WHAT THE PAPERS SAY.

Taihape Daily Times, 19 September 1919, Page 5

WHAT THE PAPERS SAY.

“GO' SLOW.” ‘ There is :1 growing feeling that the requirements of economics and she demands of th'c miners are irreconci}i~ able, and that the public is being squeezed in order to force a settlement’ which will never come.’ If that feeling gains the upper hand, then action by or on behalf of the community may become vigorous, and may take the form of-...rep]acing men who will not work (oifwhéi “go-slowf) by men who \':il.T. Suhc a.~"?development, bririging to a'_..clima':_i the Jtrial of strength between the community and militant unioni;~m‘, isl not yet gvcertainty; but it is in sight, and, in the absence of a compro-

ngise, may arrive sooner than is ex-peetedg-Welplington Post. Ih7IMIGR.§.TION. Last week the Prime Minister said that there was no need for any fresh legislation in regard to immigration. This may be true, but there certainiy is need for a policy of immigration ‘clearly defined and adjusted to the [conditions to be met. This implies [that the Government ought to be preparing plans in I'eadine.«:'. for the not tvcry distant period when .immigra'-;.on. will be possible. Very properly, the jGovernment is deferring any attempt ,to introduce immigrants from Britain ’or elsewhere until our own soldiers have been brought home and reLstanblished in civil life, but this does ‘not mean that the whole question of immigration can be set aside, for future. consideration. The Government will fail seriously in its duty unless it at once lays its plans and also makes What preliminary arl‘an<"elnents are possible pending .the actual introductions of immigrants.——Do.~nizlion. HYDRO—ELECTRIC POWER. New Zealand is pre-eminently one of those ‘countries which is fortunat». "11 possess abundant sourceg or nmtzml and therefore economical energ_*,:. Shehas scarcelya river that is"not 21. torrent and her waterfalls are ines;hanst~ ible. On the other hand New Zealand is certainly no better off than Great Britain in respect of hei--ability to rely iiidefinitelv on her coal measures as "a factor in her material progress. She may indeed be much worse ‘ofi. In any case the development of hydroelectric energy is of great and increas-

ing interest not to business men on“.=y but to the public as a whole. We have the raw material, so to speak, at our doors and running to waste, and it E 9 important that this great natural as~ set of the Dominion should be brou'g?2t as —3a.rl:: as possiblg into profitable use. —~~Otago Laily Time§.

LAND AGGR-EGATION. The declaration that it is impossible. rto pl-event reaaggregation may have in it the element of truth. The law has proved its ability :to check. wrong-<lO~ ing, however, and to achieve gl'a‘dual success is merely a matter of making the law efiicient. What we most re-

quire lflil the present moment is a Govuernment brave enough to realise tllat' the old order of privileges must go. The need for economy and for other wise lneasures is urgent, but at the root -of everything is the proper distribution of our land. When sensible steps have been taken to expedite the settlement: of suitable men on suitable areas our troubles will be dispelled in ‘J. manner nothing else can accomplish. The party that claims our attention at next election should be the pu-.u'ty wliich puls in the forefront -of its policy a eoumgeous, yet, feasible solution or." the settlement. problem. There must be no half measures, the only ce'....'ition qualifying complete redistribution being that which ensures increase-cl efiiciency in dealing with the resumed «areas.——Southland News. CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.

The one {thing the Reform Government did during its year of oflice was the I'eforlll—-as they called it——of>the Civil Service by the substitution of Commissioner for Ministerial control. In Opposition they had insisted, and in ofliee they persisted. They herd prescribed enomious evils; they had promised immense remedies; they claimed that they had cleaned the Augean: stable. Sb; years have passed since the tl'ilm:~.phallt claim was made. The result of these years is summed up in a qllCSl'l()‘J put to Mr Massey in Parliament, which he was unable to answer. The answer was given yesterday by the I\[inisl‘erial organ. The answer is that Connnissioner control has utterly failed, “It is not by any means the firmly estab,'l’ish«ed_V incstritution‘ its 3.dVo(3;ai'f-‘es’ hoped it would become.” “There seern-st to be‘ a distinct danger that Commissioner control may ‘be discarded be~ fore. long.-——N.Z. Times.