LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 172, 14 April 1908, Page 5

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

WHAT NEW ZEALAND WANTS. mo to suggest that Discussion Clubs and New Zealand Native Associations discuss the following'suggestions as the elections,; are approaching:— , A .■A' White Now Zealand, freo from 'the Oriental race. ; A. , 'The election of the Upper House by tho people.. ' . , i •ri,Thc Referendum; voters to record their' votes by post or voting by mail through tHo medium of the Post Office.. 1 1 The restriction of • borrowing by the Govt crnment. . : ' v.Tlie causes of the assorted sterility of the 1 race and growth of.divorce. ,'jTo affirm the leasehold tenure. More smaller land holdings wanted in 10 to 40 acre blocks; special terms to men with families. ,; The . stopping' of women being allowed to servo liquor in hotels unless they aro the wives of owners or ov.-ncrs themselves. The Government should give five years' notice to abolish barmaids. ' ■ Stato control of liquor. , If r »ny district which at present is "dry" or No-liccrise revokes, same or,votes license, tho Government shall open Stato liquor depots in that district. • ."Freo trade, in all foodstuffs. . . . Free trade in Oregon American timber. An export duty on kauri 1 timber. 'Reciprocity with Australia, and Canada. This will ■ open up large, uear markets for our products: • Education.—(a) Our pupil teachers should be encouraged to spend three years in American schools to widen their knowledge, (b): Au American or an English education expert' or inspector might be got .to spend two years here to brighten us up. (c) Inspectors should bo changed from one district' to another, (d) Bookkeeping, typewriting, articulation should bo taught.' (e) Savings-banks" to. be established at schools, (f) Special attention to the teaching of agricultural aiid pastoral pursuits to boys, and domestic, economy to girls, (g) Encourage our .scholars to correspond with scholars in rural British districts.

■ All kitchens whore women work should come under the Factory Act, to see that the sinks and ventilation aro adequate and good. ('Domestic workers should be encouraged to form unions on purpose to raise their status and popularise a womanly vocation. ' Are-all these Socialistic experiments advancing- • and. doveloning Jlaoriland? Do they not tend to kill the ■ initiative in the unit, or individual? \ •

j All laws to protect the health of the individual are good. :', It is unwise for tho Stato to compete with private enterprise.

itore ; population: A new Zealand immi&ranV;r^Present*ifcivo slionld be in every large city in " Great Britain. The , expensive High Commissioner and establishment in London should.be curtailed. ( 'A map "'of Now Zealand, with, photographs of: street scencs, and table of steamer fares, and other information on tho margin, should bp/sent to every public school in the country, districts .of England, Ireland, and ScotLess monfcy should .bo spent upon touting for tho floating tourist, and freo immigration of iarm hands. and ■ domestic' servants,'. should' bo adopted. Norwegians, Dan.es; and Germans -should bo allowed to come in without an education testj as ;hoy make, thrifty, industrious settlers.

Asl.our fellow-citizens, the - Roman Catholics, who number, of the population, are. educating, at their own. oxpense,. somo 12,000 children, saving the Government about £44,00.0. per year,- surely we -New Zealanders should; not allow, such a largo section of tho community U>. suffer disability through religious -convictions. .They should receive pound for pound from the-Government as a. subsidy. ,• I- ' '

To. protest against. any alteration of the present , licensing legislation, public sontimont being too much in favour of Prohibition...

Decentralisation of GovernmentAs thero j s work,.done by the Government, larger powers should be , granted to ( local bodies.- . ■ ../' " ' Is that tunnel through to the West Coast, which is..so' well served. by. steamers,: really a. necessity.? , , Have we v -,labour, ~ flour, i timber, and steamer trusts'in this Maoriland, the com of the Pacific? . v ■ ' ' ' ■ ' Owing to the increase of juvenile crime and disrespect for'the aged,our educational "system. is.not- complete, without definite .moral instruction, .and as the Bible, is tlio best text-book of morals, besides' , being ou greatest-English classic, our State school; should-bo opened ovory morniiiß by the road ing of/.a portion of.'the^Biblo, the teather t< supervise. In the majority of the Ameri . states,- Europe,' and . the' British colo tiles,'. tho/Bible is read in the schools. • Readers are urged to strivo for-above re forms .or criticise samo.—l am, etc., • A MAOIIILANDER. . .Wellington; April. 10.' ' • MAYOR OR COUNCIL. :;Sir,-7-A' point'in connection with the elec-tion-addresses .of the'candidates for the Mayoralty seems to call for some explanation For instance, are the whole of tho affairs o] tho ;'city managed entii'ely' by the Mayor! Many of us wore under the impression tliaf the' Councillors had something to do witli the'.affairs of; the citjybut in the' election -addresses we find one caudidato taking all th<?,. credit for everything that has been done ■ during his term of offico, and: the other one lays all, the blame for any defects on hi< adversary.-- Each one ignores the fact that in nearly evory caso tho general policy'has beeii -imdor tho control of the Council as a whole/ and therefore' the Councillors are .entitled to . credit or blame for what hat ben done in. tho past.—l am, etc., beon.'dohe in the past.-el am, etc., . V . ' 1 . ELECTOR. April 13, 1908. ' .fWo have already, drawn attention to this amiable, weakness. Mr. Aitken. has usually safeguarded -himself by referring tc'itfatters carried out '.'.during',my tcrni as head of the Council." ; Mr. Hislop has shown a tendency to claim all credit.] ' •

