WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taihape Daily Times, 31 December 1917, Page 4

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

CHRISTMAS RECORDS. SEASONAL EXTRAVAGANCE (Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, Dec 28. Wellington has continued to hold high festival throughout the Christ* mas Week with a light heart and an open purse. The shop-keepers tigpifirm their early, reports of record business, and the holiday resorts, far, and near, have been crowded as they never have been crowded before* Trams, taxi-cabs, motor services, every means of transit indeed, except the railways, have been taxed to their utmost capacity, and the hotels and boarding-houses and hospitable homeshave been full of visitors. If the part of the capital city is to satisfy the enemy the Dominion has no regrets for the past, no concern for the present and no fears for the future, it has , played it admirably and is continuing to play it. What will happen whett the reckoning comes to be taken no one can say and at the moment no one cares. As the dead past must bury its dead, so the awakening future must bear its own burdens.

THE RAILWAYS. Though trains which in former,, years were crowded from end tb end I with holiday passengers have been. running half empty during this > Christmas season, the railway author* ities refuse to be convinced they are pursuing a wasteful and suicidal policy in discouraging travelling. Hig!t prices, infrequent trains and vexat, . tibus regulations are driving peoples .n hundreds from the railway. to,Xha ■ 'road and in addition to, the "loss qfi revenue the State' is rapid road traffic is imposing aiMjfc creased burden upon the local botlfs in the way of repairs. It "is reported now that the beginning "of all" this, sorry business was a dtermination on, the part of a high official to sho-w the Government hOw the public could/" be kept away from race meetings'" and at the same time schooled in the. exer-» cise of a wider frugality. The story. If is being passed around with circiinn stantial detail and really seems a littie more probable than some others of the same kind that are bzisg cTl*i culated. It is certain Ministerial con« trol of the lines no longer exists.

THE DEFENCE DEPARTMENT.

The escape of the German prisoners, from Motuihi Island—now, happily, set off by their recapture—appears to have provided the last straw that was; required to break the back of public patience with the Defence Department. The critics of the Department,, as a rule, are not very discriminating-, but in this case they are much more ready to spare the Minister than to admit the possibility of any excuse foi; his military advisers. Sir James Alt len by his zeal and thoroughness and personal sacrifices has won a goptfdeal of tolerance and even admiral tion from his former political ents in spite of his faults of mas Sea and bluntness of speech. But for the army of administrative officers, mffltary and civil, connected with his Dei partment there is rarely anythingbetter than hard and unappreciativewords. Since the Motuihi Island escapade this attitude of mind hS3 found more and more general express sion. i

POLITICAL SIGNIFICANCE Among people who respect the sane* tity of the party truce there is to-daft no more disposition to Talk 'sectional politics than there was a year agog but there is a strong feeling among these people that something ought ttf' be done quickly to satisfy the publi<f of the efficiency of the Defence -acl ministration. The Commission set ug to enquire into the question of expen* diture will not begin its sittings fofl two or three weeks and at the verjj best cannot have its report readjf within a couple of months. In the meantime other questions than thoso associated with finance are exercisingthe minds of the public and giving the less generous of the p'artisans op* portunities to promote the vejJtuiH rest and mistrust the party trucmprafll intended to still. Perhaps the rumous that Sir James Allen is to go Homd to the meeting of the Imperial Cabinet! and Mr Massey to hold his portfolio! during his absence may have ariseijj out of some mention of thp matter ini Cabinet.