WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 219, 24 November 1916, Page 4

WELLINGTON TOPICS

AMERICAN MEAT TRUST. i DISCLAIMERS. (Special Correspondent-}. WELLINGTON. Nov 2S. Naturally the firm: handling New Zealand proSLffSfcre von sensitive over the mention of the Aihe rican Meat Trust in connection v.itl their business. At the opening of tin new works of the New Zealand Refri gerating Company at Wanganui las week Mr 'A. H. Knight, the chairmai of the Board of Directors, gave a nios specific and emphatic denial to the ru moor that the company had been assis ted in its enterprise by American capl tal, and intimated very plainly tin company's intentions to take legal pro ceedings against any maliciously dis posed person by whom the rumoui might be repeated. Now a well-known firm of meat buyers doing business all over the Dominion has published a similar disclaimer, and issues a similar warning. There is not the least ret;sou to suppose that those firms are in any way connected with the Meat Trust, financially or otherwise, but the rumours that have got about, taken in conjunction with the facts that have been ascertained, suggest that t>e Gov* crnment should take such steps as may be necessary to prevent foreign speculators obtaining advantages in the London market which are not available to the New Zealand farmers and buyers. THE DRIVERS' DISPUTE.

The absence of Mr Hemes, the acting Minister of Labour, in the South makes it difficult to obtain any authoritative information in regard to the steps that are being taken towards securing a settlement of the drivers* dispute. That the trouble is assuming serious dimensions is obvious from tTle attitude of the unions in the various centres, a nd if it is not dealt with. promptly and firmly it may be attended by very grave results. Though the drivers are flying in the face of an award of the Arbitration Court, and to that extent are. in the view of the people, placing themselves in the wrong, thro is a great deal of public sympathy with their contention that the wages fixed by the Court are "totally inadeuate. The driver of ? one-horse vehicle is now receiving £2 12s per week and the driver of a .two-horse vehicle £2 Kss per week. This is an increase of 4s a week in each case on the wages provided in the' old award, which is just expiring, but 4s a week, it is contended, does not cover the increase in. the cost of living. The problem of living on 7s o'd a day, with rent running into from 16s to £1 a week, is the married man with children. expresses himself as quite unable to solve. WOMEN'S OPPORTUNITY.

The news from Sydney that a women's national party is'being formed, there to secure the co-operation of women to promote the national welfare and to obtain adequate pulitieal and municipal representation has set some people in Wellington talking about the additional responsibilities placed upon women by # the absence of a large proportion of the menkind of the Dominion at the war. The change in the proportion between tho sexes in this country during the last two years or so is not generally realised. At the end of 1911 there were 539,729 males in New Zealand, exclusive of Maoris, and -ISS, (577 females, a majority of 54,052 males. By the end of 1912 the majority had decreased to 53,797, and by the end of 1913 to 53,55(5, the change in the relative positions having been very slow. But by the end of 1914, after five months of war, th e male majority had. dropped to 40,328, and by the end of 1915 to 25,132. During the first two quarters of 191<> the margin declined to 8507, and at the close of the year the male majority will have disappeared altogether, and the females will be leading bj some 8000. What are they; going to do with their opportunity ° PLUCK AND PATIENCE.

A New Zealand who has been serving on the engineering Staff of a British destroyer since the commencement of war, Avriting from "The German Ocean" to a friend in Wellington, discourages the idea that the war will be over "all in a .hurry," but expresses supreme confidence in the ultimate result of the struggle. "I still hold to my original opinion as to the duration of the war," he says. "The great of-

tensive has been magnificent, worthy of the best traditions of the British: Army; but it has not yet carried us to the German frontier, and the Huns are still in Belgium and Poland, and, hardest of all, in France. But what does it matter? ;We are in the game now, and w-hether for a year or for ten we are going to give the Germans such a hiding that they will never raise their heads again. . .Information concerning the sinking of subma ines is not permitted, but we have done something in this way ourselves and on our notice board yesterday appeared the following screed: 'Great joy in. Hades. The crew of the U — docked this tide/ " Unfortunately the letter trenches too closely on the war regulations to be quoted in extenso, bilt'it is full of Avords of good cheer to the friends of the writer, who are watc-h----ing the fight from this end of the world.