The Daily News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21. THE THIRST FOR INFORMATION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 81891, 21 November 1906, Page 2

The Daily News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21. THE THIRST FOR INFORMATION.

TllE more man learns, the less is he disused to believe he is learned. The man who, among' illiterate comrades, demonstrates his ability to read words of oii'e sy.lable il reverenced as a scholar. The latter-day man, remote as he may be from the centres

of civilisation, is yet able to satisfy ais insatiabla appetite for knowledge, the far-back bushman rescues the piece of fluttering new'-paper as if it were a treasure—and so it is to him. i'.ie newspaper presses of the world never cease to roar, forests of trees disappear into the paper mills so that tue ihirst for knowledge may be quencned. The man who picks up uis 'aily paper, and having found that it docs not obtain tne news lit: j is looking for—say the starting prices for the next big race—and who throws it down in disgust, with "Nothing in the. rag," is illogical. The thoughtful man picks up the same newspaper that the illiterate scoffed at in the year 1622. From that small beginning he will see an imeiminable congregation of newspaper, al. devoted to the business of quenching the thirst fur knowledge.

THE man wno cals his paper a "rag'' may glance at a news item that is dated Item St. Peter-burg, it suggests nothing to him. To tne thoughtful man it opens up a great train of thought. What difficulties did some person face to be ab.e to send that message to the world ! How man}' wires have buzzed with the message that is a mere speck in the pennyworth that is but a "lag": The ihougiils take one overland in savage country. Through uVscr's and under the sea where the great snake of cable connecting us with the birthplace of news lies. An incalculable army of people are at work so that the cables that have no interest for you may be distributed to the "rags." To-day, Von Bulow makea speech in the German Reichstag. To-moriow the farmer of Tilranaki reatls it without surprise. He has ceased to look at the wonder of the thing. lie accepts it as naturally as ne accepts the crops he has plained. Information is absolutely; poured out to the average man. He is unable to either read or assimilate a billionth part of it. One of the troubles of modern life is that modern man swallows more than his mental digestion can deal with. Hence his tiequcnt contention tnat "there is 1 nothing in the rag."

Consider the making of books. There is no end 10 buoks, and we seem to b" al the beginning of the writers. Most of the books that are made are ephemeral. Their life is about six weeks. They simply while away an idle hour for the public thai buys them, and then they vanish io make room for still more books. New Zealand ha-- nat yet a national literature. It depends for its mental pabulum on the older countries, but the thirst for information is very di-.p. For insance ther'e are '.:2b newspapers for less than a million people, newspapers that have ail the bf»i elements of the papers of the Old World. New Zealandors are among the keenest of the world's readers, for colonial papers arc but one element of information consumed by them. One has only 10 see a big newspaper mail come in from the Old World to appreciate tue tremendous importance of the news sheet in relation to the daily life of the community.

In its eilor.s to undetstand modern society not only tin: news' of the woild, but in New Zealand at least a gloat desire is shown to gel at the kernel of public questions by means of conferences. Eveiy small own has biauclics of public bodies winch at some tune of the year sends '.Je.cgaies to some centre to beat out tne qucs.ions that air agitating the public mind, it is a very excellent .system, and if one is dispo-cd sometimes to smile at the enthusiastic iiKinuei 01 a mad board wno puts a nution to have nit- (.zir of Russia dopo.. ,1 or the Sul.au ot Muiocco intoimed .hai he must go slow, it merely demonstrates the fact that New Zealandeis. have that confidence which is necessary in a young nation. The Government of this country long ago recognised that die disseminauon ot useful information is a good asset. Whether or no the people in tnis country read the tuns of lian-ards

that aie sen l , iiee through the post cannot be ascertained, nor can lite uli.ily of sptndtng tens of tluusands of pound; in i:»e piloting of Go\einmeut papers watch tind an immediate repose in the waste-paper ba-ket, be quite pioved. The iaet remains thai the Government show a willingness by the most liberal system of postage in the world to intake 'he gaining ot knowledge very easy. Under the pieseiu Government, too, iutuimation is more readily given to the people's representatives man under pievious govern-1 ment-. The countiy is allowed 0 know how its niuiiey is being spent, for instance. The promise ihat the salaries of each servant in the 1 Government's employ saall be set out next session is an example of the Government's intention to spread useful liilorrnation.

i\E suppose, too, me gieat Exhibition in Um-tchuicn may o<: rcganleU as a recognition ot the same principle, liiete is something dcugmiuiii' lruhk about tne otheiai statement that tile country will not luoe \ciy much casa ovei li,e bigi tan, anil 01 couise it will be seen that una. in-.- pi-ope lose in cash they win make up lor 111 inloimatiun. lo iiave tne commence or a nation it is necessaiy that tlie collective and individual intelligence snail be fed by t\eiy reasonable means. Education is n,e sutest guaid against law-break-ing, social sins and lull gaols. Untitle inlounauuii may enect evil, but truihful news cannot but eficct good, the education ot a pejule need nut consist 111 teaching the people something' out of a text book. It sauuld consist in pieseniiug to tne people's in.nils trti-n in its simplest 101111, leaving individual intelligence j to make what use it may of tlie tiutli.

i'IJE dissemination ~l' information is •o indissoluble wrapi up m the nc\v_paper business that ihc impuitunce ol keeping Hie pies, u| Xe« /i-.i jmi up to tin; nig;: s alld.ud it has—Willi tew cxccp.i •us—maintained, cannot be nvci-e-.im.dcd. As a 1'.,e.0i- in" I lie eiiu. atiini "1 me yang the newspaper inigli. w.tii ju-:i,e take a place, the i hull en of our schojls would be beiler mod t„ cope wmi tnc evervdae necc sine, ~( Ide if il.ev kricw sunictning ui even day happinuigs. In S« inland the school authorities have recognised the value of this idea puiuie.iiiy sr i,-..,i bunks. The teacheis lead tne new, :,f i|,e day to the < hlidici. Muiplif.v tog it io Mlit then "He llg.ncis. 1, is. o| cnuise. „,,„,., ■" I"" "-I he els on vo Ul ,g shoulders but to 10-e, an ~,teU . „" 1',,,- real laic-, in eur child,: „ is a L least as "'■'" "<'' a, ioieiuj, i,n .heni inf irlea.tna t is mien „|' r „„ s ; rl -<!i_ ""' its de-iiipti. a. \ o.uii.iy's deot a couotiy', mental a,,,,,],'" 'roe enmity uttn die bos.-into,,„ej m inds is ,ic cunt iv dint egoino („ ttin „ th" .ommenial ,a<e. The ihiist „| lee New Z.alandei after boss is a biomiso that tin- New Zealandcr js ""l t" In' lob behind in a war of wits beside vhieli ~ „,,,- ~f brute force i, lea a pa e titlliiio, mel, e.