NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 722, 22 January 1910, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

' Ilia not necessary to gO:BO far as Australia, to' , see. ' how' .Labour, harasses and-suspects and ..tyrannises over' its leaders, but. its treat-. i;ment of Robert■ Hewitt, ex-secretary, of HEWiTT'streatment.bythD unions is such a strong case in point'as to deserve'•: brief: : mention.,'; The -■ record of Hewitt's,treatment by the unions which he served , to his.cost, would ■be; amusing .if: it :was. not, 'tragic. Hewitt had done and suffered much for Labour-before it made, him' suffer, wo'rso things at its.-hands.- '■':■ He was imprisoned fo'r his participation in the great'strike ; of : 1892,-and held .important.-positions ..in- connection with /various ''. Labour ibodies.".i"After. acting as one;of their most prominent leaders in the recent; Broken"Hill strike, the martyrdpm to: .which his fellows, exposed ..him; -proved 1 too much for his last: week'he - fled 'secretly:-from- Broken' ; .'HiU I -'.-;fifstVunburilening''his > vsbul , :in'. a:most elbp-ueht '■;letter ;■ which he; left addressed : to. the .general; public: The letter; bogari : ;as-follows :ff ■;:,-, ;g-v ; : •"I' suppose ;my. sudden; leaving; .the; Hill will;provoke ; some vcomment-'.-. I. leave it a'';broken', miui.-in spirit aid!financiallyj utterly, tired .'and Weary;, after. : 18 months, .of the I'.have ever; put; in; : the" strike was declared off'l jraa appointed 'secretary/at the' wonderful' salary ■ of' jei '• per.Veek and c£l -coupon. I- was in ■ a'.;corner,' blacklisted;- andi-they. knew.it. . After :a while:they: had.a : sud-- ; den-fit of .generosity,.-and;gave'.me:sos.-a - week; '■.- • Th'enj'.-, when;, they ■• decided : : to; stop ...the'coupons,': they' reduced lit', toi 355; j and .mind, 'these ar'e,|tho. men: who vask-. good wages-for .themselves';'', However, ,\I •■ dot .a :few;;pourids.; together, and. started, businesa, at the same time borrowing from them .£2O, of. which•■ £l§ . 10s:;hasrbeen' returned,,as'.-wages}.."l.have none, since, .then. ■: These -; 'good ; : unionists'" be-:" gin to kick. ''Bob , Hewitt was all:that.was bad.. , lie was running a He was, ■holding two/.-'secretaryships,;: and' God knows, what;dse,:.and. in the-meantime ■ he .was going';back'every..day; : ;iTheifirst: week .or,-'two'-Hthings;were not bad/ibut; then' .the ■slanders.; of;;., these ' .'.'stalwarts' 'commenced.v .Hewitt > had' never;::bought anyl'beer, and hadinojfollowing-'.'of; beer cheyers to. back,him; up. v :A -Btrong effort; was! made by a' certain ■ crowd,: and: the 'result' is thai I- am: leaving, .the .Hill as-bad "as wheii I- came: to it,. arid.l, feel, as if "a bullet •ffpuld;,be :tho. best 'm'onfc:pf. the trouble!"-'■V^}-. ■:"-

■Hbtott -mightihave;cbnßidered', that, but , -; ait •? aggravation; of•'.the I f atd-. .which : 'falls',, Labour 'leader'-.worth.his'-salt.|.lf~be hachbeen; a glib-tongued- agitator /.of 'another ■kindv;--he''^.wral4''^|iaye';;--'"skipped'!. ; earlier- from 1 Broken: Hill; tpvmake '. trouble in some other ; locality,'.' while; his; pockets' were, still;' full and >his l .uninvostigated:fame"'at'.'its/i , , height.; Then' he '.wouldvliave'.beeiiv trusted and'.admired .by.Labour—at'any rate, forVa;' ! muoh;;lpnger;'j)eyiqd.'-/\The ! ,man; whov"strikes'-:'against'-.ordinary ployment to! serve ■■•Labour,..usually .makes-.a bad• exchange of masters.- V

