NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2199, 11 July 1914, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

It is not many years since the Plunket 'Society was 'established in this country,;, but already it has accomplished a splendid' work and attained results which' are'. all 'the more praiseworthy because they!'are so i largely clue .to voluntary .effort. The requests for financial and other assistance which the Society put for- 1 ward ybsterday through- its representatives who interviewed the Prime Minister and some of his. colleagues well deserve the favourable consideration which they were promised and certainly cannot be described as extravagant An additional;grant:to the-Karitane Hospital, .from which ;so:niany efficient nurses' have , been 'sent' out to instruct the .mothers of tho Dominion in the proper care and nurture of.thcir infants,' would be in. the .nature of a first-class investment of, public '.money.. No surprise will be'fol'fc'at'the.r'equest.'.thatpiiV/TRUBY , . King , should 'be ; 'set ''free "; from '■• his jprosent ties of. the ''Society,'"f6"r. ho'-is ■■■ 'the" brain and soul of the ■magnificent work thatiis .being.done for the infants of and : ; fqr.. the.'future ■Vivelfare -of the race. .''ln tho."internals :. ; of-■ fl, busy: official -life. has" found time to inspire and:direct the enterprise' -for ' .which \ the , Society- 1 stands and : iio one could..be;better fitted to" supervise its extending ac-i tivitics..;. From what was said yesterday", it seems "unlikely that•'. Dr. ', King will ,bo set entirely free-from, his duties as Medical "Superintend-' ent ■of Seacliff Mental /Hospital, but, ■it', will be a great gain ; tq; the. 'Society and to those whom'li'ibenefits if-he is enabled to,'devote; himself to its work, as was, suggested yesterday, for three months in -the year. A' striking fact mentioned by one of the speakers at the. deputation was; that the. financial assistance at preseht rendered-by the Government to. the-Society works diit to an average ot about half a crown per baby! Thvs is a wonderfully modest investment considering the results attained and particularly when it is ; remembered that .the_ Commonwealth.;of. Australia has incurred an expenditure of over £l,000i000!per annum in paying ,a bonus of £5 per baby. Obviously the educational work which isi being carried out; by the ■Plunket: Society, ; in: New). Zealand is -producing Jar more valuable results than .could be attained by;the institution;of .a baby bonus,', and the. "Society l : deserves eVery possible encouragement in tho extension '. and developincnt of its work. ■... *. : ■. : : ; - ■/. . , -

•THE'annual'report: of the Public Trust. Office,. which was. presented to -Parliament; yesterday,' makes' : no reference, to-the unbridled criticism which iertaih members of the Oppo-' sitibn directed against' the j Public Trust.Offico Amendment Act placed on the. Statute Book last-year. - But the: plain'; facts ■ and : .figures ;'contained in thc.report proyido ,a complete and most convincing answer to' the, gross and'persistent; misrepresentation ,of Mr.. Herdman'.s . action in this matter by : certain Anti-Bp: foriri orato'rs, who have done their utmost to /fnako the public believe, that the Minjiater-in-Ghargc had no sympathy with the .Trust Office, and was even'doing .his. best" to' cripple its operations. • The report, which is for the year ..ended March. 31 -last, shows substantial increases of business under every heading. /More estates were dealt with, their value was greater, "the number of wills deposited increased, the capital funds amounted to. £6,366,707 (as against £5,799,446 in 1913), and the not profits were the largest on record—£29,222,' as against £27,551 for the preceding year: These incontrovertible .facts absolutely annihilate the foolish attacks -.'which.! made .on Mr; Herdman's .' administrktioh , of; the Office, and _upset. every prediction of hostile critics." Moreover, the.record profits have not been made' at the expense of the employees. Far from it. When the present Government took control the Public Trust Office was understaffed, and the staff 'was underpaid/The number of employees has been', increased and the total amount paid, in salaries' has risen during tne year from £27,221 to £32,837. This.means that the public will benefit through the, work being done more, expeditiously,- while the staff has been placed in a better, position—and yet the profits' are the highest on record. Opposition critics of the Government seem to have a fatal facility for bumping their heads against the solid masonry/'of. facts. It is a painful procedure, and also makes them look very foolish.

A frequent source -of liiorriiiieut since the advent of the Massey Government is the spectacle of a.Jorget•*Ul Opposition member, solemnly de-

nouncing the Government ; for' doing something which it had been the practice of its predecessors to do, or claiming that the Reform Government deserved no credit for some particular action because if circumstances and the fortune of war had not intervened to prevent them the ■"Liberal" .Party had intended to do the same thing itself, /in the House of Representatives yesterday; for instance, Mr. G. W. Russell tempestuously charged.the Government with having done an unconstitutional act in granting an increase, of pay ■ to the members of the Police Force, and then let the bottom out of:his own accusation by asserting that if the Opposition had remained in power the increase would have been granted a year ago. .In that event,. according _' to : Me. Russell's reasoning,' , justice would have been done to the Police/Force, but because the Reform Government granted the increase it was guilty of a- base .attempt: to sweeten these men" ..in election year. This is a fair sample of much of the present-day Opposition logic, and it ■is quite evident that if the Government wishes to obtain .the good opinion of its political opponents it' must forthwith cease doing any of the things which the Opposition imagine they had intended to do' if they had not been, prevented by their ejection from., office. This being so, the Attorney-General' really wasted his breath • in pointing out that any member who objected to the action of ,the ■.Government in granting increased pay to the Police Force would; have .'an opportunity of pb-jecting-when the Estimates came up" for consideration. It is not likely, we suspect, that; this- information will be taken advantage of,by Me.' G;' W. iRussELL.-?. : .'■■■■ •.:.;■■': ',' ;- ; ■■■:'.'.: ■;■>

'. : We do not- think , it will .be much consolation' to those citizens whose' dwellings, have been robbed during thepast month to be; told by .S.uraß- , INTENDENT. Ellison. tliafc\ the /criihes. are 'hardly burglaries," 'but "merely thefts." Nor is the SuperintendentY cheery remark '■ will catch the culprit sooner or later"- entirely, reassuring.;'.■;.■-The'- plain fa-ct remains .that during ..the'- last few weekssoriie. six hbiises. have , been entered. and. goods.stolen, and the police,have apprehended no : one.-!.Within-a',week-' assaults havebeen made ontwb Ghir' and one of the-victims was so badly knocked about■that He had to be taken to the Hospital. One of these incidents, the -, Superintendent, in'an interyie\y'with.a- representative; ,of ...our. evening' ; ; contemporary, disr missed.as a l joke, andvin; r the other case he is reported to have said; that the, ruffian who beat; .the.: Chinese shopkeeper. about', the ihead; with; a length, of, piping; was :hot actuated by any .criminal'intent."., Probably: Superintendent/Ellison ;has ; be.en misunderstbod by our contemporary.) Rut in any case. we are suro the, public as littleaboiit this man's 'intent" .as .it' does :for'■nice';distiiic--tions whether the .ransacking of a houssand removal of goods is burglary" ,or. thefti .This morning there is reported a' : brutal attack'oh.a young girl at Kilbirhie.- 'PMsiblyiwo. shafl learn that .the perpetrator: was , actuated by the Jbest of .motives.; Nb'po.dy expectsvl.iitipossibilities;; from ; the police, and we ;can appreciate. ?upee.'lntend'ent, Ellison's -desire.-.to;pre-' ;''a'lai'mftl,''bui'tile' 'present'epidemic of house-raiding/and aesarilt.;is. not to; ■be brushed airily, aside 'as : not; worth serious,consideration. ;;' ;-; >■.-/ V : .':.\ : y ■.