NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1445, 21 May 1912, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The Local Government Bill received a vigorous buffet yesterday from the representatives of the various Education Boards of the Dominion. The delegates to the_ Conference appointed to consider the question of taking the control of education from the existing boards and placing it under the proposed Provincial Councils expressed themselves with great freedom and with unanimity on the subject. Most people, we imagine, will, after reading the report of the discussion which took place on the various resolutions brought forward, come to the conclusion that those responsible for the Bill bungled in this particular proposal as they have done'in so many other directions ; n this quite absurd measure. It is satisfactory to learn on the authority of one of the delegates that even the Mackenzie Government now recognises this and that the clauses relating to education are not to be pressed. As a matter of fact, after the Conference of Local Bodies representatives, which opens to-day, it will probably be found that * the Government is not wedded to anything in tho Bill. It'will merely throw the Bill before the Conference' and pray that the Conference will be able to evolve from this dreadful production something of a practical nature in the way of local government reform.* With the best intentions in the world tho Conference, constituted as it is and under such conditions, will probably find itself unable to do anything more than express its condemnation of the Bill as at present framed; and pass a few resolutions of a general character indicating roughly the lines on which reforin should proceed. For years past Municipal and County Council Conferences have been doing this and the remits have been passed on to the Government only to be ignored.

Perhaps the great interest—can we dare to hope it is really interest in art?—which the Baillie picture exhibition has aroused in the Wei-

lington public may be considered some excuse 'for touching upon what wo fancy is something like a sore question with some people. We mean the state of the arts—not painting alone, but music, poetry, and the others—in the Dominions, The London Times recently printed an article from a Melbourne correspondent on music and drama in Australia, in the course of which it was confessed that "both in music and in drama Australians must be told beforehand what is good, else they will not trouble to seek it out for themselves.'' The correspondent rejoices, however over the Bomvicic test. Mr. Bonwick, he says, succeeded well in Australia. That rather wrings New Zealand's withers: they staved away from the Borwick concerts here who bulged over the balcony for Paderkvski. The article referred to provoked a very good little bit of criticism in the Daily Jews. The A'r.ws roundly declares—and no responsible amateur of the arts would venturto stand up against the declaration— that Australia "can point to not a single genius of the first or reasonably high rank.," "The plain truth, it adds, "about the Dominions is that they have been extraordinarily barren artistically-.'' J n 0111 . hearts wo all know that that is true if it is not "damaging the cr"dif. o' f ■ the country" to say so. Why is there this lack of creative faculty; The Actrs gives this reply: —

It is no explanation to say that their populations arc small and their histories brief. I here were about ,'IO,OOO f>'ce ci"" zons in Alliens in her creat day* -n't! she produced in a period shorter' than the life of any of the Dominions ~ cluster of immortals. Again, th» linnli lation of Dlizabothau England t, ' £ than that of Canada to-day. There ; >- niore, but still only partial, instico in the explanation that (he nion of Ihe Dominions have been too occupied with'contiiicr" ing the wilderness and heaping un'material wealth to produce groat art 'ind literature, lint if a people has the treasures of spirit from which groat art -ind literature spring, need the conquest of'the wilderness prevent the birth of a masterpiece? It did not in the ease of the Elizabethan Englishman, who loved monev and pursued it not less zealously than his Canadian descendant. 'Clio root fact probably is that Australians, South Africans, and Canadians,are populations, not peoples. They have not yet, that is to sav, acquired real national milt. Alid the pity is that they have begun l.u exist at a had time tor suiil-' grrnvth.

Tin; most pathetic feature of our latter-day Socialists, and "Social .Reformers," and "New Evangelists" is their proud belief that they are r|iiite new—that their ideas are tlw flowers for which all the. past was preparation. We have often quoWI ironi historical records to show that

this, that, or the other "latest idea" of the ■"advanced" politicians has been tried more than once in past ages. The newest political evangel is usually, the most ancient of exploded fallacies. To our list of these quaint "throw-backs" we are able to

add one more, particulars of which are supplied to the London Obxrrraapropos of Sfx Vat-Sen's declaration that "the future policy of Urn Chinese. Republic will be keen Socialism." The quaintest feature of the situation, the writer points out is that "China has already fried Socialism and rejected it, just as she has twice admitted women to public life on terms of complete equality, only to eject them after a short and unhappy trial." There was a Socialistic movement in the eleventh century in China, led by one Wang Ngan-Shi. This mediaeval Mr Fowlds wrote a book, and it reads exactly like the speeches of some of our modern politicians. For example :

Ilie first and most essential duty of a Government (Wang wrote) is to love the people and to procure then! the real advantages of life, which are plenty «nd pleasure. To. accomplish this object it would suffice to inspire everyone with tho unvarying principles of rectitude; but. as nil might nut observe them, the Stato should explain tho manner of following these precepts and enforce obedience by wise and inflexible laws. Jn order to prevent the oppression of man by man, the Stato should take possession of nil the resources of the Empire and become the sole master and employer.

This was actually, done. Land was annually allotted to farmers, a vast army of inspectors grew up, taxes were imposed on the rich and tho poor were exempt. The taxes went to pay old age pensions and wages to the unemployed. Wang NganSm should really be appointed the patron of the Radical-Socialist movement. Who could guess that it was he and not Mb. Laup.exson or Mr. Fowlds who wrote this?—

Tho only people who can suffer are the usurers and monopolists. . . . Does not justice require that they should be forced to restitute their ill-gotten gains? The State will lx> the only creditor and will never take interest. The result of it all was such an cnfceblement of the Empire that it fell like a house of cards before the attack of the Tartars. The recurrence of these political fallacies is natural enough: there must be foolish demagogues in all ages. ■>'" i"-i^-!-as