THE STATE AND UNEMPLOYED.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXIX, Issue 11188, 7 May 1886, Page 2

THE STATE AND UNEMPLOYED.

The Melbourne Argus commends the course adopted by Mr Stout in speaking so boldly to the deputation of the unemployed which recently waited on him in Ghristchurch on the question of * calling Parliament together to consider the matter .of a State bank and pro--; viding work for the, unemployed, and says : — If a Government hastens the letting of ordinary contracts, it has done almost: all it can in an emergency. Direct aid, such as the payment of dail? wages on relief works, is a bottomless pit, The offer of even three.fourths of the ordis nary daily payment •is like sprinkling sugar in the neighbourhood of flies. It attracts the loafers and the 'ne'es-do— wells,, who would willingly work at half, pay fdr the Government, well! knowing that they would not 'give am. honest half-day's work in return. ...If a State,ever is driven to relief works i£ should simply be to stand between deserving men and actual starvation ; only pie,ce,v work should be thought of, arid the rate should ba so low that the mfen would be glad to accept the first private pffe^.Given low wages for a month pr'.twpi., and a mass of work is usually thrown into the market in Australia; tlie demand for labour rapidly sends wages > up, and thus the normal rate is restored; economy is promoted ; the recuperative powers of the colony obtain fair play; enterprise is stimulated and resources are developed in all directions ;— so that on looking back, the pinch is found to - f be a blessing in disguise. But an army of State labourers employed for employe ment'ssake is as much a drag upon a community as so many thousands of ' soldiers, prisoners, or paupers. The cost runs from thousands into fens of.thousands, and into millions. And where does the mon?y come from? It must be extracted from the pockets of the colonists generally, the hohest working man and the small shopkeeper I included. Their earnings and their | savings are drawn upon, a-^d the very .- fund which should provide reproductive investmeut is thus impaired, if not destroyed. The net result of State aid is, indeed, that the labourer is worse off because he is paupcrsed, and the taxpayer is worse off because he has . lost his money. We hope no Victorian Ministers will have to meet deputati jnß of men in distress this season, But if they have, we shall trust that they will look the unemployed straight in the , face, and, like Mr Stout, will boldly deolare that thoirduty is not to paralyse private effort. Nature's cure ia bfctte* than the quack rtm.)dy.

The wonders of tho telegraph are bjyond comprehension. Here is a puzsle that was forwarded to us (Napier Telegraph) yesterday from the Bluff :— " Movement has been started for raising a fund to be expended furnishing localist on Protestant Irish with eventualit}'." It is supposed to be a special telegram to the Melbourne Age, and as the winter evenings are on up, we $ive it in place of a conuudnunto our readers. Some weeks ago we noticed a paragraph goin£ the round of the English journals, to the effect that in New Zoaland strawberries wa-e eaten with pepper. The Young Ladies . Journal for April give 3 the surprising information :—'« ln tfew Zealand the correot method of eating strawberries is with pepper."^ We do not know whether bho method is general throughout the colony^ but we do not know that with sweet straw> ' berries pepper is very muoh nicer than 3ugar. The first important case under the Act for the protection of young females came v ' for trial in London on Bfch February. The defendant is Lauiaa Hart, a wealthy procuress, who occupies a large house iv Chelsea. The Pall Mull Gazette describes the house as a "child's brothel." The defendant was charged with having procured H ;s-» Spiers, aged twelve years, and Florence Bichardson, aged thirteen years. Florence gave her evidence at the tmj, and testified that Rosa Spiers mot her and showed her an invitation to take tea at Louisa Hart's hr.use. The children wenfc to the house, and after tea they were entertained with uuvic for a while, and Were then conducted to a room where they w re introduced to an old man of respectab * appearance. They were compelled to subrait to the grossest indignities. The details of th* girl's evidence were revolting. The children made a second visit to the house and on this occasion met another old man' who was also of respectable appearance! The woman Hart gave money to the children, and instructed them not to tell their parents atout what had occurred, and to spond the money on candies and cakes The CoupS committed Mrs Bart for trial * refusing to admit her to bail. The Gazette asserts that if this prosecution is followed up the public will learn the names aud facts disclosed to the Secret Com mission appointed to enquire into the Gazette's charges.