\ OUR PACANISM. .'Sir,—TSTiether we are Pagans or not there can be' no denying the fact that our free, compulsory, and secular , system of education has produced a generation of. intelligent, law-abid-ing, temperate, moral, broad-minded',citizens, to ;tho' vast 'majority of .whom-''the bigotry aud intolerance of sectarian strife are uriknown. Those educated during the earlier decades of .tho 33 years, aro now prominent hi walks of ,lifo in this Dominion. They arc' editing, with , conspicuous' ability, our leading .newspapers, they are teaching our children in both school, and college, thoy arp pleading in our law courts, thoy are admjnisterihg important. departments of tho State, - they . are ; ca'rrj-ing on oiir -local and general government, they are controlling large commercial, venturfes,, and .they are filling in. all walks of life (hot excepting clergymen) the various duties which go to make a well-balanced nation of tho whole. • I think we.can. claim .without undue egotism that in ' all; these spheres , of action our citizens of both rank and file compare favourably with those of other -nations where the Bible is taught in the public schools. :: Our. professional men aro as .able- and upright, our business men as-honest, and our. average men and women as clean-living, happy, i and , kind to ono another as their fellows. in other lands. Tho tree must -be judged by its-fruits, and though- we may liayo Bomo of the'failings of. a young, impetuous nation, I submit that-we aro not at all , decadoiit. In fact, so broadening, has been .tho national system of education upon tho-minds'of - the present generation-that in no country in the world liavo .practical measures for the amelioration of-the lot of•: tho. worker been brought into operation with mich unanimity. All p! irtie3 havo rejoiced to seo tho gonoral level of prosperity and happiness extended. What a gross init, then, for certain clerical agitators to. stand up and tell us that our educational system is fraught with ovil results, both morally and civilly; Cannot the men and wiynen of New Zealand see that as they have for the most part been themselves so educated, these assertions are tantamount to acqusiun; them genernlly of bping irreligious, immoral, and bad citizens? It is the logical outcome of the insults we pay our clergy to

hurl at us. Certainly they mako reference more directly to our children, but wo, too, nave been children under tho same educational conditions, and are therefore included ln mi Soneral condemnation. , kkato in a country where there is so much disagreement as to which is tho correct religion has 110 right to teach any religion, if, indeed, .it has a right to teach it under any circumstances. . Religion is a matter of individual conscience, and State control easily develops into persecution of the unorthodox; The laity generally would tar rather see the clergy using their time teaching tile children themselves. than endeavouring to force their clear moral duty on to the of tho State school teachers. . Never was a truer word uttered than that reported by you in this morning's Dominion as being spoken by an Anglican Bishop: ' unless the Colony, speedily restores the Bible to the schools the clergy in the next generation will find their occupation • Y,° ril ' V ' " Grcat .is Diana of tho liphesians. The question of occupation thus admittedly is a factor'in'the conflict. I, would not have made the assertion, but the Bishop has let the cat out of the bag. Our craft is in danger! Well, what of it? There are hundreds of deeply religious men and women who would, for the love of their fellows, without thought of hire," work nobly for:the cause of religion were every clergyman in tho land- to leave to-morrow—men andiwomen who are now "not wanted." New Zealonders should realise that all this mudthrowing is merely a ruse to frighten them into the destruction of our national system of education.—l am, etc., . „ OLD BOY; April §.

THE MAYORAL CONTEST—A SUGGESTION. Sir,-The city of' Wellington is. to be congratulated upon having two first-class men contesting the Mayoralty, both of whom have proved themselves thoroughly capable administrators. Much good might bo derived from the; contest they are now engaged upon if, instead of criticising each other's past work,'; the candidates were to enlighten the electors as to how the principal questions affecting the future can be handled.' I'or instance, we have the milk supply, workmen's homes, and public markets, all before the public in .a vague, indefinite form. Over and over again Councillors and Mayors have expressed the opinion that all three of these subject's require immediate attention, but so far have failed to bring out '.'hard, matter-of-fact" details for any of the sehemcs. V ;

