Observations by the man on The Look out

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12856, 13 April 1912, Page 2

Observations by the man on The Look out

Though you didp't or you wouldn't; Ur you hadn't or you couldn't: You jolly, well must look out! —Kipling. I

The electors of Albany have a warm and lurid sense of humour. They celebrated the political promotion of the Prime Minister and his chief lieutenant by lighting a bonfire and holding a fireworks display! Having regard to tho circumstances in which the Mackenzie Cabinet came into existence; Albany's demonstration appears to me to have been, perhaps uninentionally, suggestive of the falling sticks of play-ed-out politic* 1 rockets. * * # * "Tho country wants a poli:ical rest— more administration and less legislation." This opinion was expressed by the Hon. Thomas Mackenzie, Prime Minister, at tho Manaia banquet on Tuesday. If my memory doers not play ?p.-> f.alsr\ Sir_ Joseph Ward voiced an ~'.-,, '--.-.i op'r.!;;:i ivhen he succeeded Mr. i ''•>■! ITr Mn:-k?nzio is quite right, i. ,-- In [ ; ,- floes need a political rest V t i I- not" 'likely to get it from a '"/-.try pledged to give effect to the ' vof red radicalism outlined in the L\ .t Speech from the Throne. * * # * Ont> day this week 1 talked for n few minutes with a visitor from the Homeland. He was a man of some education and refinement, and, not being a snob, he did not affect the airs of a superior person. I soon discovered that he had fallen very much in lovo with this country. He was warm in his praise of New Zealand's scenic beauties, I;o showed that he appreciated the wealth of our natural resources, and he had a kindly word for the people. But ho struck one jarring note. He said that in the course of his somewhat extensive travels he had had opportunities of seeing something of the homo life of the people, and he had been pained by the apparent lack of family cohesion. "From what I have sr.en," he said, "it seems to me that your family ties want tightening up. Pal:-----j ents and children do not 'mix' here as they do in the Old Land. The young fellows have their friends, the girls have theirs, but they do not comingle in the home. - Their tendency is to go 'on their own.' and to have very little in common. It is so different in England, where family ties hold fast and parents and children and mutual friends come together and share each other's ,joy s and sorrows. The result of >my observations out here is as I have stated, and T should like to believe that the instances I have seen are the exceptions. Unforutn'atejy, however, others who know the country better than I can claim' to do, assure me that the regrettable tendency which it has pained me to notice is the rule, and not the exception. If I might presume to offer,a word of advice to tho people of New Zealand it would be to urge them to work back to the good old pattern of English family life and to learn to cherish more dearly the ties of blood. I know I am treading on .delicate ground,- but nevertheless It, am constrained to a^fe whether the nqn-v religious character of your otherwise admirable system of education is not responsible for th,e lamentable decadence of the spirit of unity which ought to pervade the homes of a truly British community." The stranger has gone his vvay, but his observations have provided us with food for thought. How is it in your own home, my friend the reader ?

Many book lovers who reside in the country often deplore that they are unablo to gratify their taste for reading to tho full extent owing to the want of a well-equipped library in their neighbourhood. From a Dunedin paper I learn that for some years past the committee of the Athenaeum in that city has been trying to get into touch with this class of people, and at; the present time it is sending books from the institution by rail to no fewer than ten country districts. It is claimed that by the existing arrangements it is possible for those who live out of town to get a constant and adequate supply of books from the Athenaeum at as small a cost as any resident of the city. It seems to me that the earac system might with advantage be put into operation by the Directors of the Wanganui Public Library, for tho benefit of the ■settlers of the surrounding district. The- system is simplicity itself. All that is needed is for three or four persons to form themselves into a group, obtain a concession ticket, and share the cos: of tho subscription and the railage. All the members of such a group are provided with catalogues, from which they cm make lists of the books required by them from time to time. Such lists are sent to the library, ancl the books are forwarded to one menber of the group for distribution. As the Railway Department charges only a quarter of the ordinary rater, for library book s specially addressed, the cost of railago when shared between threw or four persons is exceedingly small.

Mr. Veitch's suggestion that the Government should acquire tho Ma rat ion estate for closer settlement purposes is a decidedly good one. The land is excellent, and the situation from the point of view of the dairying industry is ideal. Talking with a man who knows tho estate, he assured me that if properly subdivided it should easily carry forty families on farms ranging from ■±00 to 400 acres. The new Premier w, T believe, desirous of promoting closer settlement, and it i,s therefore reasonable to assume that he will lend a fnvouvable oar to Mr. Veitch's suggestion. * * --

If you would care to 'read an unusually good story of American pioneering, buy "Tho Winning.of Barbara Worth,"' by Flarold B. Wright. (Goorge Robertson and Co., Ltd.. Melbourne, and William Heineman, London.) Tho author's theme is the romance of civil engineering and the triumph of irrigation in turning the desert of tho Hollow of God's Hand into a smiling valley. The scheme is first undertaken by a company, whoso chief" aim in tho multiplication of dollars. The desert refuses to bo conquered by sordid enterprise, tho company fails, and its place is taken by Westerners who know and understand tho desert, and to whom its reclamation is a labour of love and not a matter of pounds, shilling and pence. As its title indicates, tho author weaves a pretty lovo romance through tho web of intrigue "and adventure, but quite- apart from this always attractive feature, tho book is interesting as ; a rolevation of Western development. ' Tt is a book to interest both men and I women. j