NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 905, 26 August 1910, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The little ceremony on the wharf in honour of •' her Excellency's arrival yesterday was only a reflcc.tion of the pleasure which is felt throughout the Dominion at the fact that Government House has a mistress once more. New Zealanders have for many years been able to say_ they have been fortunate- in their Governor, and equally fortunate in the Governor's wife. Lady Plunket and the Countess of lUnfurly have left rery pleasant memories behind them, and we have all made up our minds that when, in the course of time,' Lady Islington has to leave ns again, we shall- bo as sorry to bid her farewell as 'wo are glad to bid her welcome. Lady Plunket showed us that the wife of his Majesty's representative may easily have a very real influence upon the practical life of the community, and do quite as much perhaps as i thr Governor himself towards increasing the Dominion's attachment to the Imperial connection. His Excellency, although jt is only the other day that he arrived, has already, to the surprise andpleasure of the country, gone a long way towards fulfilling our expectations of him as a practical force in our non-political interests. Now that Lady Islington has joined him, we shall all feel that ready for a very pleasant association between the' nation and the occupants of Government House, i

In view of the report brought down by the Finance Committee of the City Council regarding Me. Maughan Barnett's municipal orchestra proposal- we are forced to the conclusion that the members of the Council who . have had the handling of the matter are quite unnecessarily hampering what' appears to be a most .excellent suggestion outlined on safe and sound lines. The committee, which is evidently not very sure of itself, recommended, and the Council approved without discussion,, that Mr. Barnett be granted the uso f of the Concert. Chamber for a public meeting at which his proposition to ostablish a municipal orchestra shall be discussed. In view of the fact that Mr. Baknett has published every detail in connection with his scheme, and has mot such arguments as have been raised against it, the action of the Council appears quite superfluous, if it docs not actually check a movement which has the hearty approval of practically everyone having the best interests of music at heart. It goes without saying that tho meeting will approve the proposal—which commits the City Council to nothing— but why the meeting?

There is a great deal of truth-in' the opinion expressed by the Prime' Minister last evening that, private members' days in the House are mainly wasted time. We have always held that too nhich power is permitted Ministers in the conduct of the business of Parliament—that they improperly arrogate to themselves powers which place them in the position of being the masters of Parliament instead of -its servants. But, judging by the experience of the present session and more especially that of the past two days, private, members arc as little to be trusted as Ministers , themselves. The waste of time on Wednesday and yesterday is a disgrace to Parliament. Sm Joseph Ward, commenting on the position reached last evening in regard to a private member's Bill, expressed,the opinion that there was. very little use in private members bringing down Bills of any importance because they wore.never passed into 'law unless they were •taken up by the Government. It is true that these Bills havo very little chance of passing unless approved by Ministers; but they serve a useful purpose nevertheless in forcing thesubjects dealt with upon the atten-, tion of the Government, We do not think thoy can be objected to on the particular ground raised by the Prime Minister. But the waste of. time which so often takes place in empty talk and efforts' at humour oni these measures is quite another matter, and. we are. in entire agreement with Sin Joseph Ward in his condemnation of this. For some unaccountable reason a certain section of members appear to regard private members' days as occasions for relaxation from the serious business of Parliament. They either rush Bills through at break-neck speed without regard to their merits, or waste time on them in useless talk. They apparently do not realise that by their, conduct they are imperilling a privilege which cannot be too. highly valued in these days of Ministerial autocracy. Thc_ work done during the present session so far amounts to practically nothing. The Government have been playing for time and members have been considerate-enough to fall in with their wishes. It is .time they settled down to work. In any case-a long session may lie forward to, and even under the best of conditions there must, lie a heavy carryover to the following year.

The collection of funds for tho carrying out of tho Children's Hospital scheme has been rushed through with such phenomenal success that a sum amounting to something like £7000 is available or promised. This, the. Government subsidy .of twenty-four shillings for every pound collected, makes a total so handsome as to excel the expectations' of even .the most sanguine of those who inaugurated and assisted in this'good work. The funds now available are ample to meet all the requirements o £ the undertaking and the question therefore arises as to whether it is not time to stop calling on the public for further contributions. ' The object is no doubt a most worthy one and the response has been such as the merits demanded; but a suflinicnt sum having been collected for the purpose designed, it is well to bear in mind that there are other worthy undertakings in prospect, and the public purse should not be drained unduly to their.detriment. We have in mind at the moment the special effort which has. to bo made by those good citizens who aro furthering the interests of that very valuable institution, the Boys' Institute. Under tho conditions of a recent substantial gift to this institute a large sum of money has to be raised before the end of the year for building purposes, and those who control the affairs of the institute must rely on tho generosity of the public in order to secure the benc,iits of that offer. Wo would commend to the Mayor the suggestion that no fresh contributions towards the Children's Hospital fund should now be sought, and that with the | handsome total now reached the lists should bo closed.