CURRENT TOPICS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6131, 18 March 1898, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

Our cable messages some bread time ago told of rioting in famine in" Italy consequent upon a italy. threatening famine, and some apprehension wa3 entertained of serious trouble. Mail advices show that in Italy bread is so dear that the poorer classes can hardly exist. The Socialists are blamed for the riots, and not without justification, but it is unquestionably true that there is a serious crisis due to tho poor harvest last year. In some places the yield was only one-tenth of that of a normal' crop, and the high duty prevents the importation of foreign wheat to make good the deficiency. Even when the Italian harvest is a fair one, the yield is proportionately two-thirds less than that of England and Belgium. This state of things ends in what is, with cruel irony, called "physiological hunger," while in many of the towns there are several cases of " white death," that is to gay, death by starvation. The hygienic schools have analysed the daily bread of the peasants and working-men, and have discovered that it is always defective in quality and often lacks the elements of nutriment. This naturally influences the physical development of the race, and the army medical examinations prove that 50 per cent of the youths fail to come up to the standard measurements. Putting together the Government and city taxes on wheat, flour and bread, they represent 38 per cent of the cost of the bread itself. It must also be borne in mind that salt, which is such an important element in the nourishment of man, is a Government monopoly ; while it costs the State only five centimes a kilo, a little less than a halfpenny, it .is sold at forty centimes, or fourpence. The result of the bread riots was that the Government resolved to call out one class of reserves to preserve order, while simultaneously the Democratic and Eadical associations of Eonie met to discuss measures against the high price of bread. Two Socialist deputies were at the same time elected to vacancies in Parliament, which is significant, in view of the popular agitation. The Government showed its sense of the need for ameliorative measures by introducing a Bill to reduce the duty ou wheat, and this, coupled with .the repressive foicties employed, and the voting of money for the relief of the very poor, seems to have had the effect of allaying the popular disorder.