NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 140, 8 March 1919, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

— » Somewhat disquieting suggestions in regard to the state of the municipal roll were made at the meeting of the City Council on Thursday evening. Rumours of rollstuffing were mentioned by Councillor R. A. -Wright, and no definite assurance was- given that it has not occurred. On the contrary, tho Town Clerk's statement that he had to accept any written application for enrolment that was m order, nnd that there were no means of testing the genuineness of such applications, left the whole matter somewhat unsatisfactorily open. Each claim for enrolment has to be endorsed by an enrolled elector, but this can hardly bo regarded as a complete safeguard—tne endorsement is apt to be regarded as a mere formality. If any serious grounds exist for believing that bogus enrolments have been made, it should be possible to apply at least a partial test. Further than this it is a question worthy of serious consideration whether municipal rolls ought not to be safeguarded in much the same fashion as those used in Parliamentary elections. It is not a satisfactory state of affairs when the purity of any electoral roll has to be taken on trust.

The Minister of Defence has common sense and reason on his side in deprecating the action of some local bodies which have, supported a resolution favouring the abolition of tho Territorial system. The stage has not 'been reacncd_ at which it is possiblo to say precisely what measures of defence preparation will henceforth be necessary in this country. But whatever cranks may "say or desire New Zealanders as a body are not likely to conscnt, a.s soon as the war is over, to divest themselves of all means of defence. In big and littlo countries a reasonable measure of military preparation is an essential safeguard of peace. The general aim obvioiisly must be that laid down by Sir 'James Allen—to maintain such an organisation as will make it possible to call the Defence Force into existence should it at any time be required. In affording scope for a valuable course of physical training, with such dental and medical attention as might be necessary—probably also for a measure of instruction in the broad essentials of citizenship—a ■ schcmc of this kind might easily produce benefits that would far outweigh its cost, apart .from, tho national safeguard it would afford. As the records of rejections from tho Expeditionary Forcc have demonstrated, the question of effecting an improvement in existing standards of physical fitness in, itself, makes urgent claims upon attention.

It has often been mentioned that the, Spartacusian faction, which seems at present to be extending its sway in Germany takes its name from Spaktacus, the loader_ of the insurgents in the. Gladiatorial war ajrainst Rome of 73-71 n.c. Possibly it is not as commonly known why the German extremists adopted this' designation. The real reason is that in the early days of the war Liebkneckt, who was assassinated not long ago after a brief career as leader of t]ie extreme revolutionaries, wrote leaflets signed "Spartacus." In recalling this fa.ct, a correspondent of the Manchester Guardian observes that Liebkneoht chose that name presumably because the German revolutionaries of 1818. liko the Frenchmen of 1789, loved classical names. * * * *. So far as the object aimed at -is concerned', the scheme mooted by the Minister of Internal Affairs for the establishment by the National AYa-r Funds Council of bursaries for returned soldiers desiring to attend the university to qualify for a profession must be unreservedly commcnded. The only question to be raised is whether the Minister's proposals on the subject arc sufficiently comprehensive, and whether the assistance necessary to enable returned soldiers to complete interrupted courses in higher education should not be provided for under the . State repatriation scheme rather than by drawing upon patriotic funds. At all events any returned soldier is fully entitled to reasonable assistance in completing studies which will enable him to qualify for a profession. A scheme is already in operation in Great Britain" under which assistance is ■granted to students whose training was broken, into by war scrvicc. The benefits of the scheme apply equally to officers, warrant oflicors, noncommissioned officers, and men, provided they are "of suitable educational promise." An official announcement states, in part, that: The amount of assistance to be granted will 1)0 separately determined in each case. On the one hand, this amount will bo limited to the actual sum deemed sufficient to meet the necessary fees and the expenses of maintenance of tho candidate, after due account has been taken of his private means, if any, of ntiy scholarships to which ho may be entitled, nnd of the assistance which can reasonably bo expected from those who would, in ordinary circumstances, have borne or contributed to the expenses of his training. On tho other hand it is intended that the amount of the assistance should bo such as will enable a candidate to take his course of training under reasonably adequate conditions, even though he and his friends are not ill a position to meet any part of the expenses of tho course. Provision is made under tho British scheme for the maintenance of children where candidates were married before the date of the armistice. It seems only right and just that corresponding arrangements should bo made in this country. As the Ixmdon Times observed in commenting on the British schcmc, "the ideal to ai;n at is that lack of pence should not prevent any soldier from continuinff his interrupted studies."

Prospects of effectual work at tho Tcace Conference are .much brightened by the tone of the speeches made by President AVilson. and Mr. Takt on the eve of the President's departure for Europe. Mr. Takt's declaration that if America failed to participate in the reconstruction of Europe she would be a slacker amongst the nations worthily scconds President AVilson's forcible appeal to his countrymen, and it need not bo doubted that in expressing this view Mr. Taft is speaking for a large proportion of the members of the Republican Party. It is undoubtedly/ true that the establishment of thcAeague is an essential condition_ to a secure pcacc, and happily this fact seems to be accepted as the keynote of action and effort by the leading representatives of all the principal Allied nations.