it has been accompanied by a great expansion in the value of export trade. The margin of exports over imports for the financial year has in consequence been very considerable. To this is due the fact ■ that money has been very abundant in the dominion for a few months past, and, the possessors of it being chary of investing it in industrial enterprise, the result has been a marked accumulation of funds in the banking institutions. The Bank of New Zealand is setting a good example to other large employers in deciding to give employment to a number of women clerks in order to bo aU« te release from their duties mem-

bers of Its staff w>lo are anxious to join the military- ToLnforcements.

An important event in tho history of the Anglican Church in Otago was the ceremony on June 8 of laying the foundation stone of the cathedral to be known as St. Paul's, which is to be erected on a most 'prominent site in the city of Dunedin. The ceremony, which was attended hy representatives of the clergy from other centres, and was presided over by the Primate (Bishop Nevill), was befittingly impressive. It marks the practical accomplishment of a task towards which, in the face of many difficulties, the Bishop of Dunedin has devoted patient effort for years past. When completed the cathedral will be a central architectural feature of this city, and the community at large has been able to cordially recognise in the commencement of its erection, on the site of the old church, of St. Paul's that did service for over half a century, a fitting crowning po int to the labours of Bishop Nevill in a diocese which he has administered for the last forty-four years. The obituary list for the past month includes the names of the Hon. E. C. J. Stevens, M.L.C., of Christchnrch, a former representative of that city in Parliament and a member of one of the Atkinson Administrations whose appointment to the Legislative Council dated from 1882; Mr John Sidey, of Corstorphine, Caversham, a very well-known Dunedin citizen, who as a young man was a settler in this part of Otago as far back as 1848, and was successful in establishing himself in the assured position which to a ripe age he lived to enjoy; Mr William Shand, of Allanton, one of the well-known members of the Taieri farming community; Mr John Smaill, Government Land Valuer, of Gore; the Rev. William Kirk, a pioneer missionary to the dominion, in which he arrived in 1846; Mr Frank Graham, a well-known Canterbury resident; Mr W. C. Mirfin, a veteran journalist of the West Coast and a contemporary on this journal in the early days with Sir Julius Vogel and Mr B. L. Farjeon; Captain Alexander M'Neil, of Wanganui, an Indian Mutiny veteran; Mr John O'Brien Beckett, of Riccarton, a retired Indian civil servant; Mr Henry Richmond, a well-known citize.i of Oamaru; and the Rev. Canon King, fomany years the esteemed vicar of St. Peter's Church, Caversham.