NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 156, 27 March 1920, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY

SoJin curiosity is being cviitced as to the constitution of the political organisation which is running Mr. Masters for the Stratford seat) According to - the advertisements : published in tho Stratford \)aper Mr. Masters is the nominee of the Liberal and _ Labour Party. It . would seem, if these 'advertisements are-to be credited, that the Labour Party has linked up with the Liberal Party for the purposes of this election. If so the Labour Party must have abandoned the policy. it professed prior-to and during, the late election struggle. At that time its leaders professed to believe 3 that the ,whole political future, of 3 Labour depended on its playing its 3 part unhampered by alliances with [ either of the other political parties, t Independence was one of the stout- . est planks in its platform. Have .the results of the Goner.il Elections [ led it to change,its policy or is Mr. ] Masters merely claiming something 3 which has not the official sanction ] of the Labour Party? Tbere was ] a time not so long ago when Official ) Labour threatened 'to contest every . vacant scat. Yet there are two by--5 elections afoot and not. an Official 1 Labour candidate-yet-in-sight. Possiblv we shall lincl a candidate for 3 the Bruce seat playing the dual role q' of Liberal-Labour as in Stratford. * a- * i 5 The pageant which it is proposed . to enact on tho_Fetonc beach on a the occasion of the Prince of ! AVat.f.s's visit is a thing which . should be either well done or severe--1 ly left alone. The idea, is excels lent. Carried out on.a big enough if scaic it could be made exceedingly impressive, and would enable our Royal guest to .visualise historic Beetles in New Zealand's past in a way that would be otherwise impossible. Such a pageant, well-staged, would also be" of the greatest interest throughout New Zealand, and if s in the hands _ of an enterprising e promoter it might be, made a profit- . speculation by filming it for Q the picture' theatres. . The essential . -condition to success would be its ! handling on a scalc of completely ncss, and with accuracy and varidty j, in the incidents depicted. The un- _ del-taking is an ambitious one, and . is likely to be cither a very big suct cess and the most original spectacle t in the Prince's visit, or else it will . run a perilous danger of being' a a ilat and feeble failure. If it is to r succeed it will probably require the s talent and resources of the whole i city and district,, and we know of s no reason why a big band of workn ers could not be enlisted by going c about matters in the right way. p ' ft * < * j; No' one will grudge Mr. Firth i his well-earned retirement after 'i nearly thirty years as headmaster. '„ of Wellington \ College, but it is . with keen regret that all who know ' of what he has done for the college f will learn of his departure from it. In 1881, nine years after the mcorj. poration of the college,' Mr. Firth „ joined the staff as an assistant- " master, and during his five years . on it so won the affection and regard of the boys and the staff that no more popular head could ha.vn „ 'been chosen whenJhat position fell j vacant in 1802. A strict and'-im-partial disciplinarian but with a . helping hand for those in trouble. L" Mi:. Firth was also a thorough i -sportsmau, and in his younger days a prince of He took the greatest trouble to instil in the school a healthy love of outdoor sports, and Wellingtfui is indebted to liini above all things for his work G in this direction and his endeavours to preserve a high moral bearu ing in the boys under his control. Mr. Firth is a man who has never e sought publicity, but his work at Wellington College which has, gone quietly on year after year, and which we lu-ve eonie to accept as a matter of course, has been a big ~ factor in the life of this pari of the C Dominion. It has been said that I Waterloo was won on the playing r i fields of Eton, and we have no .. doubt at aIL that Wellington College under Mr. Firth was one of ' the foremost influences in moulding j c . the spirit- -that 'oado possible the |j glorious deeds of our soldiers, dur--0 ing the last five years. e ~ ' ' -