PUBLIC OPINION

Waikato Times, Volume 122, Issue 20523, 13 June 1938, Page 9

PUBLIC OPINION

As expressed by correspondents,- whose letters are welcome, but for whose views we have no responsibility. Correspondents are requested to write in ink. It is essential that anonymous writers enclose their proper names as a guarantee of good faith. Unless this rule is complied with, their letters will not appear.

A FITTING MEMORIAL To the Editor) Sir, —May I thank you for the publicity you have given to the appeal for funds for a national memorial to the lat' 1 Dr. Ada Paterson? The National Committee proposes in the first place to provide some special feature for each of the health eamps. Thouph Dr. Paterson was not the actual originator of the movement. It enlaced a great deal of her. thought and enthusiasm, and the position of the health camps to-day is very largely due to her. As a second part of the memorial It is proposed to offer to the National Gallery some appropriate artistic tablet or plaque. Persons wishing to subscribe to the fund should communicate with Mr C. Meachen. 29 Vivian Street. Wellington, or with the treasurer of any branch of the New Zealand Educational Institute or of the Public Service Association.—l am, etc., M. H. WATT, Chairman Dr. Ada Paterson Memorial Committee. Wellington, June 10. RIGHT OF RECALL

(To the Editor) Sir.—Before we proceed to any demand for the right to recall our members of Parliament, as Mr Holmes suggests, why not. concentrate on getllna: laws that would enable the people*?] wishes to be reflected in the House? As things are we have a minority Government. supported by many minority members and opposed by many minority oppositionists. The only line of defence the Government has is that other Governments were similarly situated. That Is true, but it does not put matters right. With at least one member unable to claim that he polled one-third of the votes recorded, and others not so much better off, how can we expect members to feel their responsibility. I know that Labour is trying now to secure the nomination of Independents in certain electorates simply for the purpose of splitting the vote, and thus perhaps save their nominee from defeat. It is common talk in some electorates in the Auckland province, and would make a great story.

Let us reform the electoral laws first. Let the members represent at least a majority, and at a later stage we might move towards the recall, and also the referendum. They will come some day, but the immediate need is for an electoral system that will ensure majority representation. We should have it in a democracy, and It would not cause any confusion. They say (the opponents of reform) that* there will be a lot. of informal votes. The citizens of Hamilton did wonderfully well at- the recent municipal elections, when they had a big field from which to choose. They did their part efficiently. It seems to me to be an insult to the intelligence of the people to assert that they could not mark in order of preference their wishes as regards parliamentary representation. That is the first reform. Let us work for that.—l am, etc., 0. WENDELL. Hamilton, June 11. REGARDING DISCIPLINE

(To the Editor) Sir, —Your correspondent “Conservative” struck the nail on the head. The danger to the democratic country Is largely caused by the lack of discipline. It has fallen into the discard of recent years, in every phase of life. The rot set in after the war, and it has continued ever since. Tin other day I read the report of a speech by the Marquess of Lothian, one of the keenest minds in Great Britain, and he stressed the fact that, if they were to survive, the democracies must, have a discipline, not imposed, as in Germany and Italy, hut voluntary. It amazes me to hear of British workmen being unwilling to relax some trade union regulation in order that, the production of munitions may he speeded up. My views were stated very clearly In that fine journal the Bound Table. It said—- " The dictatorships have great advantages over the democracies in the clash of power, whether that power is active or passive. Unless the democracies prove by their efforts that a strong national defence can be built up within the frame of freedom of expression and representative government. both they and democracy will perish. Universal national service is to-dav the most effective contribution Great Britain can make to future world peace. It cannot and will never be an instrument of aggression or a temptation to war. Its whole purpose is to make war obviously unprofitable for those Powers which most, threaten Iho peace of the world, and thus io push war further and further into the background. “Nor should it he a party i«4sue. any more than conscription is a party issue in democratic and socialistic France. Rearmament is no longer a party issue in Great Britain, and universal service is the keystone of rearmament. In tlie disturbed and dangerous world we now live in our influence for peace and justice, as well as our chance of surviving as a free commonwealth, depends on our strength, with that of our friends, against those who would assault us and our ideals. •Our strength, in turn, is the strength of our most vulnerable point. Pew will question where the weak point lies, and perhaps the lime wiil soon come When flic mass of people in r,reat Britain will cry out lor that essential means of strengthening it which to-day seems far from practical politics."—l am. etc., RADICAL. Hamilton. June 12.

ERGOT RULED IN (To the Editor) Thirty-odd years afro, after heirur poisoned by ergot dust when feeding- out overgrown hav, I proved definitely that ergot was ' the basic cause of facial eczema, and research confirmed the findings of world authorities. who declared that its toxic powers were the cause of grave concern among the medical profession in those days. I found it took a minute quantity only to upset the liver of ewe or cow, and with the first growth of spring feed the fibreless grass If not supplemented with sweet hay or sweet roughage) caused the liver to become unbalanced, letting the gall enter the blood stream. In .severe cases Nature tries to eliminate it, but fails until weather conditions help. If the weather be not favourable freavy losses occur, and facial eczema manifests itself. The second cause is entirely manmade—failure to make hay at the proper time and failure to feed it to stock before and through the first growth of spring sets the foundation for trouble. Lack of shade and wrong fertilising, combined with lack of minerals, contribute to to-day's losses. I consider a farmer who allows facial eczema to break out on his farm, sends his best cows to he boiled down, or fills the boner pens with them should be liable to a fine for cruelty to animals. There is no secret about the cause. My knowledge has been gained by practicfil experience, and I am prepared to debate the matter with any authority at any meeting organised by the Farmers’ Union.—l am. etc., W. P. SEATON. Hamilton, June 10.

