LETTER FROM LONDON

Taranaki Daily News, 22 August 1931, Page 2 (Supplement)

LETTER FROM LONDON

» 1 NEWS FROM THE HOMELAND. PARTY OMENS. (From Our London Correspondent.) London, July 2. Mr. Snowden's illness has not sweetened his temper. Not content with a land tax compromise, which gave him the substance and L. G. the shadow, Mr. Snowden must needs “rub it in.” The result is that Sir John Simon, Mr. Ernest Brown and probably other liberals of kindred mind will leave the official Liberal P.arty. The effect of the immediate Parliamentary situation is, lees important than the possible effect on the political outlook. The Coalition was killed because some politicians feared it might destroy the Conservative and Liberal Parties as separate entities,, and leave Socialism as the only electoral alternative to their amalgam. Mr. Snowden’s colleagues may not regret that he has made that situation more than ever inevitable. THE HOOVER PLAN. Important people arc still discussing President Hoover’s debt move. Everybody is agreed that, all things considered, it may, if it has not come too late, prove the pointer to that ■ elusive “corner” that the world has been trying to turn ever since, the post-war slump set in. .But Washington cannot have failed to foresee that, once debts have been suspended, it may be difficult, if iiot impossible, to resume them on original conditions., .Some think President Hoover’s intervention now is.. a step taken deliberately in the direction of something like cancellation. My information' is, however, that Mr. Mellon, in his talks', hints at no more than ii drastic scaling down of ' these burdens —if the Disarmament Conference pans out according to American ideas. ALMOST INCREDIBLE. The concluding volume of “Naval Operations,” in which official history Sir Henry New'bolt describes the Battle of Jutland, has some amazing- statements. According to Sir Henry our battle fleet was hampered and bewildered throughout by lack of knowledge as to the exact location of our own and the German minefields. Charts of 'there, approximately uprto-date, were in existence, but were not circulated tr subordinate commanders afloat,' with the result that our movements were cramped, and what was meant to be a decisive attack on the German High Fleet became little better than a defensive action, of which we got by no means the best. Such erase stupidity at the Admiralty seems almost incredible, but unfortunately it; does not stand as an isolated inetance. '

MR. CHURCHILL AS LECTURER. ' • Mr. Churchill, I hear, is busy, with preparations for his lecture tour in the United States in the autumn. He will have a strenuous time, for, in .addition to his Work -on :the platform, he will have constant travelling and over-abun-dant hospitality. American women are of the school of Mrs. Leo Hunter, and Mr. Churchill. will, have difficulty, in avoiding their wiles. The only thing that makes such an enterprise worth while is the generous financial return, ■ to which Mr. Churchill cannot afford to be indifferent. It will mean a serious interruption to his literary work, especially his “Life of Marlborough,” which is believed to be well on the way, but it will probably afford him material for more writing. MOSCOW'S MISSIONS. Besides its original official trade delegation, sent here after Mr. Henderson resumed cordial relatione with Moscow, Soviet Russia now has two or three other- specialist deputations in this country. These manifestations are being watched, by those • acquainted with the Bolshevik methods of political propaganda and penetration, with very keen attention. So far there has been ■ much grandiose talk of “big orders,” but precious little real • business. Yet these Russian • trade missions, appear curiously content* with .this state of (things. They-assert-that, though the Government may look askance :at “Marathon” credits, private traders are accepting such terms. That is as it should be. Why should the British taxpayers shoulder trade risks that traders themselves funk?

NEW CRUISER TYPE.

There is keen speculation among Navy people concerning the 5000-ton cru.eer provided for in the current estimates She is not likely to be laid, down' until well into next year, and iir the meantime it is unlikely that full details of her construction will be Officially divulged. The Navy is concerned on the point whether she will represent-a new type, somewhat following the lines of the new German “pocket battleship, ’ or whether she will be merely a continuation of the light-cruiser type, of which, by the way, none Jias been laid down, since the end of the war. Profc’ssional opinion favours the former alternative, and there is a belief that this vessel may prove to be the first of ail allmotor driven class in which the caving of machinery weight will be employed iii developing fighting power to equality with substantially bigger warships. THE AUDITOR-GENERAL. : Sir Malcolm Ramsay, who is retiring shortly from the post of Comptroller and Auditor-General, is one of the most potent of public servants. It is the business of his small, but efficient ctaff, to overhaul the accounts of every departinent, and to call the attention of the Public Accounts Committee to any features they regard as questionable. Unfortunately these are often not disclosed till long after the event, but the the- ’mere knowledge that the pungent comments of the Comptroller will come sooner or later has a chastening effect. The ■ Comptroller’s position is unique. He owes no-responsibility to any Minister. He is subject only to the House of Commons. Sir Malcolm, who is a cousin of the Ducheso of Atholl, was formerly private secretary to : successive Prime Ministers.. • AEROPLANE .INSURANCE.The formation of a special insurance company to underwrite aviation riske, which has been announced this week, •reflects thb development • in civil aviation which is now so rapidly 1 taking place. This new company is’ being backed by some of the largest insurance companies in the country, which

