"GOD DEFEND THE RIGHT."

Colonist, Volume LX, Issue 14778, 22 May 1918, Page 2

"GOD DEFEND THE RIGHT."

• The editorial article of the London "Weekly Despatch," of March 24th, was as follows:—.

On this grave and dreadful day of destiny there is a solemn hush over the homes of ov..r people. It is the silence not of fear, but of prayer. There is a great and fervent prayer in the heart of everyone of us here in England, a prayer too profound for the lips to utter. Every man and woman of us, aye, and the very children, can pass no single moment without an aching sympathy with that line of heroes wjiich is fighting as men have never fought before that we may live. It is a day on "which John Bright would indeed have said the Angel of Death is abroad in. the land—you can almost hear the beatings of his wings. There are tears in the eyes of every mother, for the Angel of Death must inevitably lay his hand on many a, thousand little homes in the villages' and the cities. But each one of us is; resolute to submerge his grief in the greater things. The dear, patient, and careworn mother, waiting apprehensive in hor humble cottage, the proud woman in the town mansion torn with the pain of si:,spenso for her husband, who is leading his men in that hell over yemder, the father whose grim quietness masks the tremor that shakes him to the soul—all of us, everyone of us, is immovable in the faith that nothing else is of account beside the cause of England. The boy dies that England may live. On this day the terrific issue that has been growing for 47 years has come to its climax. We have that straight fight in which England is for right, and the whole brute force of the German ( murder machine is hurled against the boys who are the standardbearers and warriors of justice and freedom. That magnificent Army's head is blood but unbowed, and in the hush that is over the land we pray to God, "Defend the Right."

"I -want a>reformatory for young" girl first offenders, so that 'they may have .a chance," said the Hon. T. M. "VVilford, Minister of Justice, when replying i 0 a Wellington deputation. "The present1 position of afl;airs precludes this. "No good result is obtained by allowing young girl first offenders to mix with the irreclaimable women whom we have in our gaols. Sentiment cannot influence them, and some of thorn are bad1 through.and through. We have a reformatory institution at liivercargiil for young men, and.thus keep them apart from those men who are criminals by instinct and inclination. My policy is to help those prisoners who can be helped, arc. to refuse to license or allowany concessions to those who are de-j termined to live a criminal life. Unfortunately it is no xise being generous to the latter class. They do not appreciate it." ■ "i Speaking of the necessity for river protection works, the Hon. Sir William Fr-aser, Minister of Public Works, in the course of his reply to a deputation at Christchurch, remarked tnat in regard to many New Zealand rivers there had.been altogether too much ..apathy in the past. In Ms travels through tne country lie had been impressed with the areas *of valuable larid which" had been lost as the resnilt of river erosion. Sir William jidded that it might be necessary to follow the oxample of some European conntrios in this matter. Ho ! cited the case of Italian rivers, and said j that owing to their ainme character resulting in. their beds being silted up (with shingle, artificial banks had been constructed, and this, in some'instances meant that'the new b<nl of pueb rivers was higher- than the level of the surrounding country.

bpeaking^ of the New Zealand. Division m France, Colonel Pltigge, who has just returned, said that when the recent tfomme offensive started it had just completed live weeks' training and recreation ])ohind the lines. The men were in splendid condition when they left to resist the great German push.' One baualion marched 38 miles from the railhead to the trenches and went, straight .into the light without a rest, and the men conducted themselves most gallantly. Such a feat ot endurance ,&a"f, was noteworthy. The New ;.Zealai2ders filled-a. four-mile gap at a , most /critical time, and undoubtedly ■had done their share in holding ■*&«*• I Germans. fa" While wo are draining swamps wo j muse bo building railways (says i>ho j Auckland* "Herald). Mr Giithrie may, I plead when he speaks as Ministerl for ! Lands that tlie opening of waste ! areas by the construction of railways lis outside the duties of his portfolio.. i This is strictly-true; but it is equally. ; true that every acre of barren land in i the Dominion is part of the prospective- ; domain of its Minister for Lands. .The j.primary responsibility lies with the j Minister for Public Works, but if hoI i'aiis the whole Ministry is involved in j his failure, and the administration of' i the Lands Department can never Bei successful. I /Writing, from France on March 17th", i-a Wosfcport soldier states: "This winter- ; has been absolutely mild—as miia as ; the last one was severe. It is hard to i realise that we are in the same country !as we were last year. The winters have j been so totally different. It is a good j thing for the lot of us that we haven't jhad the same winter as last year." '