CONDITIONS IN DOMINIONS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16738, 20 May 1922, Page 17

CONDITIONS IN DOMINIONS.

LORD NORTH CL FFE’S VIEWS. ij Tttlecr&ph—Press Association—Copyright Australian and N.Z. Cable Association. LONDON, May 18. Lord .Northcliffe at a luncheon given (bv the Australian and New Zealand Club, referred to tho Australian* designating immigrants as “ Pommies.” He did not understand what the term meant, but it was regarded as an insult-. t A gentleman seated near Lord Northcliffe’& table interjected, “Rosy cheeks.” Lord Northchffe provocatively replied, “ Like yours.” Lord Northchffe sounded a note of warning about the large number or Italians emigrating to Australia. “ There are several types of Italians,’* he said- “ Are you getting the right type P W« want to hold Australia as British.** He etreseed the necessity for the careful handling of immigrants on their arrival, and paid a tribute to Barnardo Home boys as the best type. The immigrant of thirty-five becomes a grouser,” said Lord. Northcliffe- “ I met plenty of such. They are slacking about from town to town, receiving the extraordinary hospitality that everybody gets in Australia, and cursing the country.” CONDITIONS OF LABOUR. Lord Northcliffe launched into a discussion on the food of the Australian workman. “He is as well fed as anybody in this country. The workman in England has no idea how well the Australian workman is fed. No man in England can imagine what Australia is like until he sees it. There are all sorts of unexpected things and places which you can never contemplate. What surprised me was the beauty of some of the places. We have heard, for the last twenty years, more about New Zealand than Australia.” Lord Northcliffe deplored Labour's attitude in certain Australian States. There was no place in the world, he said, where labour was king to such a great extent, and in Queensland it was in the position of dictator. A contrast was Canada, where they had not tied themselves to ridiculous T*abour leadership. Canada had not made Labour so dictatorial and costly that the State could not ive an exporting country. “ This is true of Queensland,” said Lord Northcliffe, “ and T became unpopular for saying these things, but T am used to unpopularity. In New Zealand Labour seemed more orderly and less arrogant. Australia is so far away that the Australians have no standards of comparison. They have many beautiful things hut do not admire them, because they lack the means of comparison with other places. In. Australia T was asked to admire second-rate buildings and bridges, hut not the magnificent physique of the people, which is the best in the world.”