The Daily Telegraph. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 1883.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3669, 18 April 1883, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 1883.

The Hon. Major Atkinson is still striving to force down the throats of the good people in the Middle Island his scheme for the prevention of pauperism. He has all the pertinacity of a book-agent or of a commercial traveller. It is the only article he has " for sale," and being perhaps the only idea he ever possessed he is making the most of it. The surpising thing- is that he can find anyone with sufficient patience to listen to him. He propounded his scheme last session, but it fell as flatly as possible iv an assemblage of sensible people. Tho proposal last session was this : that everyone betAveen the ages of 10 or 18 and 23— that would be at their option—should pay to the State:-—From IG to 23, 2s 3d per week, or from 18 to 23, 3s 3d per week; that is, for five or seven years, as the case might be, making a total payment of a little over ..41 during .seven years. The benefit they would get was this: immediately after tlie first payment, whether they were well or ill before they paid it, each one would be entitled to draw 15s per week during illness. Under the scheme, if the whole community came in, a man of 30 would have to pay for seven years £4 3s 3d per year ;at 35, £1 Os Od ; at' -10, £115s Gd ; at -15, £5 0s 7d. This would giA-e him 15s per week until he Avas 65 whenever he was sick. AYe need not repeat here the arguments advanced to show the impracticability of tbe scheme. AVhat is very much more to the purpose is to find the real cause of poverty, and so get at the root of the evil. An employer of labor, writing under the signature of "A Master" to the Ncav Zealand Herald, says his whole life has been spent amongst working people, and after many years close observation he has come to the conclusion that the real causes of poverty in this colony are first drink, secondly extravagance. It is impossible for anyone to point out a case iv this colony where the man and Avoman are good managers and sober, and yet industrious (except in cases of prolonged sickness) where there is poA-erty. In England many a large family has been brought up respectably on 8s per week; Avliile here men Avho, getting 30s, will spend it all. The only remedy'for either of these evils is to tax luxuries, so that we niiiy get into the habit of only buying necessaries. Drink might be put beyond the reach of working men. Many a num. would never taste drink if he knew it was bs a glass—as most men arc led on from glass to glass, forgetting the sum total. Again, the majority of working men havo more luxuries than their employers. Instead of buying good wholesome brown bread, which the wealthiest arc glad to use, they must have the best white bread. Instead of a good joint of cheap boiling beef and rice, which is the cheapest and best food of all, they buy tinned sardines and salmon, canned fruits, and many other things in that siyle, which it would take up too much space to mention. AYe all know the consequences of a continuance of this diet. Tlie working* man feels that there is someting wanting to " keep up steam," and naturally resorts to spirits. Ea-cit working man should save some proportion of liis Avages, if it be only a shilling a week, but nearly all could s.-ia-c five shillings. Many a man would save if there were a savings' bank iv every place that can support an hotel; and the Government would find it to their interest to see that such is the case. Let this be done, and luxuries or anything that is not strictly a necessary, jewellery included, " be brought to three or four times its present value," and both master and man Avill reap the benefit.