NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 732, 3 February 1910, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The appointment of Mb. 0. E. Matthews, private secretary to the Minister for Public | Works, and formerly to the Minister, for Justice, to be chief clerk of the Police Department may .strengthen an impression which must be very harmful to the. Civil Service. This is the impression, which has been oncouraged by several appointments of private secretaries in the past, that the immediate access to a Minister's uar which a secretarial position of this sort gives to a few fortunate men, counts more than many years of faithful Departmental service when high positions in the Departments have to be filled. It is a source of natural reeentment in the Sorvioe that clerks who happen to bo nominated by a Minister for tho , position of ■ a private secretary enjoy . largo increases of salary which could not possibly be hoped for by their companions following the routine course, and at the end of a few years are liable to bo dropped into eligible positions above tho heads of men in the Departments whose capacity is not less than theirs, and who are greatly their seniors. This is very far frmn oncoura'ging to the great .majority of Departmental officers, who can I only hope, at best, to gain their promotion slowly, Btep by stop, but the

injustice is rendered greater by the fact that whilo they_ have been steadily enlarging their experience of the practical administration of the Department, and thereby fitting themselves to discharge• its higher duties', the secretary who . is appointed over them has naturally had no such training for the new-posi-tion ho is called upon'to fill, The position of a private- secretary, carries with it, and perhaps merits, privileges of its own, but it is unfair to tho mass of Civil Servants that such positions should bo able to be regarded as short and_ easy "cuts" to some of the best positions nrthe Service. The fitness of Mr. Matthews to .discharge the duties of the responsible position to which he has been appointed we . are not able either to dofend or to dispute. That ho will prove an excellent officer we shall be very glad to believe. It is of the utmost; importance to the contentment and best working of the Service, however, that no room should be loft for the suspicion that the personal - influence which private secretaries can 1 bring to bear on Ministers can outweigh length of service and other qualifications when the disposal of the prize positions is in question. " -

There is one sentence in the Bpeech' delivered by . tho chairman of the Gas Company on Tuesday that "deserves " some - consideration, especially ' as ; it ; ' will; probably meet with the disapproval of members of the City - Council as well as of: a considerable section-of the public. "It appears to me," Mn. NATHAtTBaid, "that one of the objections to municipal trading' is that there must be a tendency on the part of a corporation to bolster up ; the, trading departments : at the expense of the citi'zeiis." It is, probable that,Mß. Nathan bad. in mind the recent - protests' against the extension of-the, business, of ;the "city's Electric Lighting Department, but there is nevertheless a good deal of truth in what he says. It -will be remembered that the . Department added to its business of selling light and power ■ the : business : of; selling lighting . and heating .accessories, 1 and that the. retailers of. these; articles protested against the municipality s ; invasion. of their, kingdom. They urged: that the funds, of the ratepayers should not be used for the, furnishing, below cost, of a class of which private dealers were at a fair price. The- questions involved are not easy to decide. Most people will agree, however, _ that having embarked on a certain trading enterprise it is not merely quite proper, but even-quite necessary, that a municipality,. in; order >to make its' trading; successful, shall use. any' methods - that a private concern would use .in-a. like, case. This principle, obviously, is . quite capable of a logical extension to lengths that. are mimical to;. the public interest.' The municipalities; therofore, should be extremoly; wary before' following the trading exam-; pie , of a - Socialistic:. Government.' The danger/referred , to- by Mr. Nathan is a real,one;-it .is shown on a large scale in the. national administration, under- which; railways and coal-mines that do not pay are very improperly bolstered up with general moneys. The danger is, less if those who. pay the piper,, and who have . to bear all -the .financial responsibility,' are allowed to have all the 1 ' control.: •'■•-Nowadays,; however,' there is a tendency to argue that everybody, whether, he pa.vs rates or not; shall ha,ye: a - voice,, through his vote,/ in -. tho, government --.of- the municipalities and ...the. direction of the [municipal' trading enterprises, .r When- that 1 -theory , comes into practice,' if it' ever docs; we shall- see the correctness of Me. Nathan's opinion fully proved.