Citizens Say-

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 42, 12 May 1927, Page 8

Citizens Say-

To the Editor-.

COUNCIL COMMITTEES Sir I remember reading - a very sensible suggestion in your leading columns to the effect that experienced men outside the City Council membership should be asked to co-operate and lend valuable assistance as members of the council’s committees. There is, I believe, legislative power to coopt in this manner, and if I remember rightly, you mentioned Mr. Bloodworth and Mr. Warnock as men of particularly valuable experience, who could do great work for the city, though they were no longer councillors, on the tramways and parks committees. Heaven knows the Tramway Committee needs common sci.se and experience in its constitution; it is servng the public very badly. Both Mr. Bloodworth and Mr. Warnock would undoubtedly have been reelected if they had stood for the council again, instead of going for the Mayoralty. Are their services to be wasted? What does the Mayor intend to do about it? People are waiting to see whether he will be broad-minded enough to follow your advice, or be narrow enough to reject it, ignore his late opponents in the Mayoral contest, and select what he can from the limited material available inside the council. CIVILE S. THE NEGATION OF RECIPROCITY Sir, — According to “Reciprocity is Right,” Mr. Holland's policy is “puerile,” the Canadian Minister of Justice makes "ridiculous" statements, the League of Nations is “not worth its salt,” and Y.M.C.A. officials misrepresent conditions in China to “justify their salaries.” All unsubstantiated, ol’ course. Yes, sad (?) to say. the “golden age” for profit-sharing in child labour seems to be about over. NV ith Chinese nationalism go demands for higher wages, shorter hours, end better conditions all round. The second principle in the Kuo-min Tang programme is “economic uplift of the workers.” “Reciprocity is Right” does not tell us where his friend managed to exist on threepence a day. If it was in any treaty port, I suggest the secret be divulged for the benefit of Chinese workers. 1-lis slur at Y.M.C.A. workers in China is unwarranted, and indefensible on any grounds. No policy which tends to save the world from another holocaust can be dismissed as “puerile.” Will “Reciprocity is Right” state why 'it is ridiculous to say capital has no nationality,” and what is the idea of attempting to ring in “British Tommies” as authorities? No dominion is ever likely to retreat from the position taken up on immigration laws. “To demand” and “to take” are anomalies, the verv negation or' reciprocity, and all it connotes “RIGHT AND RECIPROCITY.” “AN ECONOMIC ENTITY’’ Sir, — With reference to the statement of ‘■Reciprocity is Right” that children are glad to work in foreign factories in China, 1 am in entire agreement with your correspondent. No doubt they do, but from this reason only—that they would rather be slaves than corpses. Perhaps your correspondent will maintain that on a similar line of argument the children like being flogged by the

factory foreman since it enables them do their duty better. Major Wickstead has an interesting parallel for us to consider. We are invited to sympathise with investors and business firms in Chinese treaty ports on the ground that business is likely to be injured by the big changes involved. But as “Reciprocity is Right" ‘has stated, Mr. Chen and the Nationalist Party in general are anxious to retain foreign capital in the country, and have guaranteed its safety. It is true that foreign capital, equally with Chinese capital, will be subject to more restrictions than at present. The Chinese workers have insisted that the League of Nations’ factory code shah be enforced in the treaty ports, as well as in China proper. And foreign capital will not be allowed to employ labour at the intolerably low wage paid at present. A glance at the China Year Book, at any of the British Consular reports or at the handbook “Hands Off China,' published by this will reveal conditions of employment almost too awful for belief.

And strange as it may seem to some people, the Chinese workers do not like it. In fact they have, despite whole - sole executions in the treaty ports and in other industrial centres, organised numerous successful strikes and have been able to make some slight improvement in their conditions. In the foreign settlement of Shanghai alone there 1923, most of them successful, at least in part. And \their efforts deserve our support. Since, as your first correspondent pointed out, capital will go where it gets the best return, hundreds of millions of pounds of foreign capital is being invested in China in building up industries which compete with those of Great Britain. This competition causes unemployment, and short time in Great Britain. This in turn causes a decreased demand for New Zealand butter, etc. Thus we see that the world is an economic entity and that the cause of the struggling workers in distant China directly affects us in New Zealand. For the Hands Off China Anti-War O rgani sati on — S. W. SCOTT. IS LAND TAXATION FAIR? Sir, Your correspondent “C.H.N.” says “If we imagine a State consisting of one hundred thousand people—fifty thousand having children and fifty thousand having none—is it not clear that if the mothers are endowed out of .a fund contributed to by all, that the childless would be helping to keep other people’s children?” Yes! in a free trade country that would be so! But, is it not equally clear that in a protected country that the fifty thousand having children help to keep the fifty thousand childless; in other words, they contribute more to the consolidated funds. Again, he says “there is nothing fundsmentallv wrong in large holdings.” Admittedly provided they are cultivated as intensively as small holdings; but there is something fundamentally wrong in land holding if it is not producing Hence the Graduated Land Tax. Five hundred pounds was the. maximum value of land allowed on which to make a living. Hence the exemption' The old Liberals took a lot of beating. If you do not apply exemption, then why not tax the carpenter’s tools the manufacturer’s machinery? If you do not apply graduation, then land comes more profitable to aggregate .and hold than tq cultivate. The principle of land taxation is not

sound, because land is only a means of production. It is not equitable because all men cannot produce the same amount from the same piece of land. The only equitable means of taxation is to tax man’s earning capacity—W.J.A BIBLE IN SCHOOLS Sir,—The suggestion of H.R.H.” that w* should use the Bible in our d 3? schools as a basis of moral teachu*# will not meet with every parent’s approval, as the interpretation neecca by many children of any portion the Scriptures will involve the propagating of religion. Religion offers adequate explanation of the sense, and in practice is the worst . moral educators. It is not concerned with conduct, but with lief, and the belief which it * l ?**w” upon is of a kind that all knowleap tends to weaken and destroy. k- n ° ing that the Bible does contain ~ great number of false hopes and D ken promises, I cannot earnestly co mend to children the study °* Bible even as literature. JOHN BAILED.

NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS “Sceptical.”—You may well be. parties concerned may yet have to Tegret ignoring the advice of a old company director, whose injunction to his colleagues was -Gentlemen whatever we do, let us tell no ho® ourselves!”