Rangitikei Advocate. SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 1907. SECOND EDITION. EDITORIAL NOTES

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXII, Issue 8897, 17 August 1907, Page 2

Rangitikei Advocate. SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 1907. SECOND EDITION. EDITORIAL NOTES

lIT is sometimes a disadvantage to the public interest when a man who lias been employed in a public department is pla.ced iu charge of it. Ho is too apt to retain tho idea that the people exist for the Department to exploit, instead of realising that tho Department, was created, to serve the public. A case in point was furnished by the Premier the other day when ..he said "In some of the small post offices we are paying two ' or three times as much for every letter or article delivered as we receive. That is done for the con- ; venience of the public, but we can- | not afford to place a burden on the j whole postal system by paying high ! salaries in these small offices." In j the first place it may bo pointed out I that the correspondence from and to [ country offices interests tho large j centres also, aud that if the inference ; implied by the Premier was correct, I then post offices should exist in the cities only. Moreover, the country j settlers are the very ones who aro i most in need of a good postal service, because they aro separated from their fellows, aud as thoy bear their share of the general taxation aud are mostly wealth creators, thoy have every right to such public services as can bo given. Then, again, on its whole business the Postal Department is the most profitable of any under the control cf Ministers, and accounts for over half a million profit every year, so that tho Department could well afford to extend its benefits. It would undoubtedly do so if its management realised that its first duty is to servo the public, not to restrict its services to paying lines only. The same departmental bias accounts for tho facts that many country districts are still without telephone communication, aud thatwhenever tho people of a district desire to share in the benefit of a Government monopoly tho question is raised of whether it will pay. In most cases the Department develops rapacity and stretches out for a guarantee or a subsidy. As the State has secured a monopoly of the means of communication its first duty is. to see that they are available for tho use of all the people. If it cannot do this, then it should

abandon tho monopoly and allow the people to either su'ppiy themselves or invoko tho aid of private enterprise.

THIS week when the member for Geraldino questioned the Minister

for Labour relative to the citation | of 7000 Canterbury farmers before j the Arbitration Court, the only satisfaction that could bo got was a promise to the effect that in future the shearing of the farmers shall be expedited, and a building large enough to herd them in shall be secured. So far it has not entered into the heads of Ministers that it should be made impossible to apply the Arbitration Act to the natural industries, but possibly the farmers may strike a successful blow for freedom at the next election, If (hey also insist upon the abolition of the Department of Labour, which exists solely for the purpose cf enabling men to do less work for moro pay, "they will do the State some service.