Current Comment.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXV, Issue XXIV, 15 December 1900, Page 1108

Current Comment.

Bravery of the Colonials in South Africa. We have become so accustomed to hearing 1 that the colonial eoutingcnta , have done well in South Africa thut we are very apt to take any fresh instances of their bravery pretty much as a matter of course. Still, we.fancy, there were few of our readers who read Lord Roberts’ telegram to the governor in reference to the gallantry of the New Zealand troops at Keitf.ntein without feeling a thrill of pride and satisfaction. The praise of the Coinninnder-in-Chief received emphatic, if somewhat grim, endorsement, from the further information that, five out of six New Zealand officers who were engaged were wounded. Thia shows that our men were well in front, and must have been very closely pressed. It is hardly likely that the officers with the experience they have gained of the war would have exposed themselves foolishly or needlessly. We take it that they found themselves in a very "hot corner.” and that they fought with the dash and fearlessness for which "Our Boys” have made themselves proverbial. We are delighted to see that the Queenslanders and Westtralians, judging from the telegrams sent by Lord Roberts to their respective Governments, did equally well.—Christchurch "Press.” * * ♦ Barbarous Stupidity. it is very gratifying, of course, to learn that Mr Commissioner Tunbridge. has inspired the members of the police force with so much zeal for the study of the law that quite a number of them have determined to isit for the barristers’ examination within the next twelve months. We think, however, that the public would have been still better pleased if he had managed to equip the men under his command with a little more common sense than their representatives displayed al a street accident in Christchurch. 11 seems that, a.n unfortunate, horse —one of a pair that bolted from (■olombo-street —was' brought up in Cashel-street w ifli a broken leg, and for the best part of hour first one operator and then another made unsuccessful efforts to .put the poor brute oul of its agony. A butcher, who evidently had only a very elementary . knowledge of the anatomy of a horse, tried to despatch it with a knife, and a veterinary surgeon, who wished to he ■scientific, if nothing else, attempted to end the disgusting spectacle by adJiifiifet'eriiig poisdit. All the time these abortive efforts were being made two or three policemen werestanding round, discussing the situation with members of.the crowd and declaring that • it Jvas impossible to" shoot the horse—the only proper and humane way. as a ,tiorres|H>ndeni says this morning, of ending its misery—because there was a by-1 aw -w hieh prohibited the discharge of firearms within the city boundaries. It. was one of the most revolting exhibitions that could possibly be imagined—a poor struggling creature, covered with.blood and quivering with pain and fright—and we are glad to see that. Mr Varker, at the meetings of the Society. for the Prevention of Cruelty ♦o Animals last night, condemned it in no measured terms. The whole of the responsibility for the miserable business must rest upon the police, who seem Io have had’ neithersense enough nor humanity enough tip employ the method 'of relief that was ultimately nitiptod by a indignant layman. If their legal studies have led the members of the force to believe that a city by-law can be strained to justify the grossest cruelty the sooner they arc smartly convinced of their error the better it will be for the credit of their department and the good name of the community. ♦ ♦ ♦ Increasing Cost of Government. The increasing cost of Government lias been freely touched upon by us, and in an article dealing with the subject, which appeared in these cblumris on the 17th July last, we showed that the expenditure for the yejir cniied fit st March, 1900, compared with the expenditure f<»r the financial year 188990, exhibited an increase of X 1,186,497, or 52.41 per cent. That

is to May, for every £ 100 spent in 1889-90 there was in the past tinaucial year at* expenditure of £152 8/9. This surely in a »übstantial increase. aixi is not due to the costs of sending* contingents to South Africa. The expenditure for the six months ended 30th September last shows an increase of £141,903. as compared with the corresponding half of last year: and of t his increase only £43.100 was in respect. of defence. The balance was spread over the remaining departments of State. Those who assert ihat the Government departmental expenditure has increased by leaps and hounds, are not wrong; nor can the war in South Africa be held responsible as being the principal cause of the increased expenditure. Nor is the Premier more accurate in dealing with the railway revenue. He asserted that for every £5O of increase in expenditure, there was £ 100 of increased revenue, ’the actual figures do not bear oul ibis bombastic statement. from the Ist April io the 13th October, a period of 28 weeks, the railway revenue amounted to £865.062 as against £813.923 in the corresponding period of last year —an increase of £sl.l39—while the expenditure totalled £.’>‘16.489 as against £545.433, an increase of £51.056: thus it will be seen that the increased expenditure was within £B3 of the revenue. In matters of finance Mr Seddon never scruples to mislead, for he knows that the majority of the electors do not trouble to analyse the figures for themselves, His affair is to get the applause of the gallery, and lie has no scruples in the means that he employs to win it. What matter if after his d ‘part urc which is nearer than commonly supposed — there come a day of reckoning? That must be the atfair of his successor. •i* 4* + £ Holiday Legislation. The bulk of those affected by holiday legislation would greatly prefer Saturday to Wednesday if a. regulation to that effect could be made universal. There is. involved in the situation as >! stands just that awkward problem which applies to agreeing upon the hour for closing-shops in the evening. Probably the most of those -who keep open late are convinced 'that, what with cost of gas and labour, and Ihe jaded weariness which comes of too close application.it would be more pleasant and more profitable to close early rather than late. But .it is a question of competition, and if A and l> keep open ( , D. and F must do so as well in self-defence. Hence the inception of the Shop Hours Bill of last session, under which a majority of tradesmen in a town were to be empowered, after agreeing among themselves as to an hour for closing, to fix that hour for the whole district involved. That measure was among the “innocents” destroyed towards the eml of the session, but it will come up again, and is sure to be passed.