CURRENT COMMENT

Taranaki Daily News, 18 October 1930, Page 1 (Supplement)

CURRENT COMMENT

OTHER POINTS OF VIEW

(By

M.O.S.)

■After internal dissension among the miners Who operate the Balmain colliery in Sydney, a body of miner shareholders decided to declare the pit black. Most coal pits are. * #. . # * •

While Jn Berlin, a rejuvenation expert, Dr. Peter Schmidt, author of a book entitled “The Conquest of Old Age,” has put an end to his life at the age of thirty-eight. No other means has yet been found so effective.-

r Meantime the New Zealand (pricket Council is endeavouring to arrange a visit from an Australian team to tour New Zealand towards the end of the coming season and to have Bradman included in the team. Fieldsmen feel thisdS y a sly moye?at co-operating with . the New Zealand Amateur Athletic As- ■ gpciation '. to raise the standard of long . distance running. , . ■; , News comes from overseas that England is to have what is described as a Folk: Museum. The formation of such a museum is suggested by the Royal Commission of Museums which, in its / final report, says: “No folk museum illustrating the doinestic life of our people in bygone generations te in .existence.” The' scheme, which would make for much more interesting museums and art' galleries, might well be adopted in * New Zealand. For instance, a whole host of subjects could be found depict-, ing the domestic life of the great Victorian Age. ' ‘ * ' ■ A glimpse at the? catalogue for the Victorian section of the Folk Museum would reveal,the following: i. •. In the works of art; in the Victorian sectioh an honest attempt has been made by the artiste and craftsmen to adhere rigidly to the principles of that period, not only in the choice' ofsubjects and the emotional and intellectual qualities depicted in the scenes, but also in the'technique employed. The,, acute observer will notice immediately lor instance that in each case the artists have given the models the correct num? bet of arms and legs. The furniture, too, is'remarkably similar to die furniture which is to be seen in furniture shops.' Moreover, in every instance the heads ,t>f the various models are attached to. the necks in the old, conservative manner.! The most striking representations are:— J No. 265 A: A remarkable portrait from the brush of A. Rake, R.A., entitled Woman with Long Hair. A woman, pale and depressed from con- • /slant headaches, stand** before her , niirr ror coiling masses’of dark hair on top • of and around her head. The pieces of bent. wire to be seen on the dressingtable, it. may /be interesting, to note, were used for sticking into the hair and were known as hair-pins. No. 273: Pottery group from the dis•■’finguished/thumbs of Antonio Galileo. The scene evidently represents a Victorian drawing-room. Antimacassars are to be seen on the backs of the plush velvet chairs and sofas. An aspidistra plant' gazes' sadly from the bay window. Three women lie ba.ck in chairs in. various attitudes of distress. It is ... a scene of indescribable tensity. By the mantelpiece stands a young man wearing an expression acutely contrite and repentant.-; : The group te entitled Ladies in Drawing-Room Fainting on Hearing Gentleman Say Damn. No. 291‘A: A vivid charcoal sketch di youth aged eight •in • attitude of respectful humility before elderly. gentleman with mutton-chop whiskers. The sketch is briefly called Son.- Addressing Father as Sir. No.■■ 299: Emotionally mne of the strongest of the pictures exhibited, this painting in oils shows a young man, with clouded, rebellious countenance, slinking from the portals of a fine old Gothic building. At the entrance to the doorway stands an elderly man in gown and mortar board. His usually benign features for once are drawn and stern. His right arm is out-flung, pointing away ■ into the distance, in a supreme gesture of dismissal. This interesting painting from the brush of Ezekial Burnam, R.A., is named Young Man Expelled from University for Upholding Free,Love. , ■ .

One of these days Parliaments, too will be preserved in the folk museums as interesting relics of the past. . At the moment of writing, our own Parliament hopes to close the session at .the end-of this week or early next week. . Onb. bheds a. tear. For parliamentarians, after all; do not have the happiesjjfoftjnies. Mr. Phillip Snowden, for instance, when he held out so strongly against the entire continent of Europe not so long ago on the vexed question of war debts, was hailed as the defender of the Empire, as a-man of principle arid of firmness. But now, when he takes the same attitude, in holding out against the ‘ariff proposals, firmness is called obstinacy and principles are termedprejudices. • ' ' ' . 'N' "' * * And Parliaments do too have a difficult J task in carrying out the wishes trf the country. *Over the same question of Imperial tariffs Britain is sharply divided in opinion. If the hell were rung for. the British newspapers to vote on the question, it appears that the division Inst would read as follows: Ayes. Noes. Daily Mail Manchester Guardian Morning Post Daily Herald Daily Express \ Daily News Daily Telegraph > The Times did not vote. Every one of the newspapers of course snows that it i«s right. On the other ■ hand, every one of the politicians knows that some of > the -newspapers must be wrong. If he fails, the opposition >. newspapers will point out that they warned him. If he succeeds, they will point out that the country managed to win through in spite of him. It is much better to .be a newspaper than a politician. i . * . ’* * i; As for the disbanding of our own Parliament, say what one likes, they will be missed. And perhaps no one • will miss them more than the writer. For who now will say the queer things, the extraordinary and the exquisitely funny things to write about?