A HUGE MONOPOLY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 924, 17 September 1910, Page 10

A HUGE MONOPOLY.

; Sir,— Kindly: allow mo, as an in'teresteid';pe'rs6n,- to: draw your .'attention; and ydur; : readers' attention, to the fact that there": exists in this country'; .one .of • of •: corporations which any country was .ever, burdened with; I refer'to.i'the .Press,' Association and .its' outside 1 channels of '' iMormatioh.Y The, meagre accounts receive here :of :the great events'/, of'the'world's-' doing and • saying aire; deplorable, and' further -the utter ignoring ofjwrtain. historic events is, in myL mind, '.despicable. I'-notico that practicaUy'.;'fxiothing ' hasw'been :allowed to filteri through"; to the'many :thousand:Catholics who!.reside:in • the Dominion' concerning ' that i -most im-„ portant function'.'.which, has .lately, been held: in Canada,., viz.,; thej Kncharistic ■ Congress. This is.'one of the most unique and-important gather-1 ings ever'yet held'in that Dominion, ■ and' yet we are practically left, in the dark concerning the -proceedings; : Occasions like this great one resultin much good, from not alone, the religious standpoint, but also' from' an international one as weU.Science, and sociology, together with all, that is best and' noblest, s ', are" discussed, and thes,e congresses are very. wide, in their scope,and. include, and deal, with. successfully many, of the most . intricate: problems which pride, 'obstinacy, - and pique .otherwise prevent of equable solution. . ■ I do not stop: here,, sir, because' there are so many; other, phases;of pur -wellbeing so sparsely ' dealt .with by this nows monopoly. How little news, other -than rthat which is directly supplied by our High ' Commissioner and other direct agents, dp we get regarding our Dominica?: .The doings of eminent; New Zealanders are . absolutely ignored, or else given to us in two or. three-line paragraphs. I do not Imow to .whom the blame is really attributable.. Some say that it is a section :.of, tho-newspapers; others blame, the-.Gov-" ernment.'.for not .smashing,, up ..' the monopoly, and going in for something on the lines of Australia. It would be 1 . of • much interest to tho public of New 'Zealand, if -the. facts ,wer? known, and upon, whom the blame . should be settled. .If it is.a section of the papers, then the. Government should do: its duty and-not ..allow financial interests to run' .the show.: If the' Government is to. blame, well then it 4s about. time that the. electors instructed their'' re-, presentatives in Parliament; as. to what action is necessary. It is truly wonderful how politics run. Bickering and quarrelling, mud-slinging and vituperation seem to be the order of the day at present, while important matters such as an .unfettered._ and... general Press Association are evidently of no consequence, to our legislators. I simply quote tho instance given above •as-1: and many others are ; concerned, but do not by any means agree that it is an isolated instance. .The late Mr. Seddon had promised to bring the matter to a better position, but so far nothing has been done. ; '■I .'trust,- siri that this.matter will., be dealt with from a .national standpoint by; those who know the inner-working of'this important question, and, . that, we . New -Zealanders, , who are so far removed from the centre of the, world's interests','will be treated as at least- forming. a part of.. the • great British Empire; and that wo may :'.get. a reasonable,share of our rights in this respect.—l am, etc.. : . BRITISHER. Wellington, September 14, 1910. '-- — ' - I