NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 136, 4 March 1919, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

A sake pronouncement upon industrial conditions in Great Britain is credited to-day to Mr. J. H. Thomas, a veteran Labour leader. His words stand as an effective exposure and denunciation of the fallacy that-in this life Labour or any other section of the community can expect to indefinitely gain something for nothing, by Bolshevism, Syndicalism, or any other means. As regards what is possible in the way of improvement and reconstruction, however, Mb. Thomas's statement, as it is reported, takes too narrow and limited a view. Probably his observations have lost something in being summarised for cabling. It is true, as he says, that industrial lifo in Great Britain for four years has been carried on with borrowed capital—the world had never seen such borrowing—and that this process cannot continue. But these years of mammoth borrowing have witnessed also wonderful strides in industrial organisation and productive efficiency. The remedy for existing ills and the condition of future prosperity is not so much retrenchment, though that •is inevitable in some directions, as an, everimproving organisation of industry leading to mounting production. It is ■ only in this way that the legitimate demand of the workers for a higher standard of livin.a, which Mr. Thomas himself so heartily endorses, can be satisfied. Some of tho demands lately advanced by powerful Labour organisations in Great Britain simply amount to reaching out for what docs not exist.

As they aro reported, the recommendations of the Separation Commission recently set up by tho Peace Conference are evidently incomplete. The Commission, it is said, recommends that_ Germany should be required to pay in three ways—by her gold reserve, by surrendering foreign debts owing to her, and by supplying coal and potash. No mention is made of such obviously just demands as that for compensation in shipping or for the restoration or replacement of machinery, live stock, etc., stolen from regions devastated by the enemy armies, but presumably such demands have not been _ overlooked. Gold reserve and foreign debts offer in their scope a sound method of collecting. compensation from Germany, but in the aggregate will not go far towards squaring the account. In raw materials like coal and potash Germany has an enormous body of national wealth,-but there may be economic difficulties in drawing upon it freely for purposes of an indemnity. The Separation Commission in any case is evidently called upon to range widely in pursuing its investigation, and will no doubt pay full attention to such suggestions as were made recently by Sir Eric Geddes. That Minister observed that there were some things he wontf-Siot take from Germany because *r would hurt Allied industry. H propose," he said, "that every bit of German property, movable and immovable, in Allied and neutral countries, whether State property or private property, should be surrendered lo the Allies, and that Germany should pay.her precious citizfns in her precious paper money. I propose that not onlv all tho trold Germany has, Out all the silver and jewels she has got shall be handed over. All her_ pictures and libraries and everything of that kind should be sold to the neutral and Allied world an-'l the proceeds given to'pay the indemnity. Iwottld strip Germany as she has stripped Belgium." Sir

to Gorman property held in Allied and neutral, countries is eminently just and practical. In the British Empire alone there must be a very large amount of German wealth sequestered. In the ordinary way the property of naturalised Germans would be exempt from seizure, but in tho case of those who have been interned on adequate grounds it might with all fairness be held that they have forfeited the rights which naturalisation confers.

Conditions under which service gratuities are to be paid to soldiers are still under consideration in this country, though the necessary financial provision has been made, but one of yesterday's messages showed that France has given legislative form to its proposals under this head. As it was drafted (and it has been passed apparently without material alteration), the Bill in question proposed to allow a gratuity of approximately £10 on demobilisation to men of all ranks, as a minimum allowance, with increases for time spent at the front, plus special additional allowances for mentions in orders and bonuses in respect of family_ charges. According to the details cabled each combatant is to receive an additional sum of 15s. lid. for every month of service, and there is an allowance- of half this amount, apparently, to each dependant of a soldier for every month of his service. It was estimated when the proposals were framed that they would involve an outlay of about sixty-eight millions sterling. Apart from gratuities the French Government decided to continue for six months after demobilisation the allowances at present made to soldiers' families, the amount of these allowances being diminished progressively at the end of the second and fourth months. The families of men killed, or who have disappeared or died during the war, will continue to receive sulft allowances until November 15 next.