[:China-wasapparenitly tio'ttvto. boAsatisfied; that the.v'chieJEend '■• of education , :, is;, , to,.'make,, good' and ; yaluableoitizens.-.lt;wafe an old custom in phina;;;accor'ding i to. 'some that .'when' a criminaL-was executed ,-his \.former ,'schoolmaster: should be' beheaded also'.as'.anaccom-.: plice in' the. crime. ■English] teachers do;1 ; not.: .take; ;their responsibilities quite:.so seriously., as;that, 'but; they, are , .beginning (to:take'them vVery; gravely. : The headmaster."of a large public, school Jn- the.Nprfch'.ofvEngi land ,has.; just--issued: a "circular 1 .to; his. old.pupils, ■ in,whichvhe: refers j .to jthe: Chinese custom;: and- suggests inE?': rather .far,: the/ : results ; ; a schoolmaster's .cannot be 'l uHy - tested "till' his.'' samples :<■ have been on trie market/for■ ten.or, twenty, 'years. , '- He, ; ,therefpre propounds .the following questions ■:,.to! his;:;v.'.'dld boys"":.' "What' was useful in: your school career,' less'?. - This■ arid'; much . besides ,1; should, like .to hear-;from.ypu.'^So,l ask:ypu to'.fill: inj'the accompanying, form: and to;writo'as, much.more as •you ■ like.":.',:. The : questions / appended are ;as' f pllow :.•'-Business ■■ or:-'prpfes-!sion, ■tho';Work ; you aro;. doing.-as. a citizen,, the .work'you, are doing ; :for your-.'Church,; the Valuable things-you learned.." at.: '.school,■';'■;the' "worthless' things -you- 'learned: at: school, V. the part -;the" school : to', play) in making/you physicjtlly-fit,' suggestions 'for ; ; reform !at s ''■ the 5ch001.".., If several'■.•'hundred-''"old the trouble to.' a,nswer, thesp": ■'questions.: , seriously :tho burden ■■of. thqir._ opinioni should: .toe;useful as a, guide to,,educationists. 4 :. : 1f. : s'.ifficient old .boys' answer them,-! : and tho example "is followed in; the case'of other schools", theoretically the"education, system might'be made so perfect' some day .as j to allow, of .a'.revival -. of:, the old Chinese custom; without the.:" risk'.''' of decimating -anow honoured profession. So should we advance backward to tho Golden ~M*A V - ;: ' -;.v' : -'/.:/^'-%A:&- : {

: ,'A /novel;;doctrine;' seems';to have been/propounded by a/NapicrOßor.-. ough Councillor. /.At;a;.nieetihg : 'of the Council on Wednesday night one , of its-mcmbers ; resigned because, so. he said, ho had. '.'become disqualified owing to having supplied goods to the. "Council.".; In tho ensuing, discussion, . according to the local; newspapor's, ; ar.other; ; ; Councillor'; said "thore would bo somdthing rptten' in the state of Denmark: if Councillors .who gayo their, timo and attention to municipal iaffairs!could;;not; get any 'little pickings. , that, were going!" Both" the Napier,] .journals were very properly, shocked at this statement, ..but■■it: is. not necessary, 1 to spend any time in demonstratingthe obvious badness'.of the suggestion that, the'members of :should . be ■ allowed the : profit:.of "pickings!" ;What;;roally; is; -worth' pointing but] is that the presont:'Lib-; eral Government'- has .given- evbry.: encoiiragoment; to. the, idea that; the public purse is the legitimate prey of the placemen—the 1 idea thaf.-the': victors, should possess t-hemsclvfls'of the spoils' of .government.. It is to".

"Liberalism"-that'-we must'■■credit;.;- '■■: that moral deterioration of tho pub- ■''■' ' ; ■■ lie, that displays itself in a tolerince ; 'j ! of ■■•.- the innumerable political, %bY"" and.outrages that are an established; ~ feature of the politics ol New;, Zea> ;'■'■. land.': To ."Liberalism" also\we owe;.- ■:. ; the. unashamed hunger- o.t rcertain; ■■' ; politicians for. over-larger 'salaries:/ '.■ And it is ''Liberalism"; thai has ,'f or r ■'.•''•, : '■■: mally adopted; the dpctririe-.thatin,."..; : -> spending ;the public's, money the .',-;. Government must favourats friends. .;."■.' regardless of; the public-interest; . ; In the. debate' which 'vwith;: • ; ;.' . the. incorporation' of this interesting '% ; ■■■' article' into ''Liberalism's ,, : creed .last".;! - session, some members expressed'.'the /;;/■;: view that if 'they, were, in power they ■"'. '■ ;'. too would spend the' public's /money ■;•• in buying, support for themsiilveß. '■•'., It .';,'■■ ;. would be . astonishing,- .':■ therefore; fif ;V:';•■: we. did not occasionally/fin'd >in the;, : . records- of ; : local. governmiSntAthatk/;: men's -. vision'■■ of; the ■: ethics - of. •>''./: public service .is:there , ,'also'-a trifle V;-. blurred, v ■■" :: >. ; ■ : --;;' , .. : '.--;''".-''';-.': : - v -;!> : ''-'A'r-