PUBLIC OPINION

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17453, 3 February 1925, Page 6

PUBLIC OPINION

WHAT OTHER WRITERS ARE SAYING. A POLITICAL HURDLE. When Mr Churchill’s appointment to .he Exchequer was announced, those ivlio favoured it prophesied that he vould make his mark, and those who lid not that he would make trouble. He has lost no time in fulfilling both cinds of prophecy. A fortnight ago the ?oun which he had made in an entirely unexpected direction had set- the whole French Press singing his praises and acclaiming .as “ a red-letter day and a landmark in post-war history” the contusion of the FinanciaP*f'milorence at ivhich lm had “ succeeded in recreating the spirit of solidarity and friendly agreement which has been lacking since the war.” Mr Churchill is now giving the prophets of trouble their turn. and. lddly enough, it is a. much more definitely direction that his energies arc taking this time. A Cabinet crisis. “ accompanied by threats ot resignations.’’ has. we are told by the “Daily Mirror,”’ followed Mr Churchill’s refusal to increase the Navy’s £55.000.000 allotment by £10,000.000. — 4 ‘ Post,* Wellington. NEW ZEALAND INSTITUTE. Dr Marshall's presidential address at the annual meeting of the New Zealand Institute re-directs attention to the difficulties under which the .scientist works in New Zealand, and to the great value of the help he gets from this modestly endowed organisation. Generally speaking, the New Zealand man of science whose inclination is towards research is io he pitied. If fie lias private means, he is fortunate, but even thou he suffers from the handicap of being far away from the main currents of scientific thought, and repositories of knowledge. All honour, then, to scientists who, in the face of such discouragement, go on working, building up slowly, like the coral insect, the reef of scientific knowledge. Many o.‘ those men in their enthusiasm are content to labour for little or no return, and only rarely does anything lik-i fame come to them. Tt is therefore important to note that, as Dr Marshall points out. without the help that the institute gives the results of most o'r this research work would be lost to the world.—Auckland “ Star.” THE FARMERS. Tn the development of our primary industries a good deal is to be learned from visiting experts who come to this country to study at first hand its agricultural methods and standards. Assuming always that they are competent, visitors of this type arc better able than many of our own farmers to see in clear and accurate perspective exactly what progress the Dominion has made in farming industry, in what directions its standards admit of improvement. Tt is a serious, though i common, mistake to rate the opinions uf visiting experts r n such matters as of little value merely because they have spent only a brief period in the Dominion. Our own tendency is to be content to measure the progress made locally over a more or less extended period. Apart from their scientific knowledge, visiting experts often enough are guided in forming their opinions by an extended experience of farming, not only in the countries from which they immediately hail, but in others they have visited from time to time.—“ Dominion." Wellington. RAILWAY GOODS WAGGONS. The decision of the Minister ior Rail ways to place the control of goods waggons under a central authority follows the advice of the recent comi mission and is in harmony with modern railway practice. There is ample evidence of the need for reform. Shortages of rolling stock aic frequently recurrent, yet there is, according to the Department's own report, ample equipment for the traffic. It is shown that there are 22,000. waggons used exclusively for goods traffic, with an aggregate capacity of 210.517 tons, and assuming only one and a half trip:: a week, an annual capacity of 16,420.000 tons. Yet the goods transported in 1923-24. exclusive of live-stock, amounted to only 6.512.723 tons. The late general manager asserted that the litficultics which arise are due to the delay by consignees in releasing trucks under load. In the commission's opinion, this was not the whole explanation, particular reference being made to the point mentioned by the Minister, that control by district managers results in holding waggons idle while other districts are short.- —"Herald.” Auckland. U.S. POPULATION ELEMENTS. Wc all know that in France statesmen and economists are greatly concerned at tlit> stagnation from time to time disclosed by census figures with regard to home population. Feu people. however, are aware that in the United States of America the population question is occasioning a good deal of serious thought, despite the fact that aggregate census figures are so rapidly growing. There, however, the cause of perturbation lies in the results of investigations that are being carried out to discover the relative fertility of the native-born and immigrant stock.', their social, moral and intellectual equipment, and their probable evolution. One ot tbc most illuminating ol these studies lias just been published by the University of Wisconsin. It b entitled. “ Changes in the Size ot American Eamiliespin One Generation,’' and its authors are Protessors Baber, of the University of Illinois, and Ross, of the University of W isconsin. Ihe broad conclusion i- reached that age belonging to the middle class in the Central United States. 1 lie shrinkage in family size he tween the present generation whose families are filled and their parents is 3£.£ percent “Hawke's Bay Tribune.” .JAPAN AND RUSSIA. What are newspapers to the opinions of their nations ? The question, in view of a diplomatic correspondent's statement to the London “ Daily Telegraph." is far from academic-. Tldauthority declares that the entire Russian Press is exploiting the recently .signed Russo-Japanese Treaty in the most dangerously suggestive fashion. When 1 lie treaty was announced, the declarations of friendship for Britain, which were repeated emphatically in i fif* .la panes** Parliament. It seemed just. a matter of large concessions to Japan, partly as reparation for Soviet misdeeds and partly as equivalent for Japanese recognition of the Soviet a in] possible commercial help. But th* Russian Press, according to the above authority, is brimming over with pro paganda, translating the treaty to mean a “ Slavo-Japanese Alliance.” with Germany in the background, de termined to join later, against the world generally, but particularly aimed ;11 Britain and tbc l nitrd Statcv. i "New Zealand Timee." Wellington.