CURRENT TOPICS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12089, 18 August 1917, Page 8

CURRENT TOPICS.

" 17 !G FOR ENGLAND." Of course it should bo "It is for Britain," but thor-e. whn are quick '.o res'.mt auy apparent ignoriitrr of \}\,- : Britain outbid.• the 3ui;..dijh coumia; may be assin-od ib.it 'here if, n0t1.d;.;.; of ill.- Little Kn-rlnraler about th? b.;o!:. It is a war n-jvei. j'.;-t ptiblishctl by Hodder as.d ytoiifditou, which. ha.< ;d----readv attraciOfl a very ejroat <.!-:;f c'i 1 aitoniion .'n tin'- Old Country. <; m j {- v aiii he prc.icnte.l to ''> r -.\i-" read-rs in .serial form, next .Uouu'.y. • Tim "Star" proprietary in ; iJie- rijdit of publication has secured 1 an opportunity oi ]>laci.n r .r beiore it-; I" .readers e wvv'k of stirring p.uriot.c r value, o book written around .v>>:ne of ••. i-h.i ntie-'. r.b;;orbin;r pkr.. : :c, of the Kuro- - p.'.'iji coni'ii;:i, "vrii-ii a vividnc?x of ';aa;.;j | in.;;.,.0n bis'Lai bv ,m oi)v;Cv:-iy tiior- . ! ;/";;!' k;ii;Viicd.r. f e of the v.'flr briund lb? , j ?.!.•.:■..• . Tiie s -Ti-t (reran'.:! ]>■;•.•.! in [\ llviiaiti, .'. jj:-;-;i thru the J hate ;:.,' ye. ■-:■:': ::;;!ly w.-.-.-.-A, U j one ;;:.;>.-%. i.-.' ;i:i.-. :.:finy-sidi.'ii <ir,:;.:a. " j Tho ;:'..;iior i, .Vi-- 1.-.;;;■ ai'.o Cowen. " I A ihri'i:::/; pie'iro-y/.e;.- i ;:!■-; I>?e;i h.i.-ed ion tk,> ;;,."1, a:;d i.i'.h -i.i'.e ]>kiy, which ; j Iv,; Ik-.- .:-;:-, :\ ly <■;.: X.svy I-:;-.' to • j ior p-p.rio-.:/; ■--;.,;;-:;;, ihe pubii'.: of 1 I vi. 1 :.;•.•):•! ly re;;!;- aei j (juaiiua;;'■•. in ihe •.••■"■jnt'.me t!u _ j novel l i in v; rial iVirai ".;'i'i be. A.i a:i..:coivo t ad'liti'.m to the .-r.i'ei.u b.'-acures of tho - "fctar." ' OUR TEA SUPPLIES. [ Tile iirnxu-!a:;e.' of incrca.vin;.;; and ihe peope..';. ;.ea l.»r«u;fiht> "' bhr.rply homo to ;vcw Zeab'.iid by tho. 1 ri ; -" in iho cost of livinr- .md the u.iju..i.if;r:b!e ;ic r ,'ou o* tb.j Oo'v<>i-unieiit in A clappim.; a ki.dser lax U])on an indis--1 pen.sabl-.i ni-uclo of food. New /-)aland : and Airyralii, aro probably tho two ' greatest toa-drinkin<r countries of tho L * v/orld considering their populations. • Nearly all this ie& comes from Oeylou

arid India; some from Java and China. Dealing with the suggestion that Australia might grow its own tea, Mr W. P. Wilkinson, Commonwealth analyst, suited lately that Australian climatic conditions arc wholly unsuitable for tea. But the largo slice of New Guinea which Australia possesses is believed, ho :vrd. In bo ideal for the cultivation of the tea plan'- The large upland jimslcii of Papua closely resemble those of the tea districts of .Java and Obyion, and the essential conditions avera;/,o temperaturo and humidity—are present. ,: Coloured labour, regarded as vital for tho pursuit of tea planting on a commercial basis, may be drawn wholly from local sources, or :Mp)>lemeiitcd by trained labour from o,her British possessions. An essential preliminary step would be the. .selection of a suitable district and tho establishment of an experimental station. There should bo no difficulty, onco the suiitabiliiy of conditions in Pa.pua has been proved, in encouraging extensive planting, if the recent developments in India,' Ceylon, Java and Sumatra, may b c taken as a guide." The economic advantage to the. CoinmdnweaUh of utilisir./to the fullest extent tho resourcerf of its own va?t tropical pos-••-•c-.sion. lvin-: almost unexploited within a few'hours' sail of the Australian canst, is riv.phaai.-ied by Mr Wilkinson. Ne-v Zealand also Ims an intimate concern in tho establishment of tho tea industry nearer its doors than Ceylon or China. TV*, has been .".icccSsfully ;.-, 1. 1 ;;! 'i-fl tl'pro is every rea<:ro\vu m r iji, «i->o l '-' " . •'. ( c on to believe that some parts 01 bpo.u, in Samoa, could also bf profitably devoted to tea cultivation. KINEMA REFORM. The kinema has come to stay, writ** E Yauejhan-Snuth in the "Quiver. It must" J bc reckoned with as a permanent (actor ill the social life of fac na- ! tion. 'J hat hri«R to, it behoves cacii nr.o'of i:<; to u.io our influence to make I i- u as potent a factor for good as it I pesidbly c;m bo made. The writer couj lir.ues thus: "When the war is ovci, I and Parliament lias more leisure, there i should certainly be legislation corapciliir; nil film* \--> b G submitted to a sin;;lo cen:iorsh!». The system under which tho local' authority of one place mav porre.it a fiim to bc shown, while the authority of the next town may forbid it, h thoroughly unfair and undesirable; and if it could bo, abolished the I hi noma, industry would probably be qv.ito willing to come under a State ..-ensorship, provided the latter were constituted with due regard to practical trade conditions'. There should bc legislation, too, with regard to finch matters as ventilation and lighting. With tho present scarcity of labour it would bo unreasonable to demand that kincmas should undergo such structural alterations as would make them sufficiently airy; hut after the war there will bo plenty of labour, and the Government may well demand a certain standard in this respect, just as in the ease of schools. Also it should be laid down by law that those parts of the building where the audience sits should be .so lighted as to make it possiblo to sec what is going on among thern. We :,h:til probably hiivo to wait for tho cud of the war, however, before Parliament is at leisure, to attend to these I mailers. -Meanwhile, there is 0110 most i cfT-rctivo means'of raising the tono of tlm kinema which is withm present) reach cf every 0110 of us, and that is—to go to it:''