The Sun TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 1928. THE REFORM TEST TEAM

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 444, 28 August 1928, Page 8

The Sun TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 1928. THE REFORM TEST TEAM

ANOTHER, important administrative task has been thrust upon the Right Hon. J. G. Coates by the latest redistribution of Ministerial portfolios. *lt looks like the bad practice of overloading the willing horse. ' 'Following on the resignations of the Hon. W. Nosworthy, Postmaster-General, and a lot else besides, and the Hon. G. J. Anderson, Minister of Marine, Labour, and so on, the Prime Minister has assumed control of the Ministry of External Affairs, while the portfolios of Internal Affairs has been allotted to that genial administrator, Sir Maui Pomare. All the other posts which were held with colourless efficiency by the retired have been placed to the satisfaction of the Government. The Prime Minister’s share of administrative work and responsibility is as impressive as it indubitably is excessive. In addition to being captain of the State’s political test team, Mr. Coates (to rise a familiar metaphor) is also lock, rover, halfhack, centre-threequarter, wing, and fullback, while often, because of special circumstances, he has to act as referee, as umpire, and as a keen barracker. It is honest and deserved praise to say sincerely that he is an able captain, a good player, with a quick eye for goals, a fair referee, a lively linesman, and a great fan for his side. But it is to be regretted that some of the other members of the team are not as prominent or as capable in combined play with their leader in the Reform game. In the House of Representatives the other day a Labour member made an oblique reference to the Prime Minister as the Mussolini of New Zealand. There was open doubt on all sides of the House as to whether the commentator meant to he complimentary or was merely indulging in sly party malice on the lee side of Mr. Speaker. The real intention of the fellow may never be known, but in some features of slaek Parliamentary work it is a pity that the Prime Minister does not rule with Mussolinian vigour. A touch of the Fascist ruler’s ruthlessness now and again would dispel some of the somnolent apathy on the Right, and dissipate most of the nonsense on the Left. It may be mentioned, however, as a point of coincidental interest that, with the assumption of the responsible duties associated witb External Affairs, Mr. Coates now holds as many portfolios as the number held firmly by Signor Mussolini. If the Prime Minister should again -be complimented or sneered at for being the Dominion’s Duce, he may find consolation in the fact that a black shirt in democratic politics is'more respectable and less provocatively dangerous than a red shirt. But if the example of Mussolini must be dragged into New Zealand politics, Italy manages quite well administratively with a Cabinet of eight Ministers, though the Man of Destiny himself is equal to six ordinary politicians. The new Republic of Germany makes history with eleven Ministerial administrators. France has thirteen, and the Commonwealth of Australia also favours the unlucky number. The United States of America, whose Federal administration these days moves the stars along, has a Cabinet of ten departmental administrators. Politically, New Zealand ought to be well administered, but if the present numerical strength of Ministers he sufficient, why was it greater when the duties of the Government were less? Either the Ministers then did not do enough for their money, of the Ministers now are being called upon to do too much. Meanwhile, political embarrassment has bruised personal ambition. But it gives the country appreciable economy.

DEATH AT THE CROSSING

TWO more railway fatalities are announced, one from Stratford and the other from Morven. In both cases the unfortunate victims were deaf and short-sighted. Their deaths, however, cal! attention once again to the ever-swelling list of crossingaccidents. Recently there were collisions between trains and motor-cars at Shannon and Matamata resulting in two deaths, and a collision at Dunsandel with fatal consequences. Almost every day there is some reference in the newspapers to a fatality, an accident or a narrow escape at these death-traps. - The Government, no doubt, is perturbed at the prevalence of such distressing occurrences, but the number of extremely dangerous crossings, we would again point out, continues to excite uneasiness and even alarm. There -are other crossings, too, not actually dangerous but constituting a potential risk to the lives of those who use the roads of the Dominion. The Railway Department congratulates itself, not without good reason, upon the comparative immunity of its passengers from death and injury by accident. But there is less cause for selfcongratulation over the precautions for safety taken in the interests of those who travel by road. In some cases, of course, fatal accidents are due to extreme negligence on the part of the road-user, hut that does not lessen the responsibility of the department to leave no stone unturned to eliminate risk. So long as a single dangerous level-crossing remains the department is neglecting its duty to the public. If the railways were not owned by the State, we would hear some very scathing criticism of the-delay in producing a policy for the speedy elimination of death-traps. The whole question might profitably he discussed by the House this session.