are always chary about embarking on any novelty until satisfied as to its prospects. In the past the great bulk of aeroplane insurance has been done at Lloyd’s, and has been regarded as highly speculative, owing to the limited number of policies for which there was a demand. Now, owing to the increase in the number of privately-owned machines, underwriters consider the time has come when some sort of average expectancy can be worked cut. ARCTIC FRUIT CULTURE. The Soviet Order of Lenin has now been given, following an award of the Red Banner of Toil, to a 75-year-old scientist, formerly a railway clerk and later a watchmaker, named Michurin, who has devoted half a century to pushing fruit culture farther and farther into the regions adjoining the Arctic circle. Even grapes are now being grown under snow. Michurin strongly objects to being styled “the Russan Burbank.” He contends that, whereas the latter merely cultvates fresh luxury fruits for gourmets, his work aims at extending the food supplies of comrade workers! So apparently a sound Bolshevik, even if there were opportunities, could not be a gourmet, despite the rumoured revels of Soviet commissars. [ One succinct announcement in the Moscow News records the fact that the Anti-Religious Museum is closed for repairs. A SHAVIAN TOUCH. Mr. Bernard Shaw attributes Napoleon’s downfall to 'his bad habit of rushing through his meals whilst engrossed with maps and strategic man--oeuvres. I trust nothing of the sort will happen to the Napoleon of television. Mr. J. L. Baird, the young Scots inventor whose name will be forever associated with the biggest of all wireless ipagie, has the habit of com.bining research work with his meals. Even when lunching or dining at his ,-fiivourite" West End' restaurant, .Mr. (Baird cannot keep King Charles’ Bead, out of the menu. He makes drawings of ideas for technical mechanism con-, nected with the popularisation of television as they occur to him, and ’f there" is no room-Am the menu, docs not hesitate to use the table-cloth. Will any speculative waiter think of preserving a souvenir specimen? It might be a valuable possession in a few years. “TOO TRUE TO BE GOOD.” This is the-intriguing title of the new farce on which Mr. Bernard Shaw is now thoroughly engrossed. ' It promises to be a real Shavian dramatic sensation, introducing conventional French and American features, and just a dash of Edgar ■* Wallace, all with a truly whimsical bias of the sort Mr. Shaw alone can impart, to hackneyed themes., and episodes. I hear that, though the first act satisfies Mr. Shaw even as to length, he regards the second as a trifle long, and complains that, so far as

the third act is concerned, he cannot stop writing. It says spinething for the youthful zest and enthusiasm oi our.-Superman that he can, .with so many plays and books-i.o his name, still get gripped by his latest excursion • into the realm of play writing. IJe does not get blase. LEGAL BACK NUMBERS. It would be amusing to compile a list of eternal verities that modern scientific progress has knocked endways. Lord. Macmillan has furnished one fust-rate example. Coke upon Littleton, in an, immortal tome which is to lawyers what Hoyl is to mariners, lays it down that an obligation to travel from London to Rome in three hours ‘e not in law binding, being physically impossible, and therefore axiomatically ultra vires. But now that the journey has already been done by Captain Hawke in 4 hours 38 minutes in a' flying machine not half as fast as a Schneider Cup seaplane, Coke upon Littleton obviously needs revision. He would be a wise lawyer who attempted to frame a new .physical impossibility to defy, the future miracles of modern science;; ' NEW ZEALAND CRICKET. If the Now Zealanders had slightly the worst of the scoring in the Lords cricket Test, English cricketers hold strongly that they had the better of the play.’ After a promising start, record English partnership wicket-keeper and a young-amateur them in a hazardous position. . They pluckily and skilfully pulled the match 1 out of the fire, and the Eiiglish -captain | is much criticised', when Lowi-y declared, j with a wicket still to fall, for not sacriI fi.eing all to getting a .win or losing the I match in the two hours 23 minufbs left for England’s second - innings. It was no occasion for safety first., and Jardine’s policy-' spoilt a dramatic finish. Everybody clamours for the visitors, whose sportsmanship is greatly admired, to have another chance to play England during,, their present tour. THE HUMAN ELEPHANT. Small boys at the -London Zoo, who eat their lunches out of pape- bags whilst sitting in the elephant walk, are tempting providence'. -As,the elephants parade majestically up and down with their, loads of thrilled babies, they keep roving eyes constantly busy, and snatch at all inviting paper bags. A sidelong glance, a subtle- whisk- of a trunk, and. good-bye lunch. It vanishes—sandwiches, buns, sweets, paper bag and. all—down the dark unfathonied caves of Jumbo. These elephants, when their day’s task is over and they draw their z ration bun at the open-air buffet as reward for bathing in an orderly way, loiter pensively at the bar. ilf some discerning visitor stands them a glass of beer, as sometimes happens, honest proletarian onlookers grow green with envy. An elephant tosses off a beer aa though it was a small aperitif.