WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taihape Daily Times, 30 July 1918, Page 5

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE COAL FAMINE. STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER. (Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 29. Yesterday Wellington was congratuJ lating itself upon having reached the end of the cold boisterous sou'-west weather that had been sweeping across Cook Strait for nearly two mouths with scarcely an hour's intermission. The wind dropped, the rain ceased, and the sun shone and quite a number of people ventured out to the long-abandoned seaside resorts. But this morning the city was plunged back into mid-winter again and' at noon the outlook is as unpropitious as ever. The troubles of the citizens under the extremely disagreeable con--ditions that have prevailed, and are still prevailing, have been greatly aggravated by the acute shortage of coal. None of the dealers are supplying more than a sack or two at the time except to their most favoured custom* ers, and there are scores of homes 111 which the meagre stocks of dust and rubbish, passing as coal, are being eked out Avith coke and cinders and chips of woodj, • • • ... :THE SUPPLY. In some quarters the Minister of Munitions and Supplies, who has been entrusted with the distribution of the available supplies of fuel, has been blamed for the existence of this extremely disagreeable state of affairs* It has been even stated that many of of the yards are full of coal and that if an equitable distribution were made no household need be without the absolutely necessary supply. • But as a matter of fact it is only through the close supervision and impartial administration of the Miister and his staff that a much worse catastropne has been averted. The coal yards practically are as bare as are the family scuttles. The.rough weather hks delayed the supplies by sea and the reserve stocks of indispensable works —electric light and power, gas, freezing, shipping and railways—have been greatly depleted. The Hon. A. M. : Myers made a statement on Saturday showing in plain figures the actual position, and though the Minister takes an'optimistic view of the futuro it is evident he must insist upon the strictest economy till further supplies are in sight. MUNICIPAL MILK. ' The City Council's milk scheme continues to be damned by faint praise. Those cf the critics not absolutely opposed to interference with private enterprise admit that the scheme has good points and that reform of some kind is very necessary; but they contend that the Council's proposals, though ambitious enough in their way, are not going to remove the existing evils. "The three great faults of the city milk supply." the "New Zealand Times" says, in the course of an editorial this morning, "are that it 13 dear milk, stale milk, and dipped milk." None of these faults, it seems, is to be removed by the Council's scheme. The milk still will be dear, will come from far afield and will he delivered in the old inefficient way. It is the Council's verj r natural and proper desire to cause the present suppliers as little loss as possible that is hampering the way of reform and at the moment it looks likely to become the rock on which the whole scheme will split. PARLIAMENT. Though Ministers are very reticent on the subject, and private members, views in these times count for nothing, there is a very general feeling here that the agitation of the Prohibitonists for a licensing poll at the end of the current year will not succeed. | The best the promoters of the agita- ! tion can hope for is that, the Governi ment will not ask for a further pro- ! longation of the life of Parliament '•/nd 1 that the licensing poll will be taken in the usual course with the general election at the end of next year. It is being argued that if the Imperial Government sees no objection to ",onsulting the electors while the war Is on there can be no grave impropriety in the New Zealand Government seeking a verdict from the constituencies a year hence. The result, assuming I the conditions remain N unchanged, probably would be similar to the one I foreshadowed at Home, a working I agreement between the official Re- ! formers and the official Liberals, but it at least would give the National ' Govern-rent the justification, of a mnrj date from the people. I. --—t i