SOME CURRENT TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 15 August 1931, Page 4

SOME CURRENT TOPICS.

(To the Editor.) Sir, —In Saturday’s issue I notice a reply to Mr. Polson’s address re. saving on education expenditure. Now your correspondent under the nom de plume of “Justice” seems to condemn any curtailment of this enormous expenditure of £4,500,000 on a population of 1,500,000. If sueh reckless extravagance is to continue it must end in disaster. Cornpart our expenditure with that of Victoria,’ which has a population about equal to. New Zealand, with an education system quite equal to New Z ’aland, and at a cost of £2,500,000 ag ♦ t our £4,500,000. Why this enormous extra expense to. New Zealand? Perhaps “Justice” can explain. I also-note in your leading column much comment on fire wastage.' Witliso many wooden buildings, this will-.ever recur. In any case, it seems simply a matter between insurance companies, who can afford to pay big dividend's, and the other person, who is prepared to pay: the premium, so why all this to do, which has been served up for years • past, and. will still be with us in the future? If things were not as they are’ it would mean thousands more unemployed and enormous extra calls on Government funds, and in the long run we would be left with some deplorable sights in our cities, instead of our keeping more up-to-date with our buildings and private people subscribing millions for employment, which would otherwise have to be met from Government funds.

'With regard to your comment in today’s column re American tariffs and Mr. Vincent Ward’s remarks in the House yesterday, I wonder he had the courage seeing that he was in America trying to hoist a huge trading with New Zealand in car accessories and. petrol, which would be the worst thing that ever happened to New Zealand if the people were foolish enough to tolerate it. I think Mr. Ward was busy on this matter when he should have been attending to the country’s business at the session of 1930 and' again at the February session of 1931. I think he was about two weeks present for those two sessions. No wonder he thinks of retiring, for if he did not he would be retired by the electors. —I am, etc.,

H. BOOKER. Opunake, August 13, 1931.