Taking them seriatim, will the candidates give us their views in detail as to whether tho whole_ milk supply should be municipalised, and, if so, will they produce figures and facts to show whether it can be done without , increasing the cost to the consumer?' I have noticed that on' this , ' subject' the present Mayor has been! silent whenever the subject' was being discussed by the Council. , Then, as regards workmen's homes, will the candidates tell us what'capital they think should bo employed; what t.hey cstimato each house, or flat or room will represent in capital expenditure: what rent should bo charged to 1 the; workers.'and what, interest ■this'\rin represent'on the cost'; also where they think tho hordes should be erected what .style of. buildings they would recommend, whether scattered over the town or centralised; wherei land ■is available, or where it could be.:-purchased, how much should be spent in initiating tho scheme, and what percentage tho rent should represent on the capital cost so as to provide for interest, depreciation, , upkeep, loss of rent during change on'tenancy,'etc.?; • , As regards public markets, about which tlio present Mayor has carefully refrained from expressing an'opinion or taking part in the Council debnte, will the candidates tell us where they think tlm should bo erected; how niuch should be spent thereon; how the building can be best occupied so as to suppty cheaper, food to the workers; what steps can bo taken to enable tho tenants to ' secure"" their wares in tho best market; what rent.nl thev would consider.a: fair interest on the outlay, etc.? Tho discussion of details'as sketched out above would bo' far 'more interesting than the nresent discissions on the of tho two candidates; and would bo more likely' to bear pood, fruit;.than tho more bald .ftatcrnoiit that the' three above.-men-tioned works. are necessary, withoiit givinr. anv.details as to; how thoy 'are to be. carried out.—l. am,- otc., INQUISITIVE. ' April 13. • ■

• WATCHMAN,) WHAT OF THE NIGHT? ' \Sir,—Time : was when bur.darkness was " lightened by men 1 wandering the streets with .rushlights. TheV. patrol. would also dp its rounds and occasionally would' cound on the ' night air, ' 1 Watchman,; what of the night?" and a replying sound would answer back, " All's woll," and so'the lay went on. If the rushlight/went out a flint and bit of .tindor :soon set it going, again, but, in any ■ case, the incident'only affected a very smajl area. , Now,..however, we do things'.on' a much grander :plan, and'the man with tho lantern is replaced by a man with a switchboard, and when tho latter's light goes out it plunges thousands in utter darkness. The system' has, changed, but the human hasn't. When the syndicate had the lighting of the city, it ..is. not"'within the memory, of living man (or woman either, . for the matter of that) ■ that tho 'unconscionable vagaries of shutting off and putting on light in' times of dense, darkness were even the exception so much as how, under city management, these irregular-movements of light and shade* aro tho rule. 'Is there' any real necessity for plunging the city in darkness intermittently, as is done now regularly every morning?—l am, etc., v " lIENRY BODLEY. April 11, -1908. . . - •' THE FUTURE OF WELLINGTON. Sir,—ln speaking on the widening of Manners Street; in'itho City Council at the last meeting, Mr. 'Fletcher is. reported to . have said,' among ;othor things, that '' Wellington was going to be one oF the largest cities in the Southern Hemisphere.." As one familiar with most of the large cities in 'Australia; I would like to ask'him what grounds he has for coming to that conclusion. Wellington and Melbourne aro twin cities. Both- were laid, out or founded about 1810. Yet Melbourne has to-day a-population of 525,000, and our Empire; City has only 60,000. In regard to population,, after all these, years this city ranks with such provincial centres as Ballarat, Sandhurst, and Geelon'g. Newcastle', in New South Wales, had a population at the census of 1901. of 80,000. Of course, I am .taking it for'granted that our Councillor, ih referring ;to, the future size of this city, was estimating the .population and not the area of land occupied by buildings, etc. From my knowledge- of the- two cities, I feel quite confident iiri asserting that Wellington, with 'its 60,000 ;people, already occupies an area of country nearly equal to .Sydney, with its population-of 560,000; I might ask here if it is any', wonder that land and rents 1 are high under these conditions in this city] especially if we \add the; vast number of by-laws and the enormous expense, trouble and worry inflicted by ihem : on.everyone who invests his' money in land or buildings of ■ any kind in this,. tho 'Empiro City of the Antipodes. ■'■' 1- , ■ Wellington lies:in the,'iron grip' of three mighty monopolies: the \ Government,' tho Harbour Board,, the City Corporation; and'l might add a fourth: "the\groat Trades, and I Labour • Trust. . .These are;: in one -way or another, fast driving all other employers of labour; of any- consequence''put ofoxistence • and, in my bpinion, will soon have the whole of the city to themselves.' Can our prophet of '.this city's. future, who .is.' I understand an enthusiastic supporter of air these gigantic monopolies; really and truly believe. tliat tho Government, tho Harbour Board, the Citv i Corporation,. and the Great Trades ; and '< Labour Trust,: will in the' near future place i this cjty of ours .011 a level, in regard to 1 population, wealth, etc.,,with Sydney or Mfel- i bourne? —1 am, etc., • , ; ;1 INQUIRER! , , ApriVlO, 1908. • •.1 \ Ho went to tho butcher; also the baker; ' He went to the grocer and cabinet-maker; ; He oven enquired of the new undertaker. And asked.the distiller and brewer! 1 r And ail of them said ; b ' That for colds in the head, 6' And the beat for the cheat ns provon bv toat it .Waa Woods's Gxeat Peppermint Qow, 4 C