THE NEW ARITHMETIC (To the Editor) Sir, —During last election Labour speakers solemnly assured the people that six months after they got into power unemployment would not exist. Speaking at Waihi on Tuesday, the Hon. 11. T. Armstrong* publicly acknowledged that the problem of unemployment was still a serious one, thus admitting that in spite of all its promises the Government had failed to solve the problem. From figures wrung from a reluctant Minister it appears that we still have 30,000 men dependent upon the special taxation for the relief of unemployment. It is a rule in arithmetic and mathematics that before two things are compared they should be reduced to a common denominator, but as regards our currency the Government has made a rule that they need not be so reduced, so that they may regard £’s sterling and £'s New Zealand as of equal value. For the sake of the present argument I will assume the correctness of their new arithmetic, and they can stand the consequences. In 1928-29 the total value of our production was £120,000.000. We had no unemployment problem, and every man who wanted a job could get one. This was under an unprogressive, anti-Labour United Party Government. In 1938 our production totalled £136,000,000, and we have 30,000 unemployed, and men who want a job can get one only from the unemployment funds. And this inexplicable state of affairs exists under a magic-working Labour Government, the author, so it claims, of all our present prosperity. This is something Mr Armstrong might well be asked to explain.—l am, etc., A. WARBURTON. Ngaruawahia, June 8.

j HON. A. HAMILTON’S ADDRESB (To the Editor) Sir.—Having had the privilege of attending the Hon. A. Hamilton’s meeting in the Theatre Royal. I would like I to refer to some of the statements • that were made that evening. ' When Mr Hamilton commenced his address the first few words were hurled against the Labour Government after it had given him the privilege of speaking over the air. That is all the thanks it got.. I consider that a little criticism may be all right at times, but from start to finish Mr Hamilton did nothing except criticise, and did not give the Government credit for one thing. He went as far J as to condemn Mr H. Atmore, M.P. for ! Nelson, because he was loud in his ; praise for the Labour Government ! and not for the National Party. If he ! had had loud praises for the National | Party and not for the Labour Government that would, of course, have been a horse of another colour. I was given to understand that the ' National Party was claiming the credit for bringing about the rise in prices overseas for our produce. I consider the National Party has had no more to do with that than any other party, but the Labour Government claims to a ' certain extent, that they have brought prosperity to New Zealand by increasj mg purchasing power. | Mr Hamilton and his colleagues have ! no need to worry about New Zealand j running into slumps and breakdowns 1 ns long as we have Mr Savage and his colleagues at the helm. The best piece of legislation enacted by the Labour Government was when they made the Reserve Bank a State Rank. 1 would like to ask any National parly supporters this question: If tlie National Party, as Mr Hamilton stated, stand for private enterprise, why did lie and bis collngues when in office, put privately-owned transports off tin roads just after some of them bad bought their motor trucks, etc., without. compensation? T consider that the National Party contradict themselves. Mr Hamilton talks about the Government taking control of the farmer’s produce. The farmer lias no need to worry what the Government does with it as long as lie gets his money. There is on" thing about it—the farmers know what they are going to get at the beginning" of the season, which is better than under the old system and under previous Governments. If the farmers sold their produce to the Wholesale Go-operative Society hi Britain they would receive their cheque at the ship’s side, and that would be the end of it as far as the i farmers are concerned, so I do not j see any difference in the way the G>j vernment is acting from that of the ! Wholesale Co-operative Society in den rug with the fanners' produce. Mr Hamilton says that farmers have not been able to get labour. It is simply because the farmers will not pay standard wages, nor will they provide proper sleeping quarters for

labourers. I know what I am talking about, because I worked on farms in the South Island, working at the age of 26 for 10s per week and sleeping in stables on bags of chaff, with cornsacks for blankets. At that time the farmers were receiving high prices l'or grain and fat stock. How can farmers get labour under those conditions? By how much did the National Party or the Coalition Government, while in office, reduce our national debt? Not by one penny-piece. They increased it by thousands. May I go one further? ‘Millions were added to our national debt. Mr Hamilton talks about the Government claiming the credit of curing unemployment and putting 21.2G8 men 0 n public works and in other useful employment. He and his colleagues will claim the credit for putting these men out of work again, as they did before: wages and salaries, pensions, will he reduced, and the country brought, hack to the stagnant position it. was in three years ago if they are. returned to power at the next election. Mr Hamilton says that the. National Party is not going to cut wages, salaries and pensions. Here we have them again contradicting themselves. They have no other policy but reducing- 'wages and pensions. I say what they have done before they will do again.—l am.* etc., ELECTOR. Hamilton, June 10.