THE OTAKI MAIL. Published on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 1919. EDITORIAL NOTES.

Otaki Mail, 22 January 1919, Page 2

THE OTAKI MAIL. Published on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 1919. EDITORIAL NOTES.

Wellington City "> Milk. Supply. j The Wellington City Council is to be congratulated on having at last successfully commenced its control of the milk supply in the'city. After many years of waiting, during which time "the matter has been almost continually before the public, and a tremendous amount of trouble has been contended \ with, the fresh milk Supply of the city 'is now definitely under municipal control, and matters havo been placed on such a footing that the Wellington City Council has practically a monopoly of the milk business. To secure ; this much-needed reform, many mistakes have %aen made, and doubtless more will yet be made before things work smoothly and well, but the undertaking has been a gigantic one, bristling with difficulties, and, now that the scheme is actually in working or- , dor, improvements can be effected as j necessity demands. A plentiful supply of good, wholesome milk is of supreme importance to any city, and therefore. it is most gratifying to know- that this matter has been placed on«fi/satisfactory footing in Wellington, where the conditions that obtained in the past in regard to the milk supply were a pub-lic-scandal. Wellington's embarkation on this scheme is.of special interest to this 'Uistriet, seeing;that a .very iconsiderable proportion of milk will come from this district. The Wellington City Council has purchased the Rahui Co-operative Dairy Co.'s factory and-its total milk supply; also that of the" Paraparaumu branch of the*Dairy Farmers' Association, and these pur-chases-will have a most important bearing oji' the dairying industry of this coast. -Suppliers to the two factories mentioned will receive an increased price for their'milk, and there is every prospect of suppliers to these concerns being placed on a better footing than j any "others in the province.' For this reason atone-: residents of this district »will wish the, Wellington municipal | milk supply every success.

Unpaid Bates. A Taranaki resident writes us that Otaki is not alone in discussing the unfairness of ratepayers who do not pay their rates being allowed the privilege of recording their votes. Our informant states that Te Kuiti Borough Council and the Waitomo County Council arc at present agitating in the matter, and that these bodies are urging that there bo separate voting for Natives id local bodies. This would, we fear, prove difficult to work satisfactorily, ami, if not carefully considered, might easily prove unfair to the Native ratepayers, who deserve as much consideration as Europeans. The Clifton County Council, in discussing this matter, suggested the same solution as that we mentioned in a recent leading article, viz., that no person—European or be allowed to vote unless his or her rates were paid. The matter is anMinportant one. and we are glad to see that local bodies arc taking it in hand, and trust that a satisfactory solution of the trouble will be arrived

Mail Services. The wonder* of aerial navigation are to be put into practical use immcdiatelv, and should revolutionise our mail services. A cable message just to hand informs us that a regular acronlane passenger and postal service between Paris' and Loudon in connection with the Peace Conference was to begin last Monday, and a later message Elites that tho first aeroplane postal flight carried despatches from Hendon to Versailles in 106 minutes. Almost every daily paper records some fresh wonderful feat, sufficient to prove that the flying machine will in the near future play a most important part in our evervdav commercial life. Sir Joseph Ward is confident that he will be able to establish aerial mail services in New Zealand in the very near future, and will make full inquiries into the matter during his present stay at Home. Such schemes are no longer visionary, but very real, practical, businesslike propositions, and New Zealand should not be behind other countries in sharing the enormous advantages that modern aeroplanes offer.