NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2204, 17 July 1914, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY.

Mb. Wilford and other members of the Opposition "Plying Squadron" were at great pains during the rccess to fasten a charge upon the Government of having sinister designs upon the State Fire Insurance Office. It is nothing to them that this Department has enjoyed unexampled prosperity under Reform administration, and that its profits. are steadily increasing year' by year.' They consider it "good business,", as Mr. IsiTrnaively puts it, to assure the electors of' this country that the Government has fell designs upon State institutions, no doubt hoping that a gulliblo percentage of the electors will be foolish enough to believe them. In the matter-of-fact atmosphere of the House of Representatives such imaginative efforts do not flourish, and if it serves no other purpose, the discussion which took place yesterday afternoon, when the Hon. FJ M. B. Fisher moved to lay the annual report of the State Fire Office on the table, will at least enable the people of the country to' assess the stories of the "Flying Squadron"- at their true worth. Thesolitary fragment of fact upon which Mr. Wilford and his friends base their allegations is that the" Reform Government has discontinued the practice of compelling borrowers from the State Advances Department to take out a covering insurance in the State Fire Office. Borrowers from the Advances Department are now left free to insure with the State Offico or with any other from which they can secure more advantageous terms. Mr. Isitt and some other Oppositionists went so far yesterday as to contend that borrowers from the State should be compelled to insure in the State Office even at a higher rate .than they could secure elsewhere. Even their own Leader, Sir Joseph Ward, felt compelled to disown this peculiar doctrine. It may bo true, as was stated last evening, that private lending companies habitually dictate to borrowers in the matter of the companies they must insure with, but it does not by any means follow that the State is justified in adopting a similar policy. As Mr. AY. H. D. Bell pointed out, the State Fire Office does not exist to drive private insurance companies out of the field, and Mis. Isitt and other noisy critics were silent when Mr. Bell invited them, if they favoured such a policy, to. say so in plain terms. The true 1 and recognised function of the State Office is to impose a cheek upon premium rales and force thorn down to the lowest point consistent with sound business conditions. It would

be an absolute reversal o{ its purpose if people were compelled to trade with it when they could get better terms from a- private company, and if it can offer as favourable terms as private companies no castiron regulations are needed to ensure it fair and reasonable patronage. The truth is, of course, that the opponents of the Government are disappointed over the failure of their predictions regarding the Government's policy towards State institutions. Instead of languishing under the Reform Government, the State Fire Office and other State institutions are flourishing exceedingly. Mr. Lee, who has proved _ a thorn in the side of the Opposition this session, was not very far wrong when he summed up the position with the remark that the Opposition have to put up with the fact that they are face to face with the progress of a progressive Government. They do not like it, but -they have to put up with it. The position of Prince .William of Wied as ruler of Albania is now becoming desperate. He is appealing to the Powers for help, and it must be admitted that they have so far given him very little assistance in overcoming the difficulties with which he is surrounded. When his selection as ruler of the new Kingdom of Albania was first announced he was described as a man of determination and force of characterjust the type of leader required for the warlike Albanians. But results have proved that the task of making a nation out of a number of hostile tribes separated by racial and religious barriers is beyond his powers, and it is now expected that he will vacate his throne unless outside help is immediately forthcoming. It is believed that the insurgents, who are demanding a Moslem prince and the Turkish language, are receiving help and couragement from • Constantinople. The forces at.Prince William's disposal are utterly unable to cope with the rebellion, and the Powers are extremely unwilling to take effective action for the restoration of order and good government • Some time ago the Albanian Premier telegraphed to the Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs asking for the instant dispatch of 500 men of the international contingents at Scutari to protect Durazzo, but the Triple Entente showed no desire to intervene in order, to protect the interests of Austria 'and Italy. Tlie rebels are well aware of the anxiety of the great European nations to keep out of the turmoil, and do, not forget how the Turks were permitted to reoccupy Adrianoplo. They know Prince William's helplessness, and believe that the Powers will eventually let them have-their own way . for the sake of peace. It is hard to say whether the Prince's latest appeal for help will meet with any response. His. resignation would certainly complicate matters, and might result in a general scramble for Albanian territory. • A strong feeling that the State should take over, the hospitals and bear tho whole cost of their main-, tenance was displayed at Wednesday's sitting of the Municipal Conference. It is true that tho motion to this effect was lost, but the division" was a narrow one,' twenty-five delegates 'voting for _the proposal and twenty-nine against it. The general increase in the hospital levies throughout the Dominion ' has' bepn viewed with alarm by the contributing bodies for years past, and ,many of them would doubtless be glad to escape their obligations without delay. At the same time it cannot be said that State control of similar institutions, to wit, the mental hospitals, has been an unalloyed success! Tho burden of hospital expenditure may be a heavy one at present, but it has been demonstrated time and again that it could be considerably lightened did the boards' insist ; on the payment, of maintenance charges by those patients who are in a position to meet them without hardship. The laxity in this respect has in many cases been notorious, and there is no good reason why the ratepayers should be called upon- to support patients who are quite able 'to pay the very modest maintenance rates, but lack the ordinary decent spirit that prevents si man from sponging on his neighbours. Not a great deal of new light was" thrown on the subject of motor-ear taxation by the discussion at yesterday's sitting of the Municipal Conference.- The principle of a tax was naturally affirmed, but the remits adopted give no indication of the conference's view as to the basis of taxation. This thorny problem was left for discussion by a conference between the' executives of the Muni- • cipal Association and the Counties' Association. An interesting argument against a tax oh tires is put forward by a correspondent this morning, who suggests that with taxation on such a .basis it would be' distinctly to the financial advantage of local bodies to leave as much sharp-edged broken metal about their roads as possible, and no inducement is offered to improve road surfaces. basis so far'suggested has its objections. A tax on horse-power on the' English rating will hit tho cheap American car unduly hard. To base tho levy on weight, it is contended, will enable the man who races about tho country in a high-powered machine with a light body to escape his fair share of taxation. A tax on petrol would, of course, mean a tax on launch owners, dairy factories, and many other industries. Again, neither the horse-pow'cr nor weight basis takes into account the use .that is made of tho roads by the owners of _ the cars. One man may travel daily, another will make little more than week-end runs. No tax, of course, oan be levied so as to fall with absolute justice in all cases, and the main thing in motor taxation is to collect a sufficient amount to aid materially in improving the roads _ without unfairly penalising motorists as against other road'users.