DOES NEW ZEALAND LEAD?

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 61, 27 November 1907, Page 2

DOES NEW ZEALAND LEAD?

SECOND PLACE TO UEKMANI'. How often have we heard that New Zealand is in the vun of experimental socialistic legislation for the benefit 01 the working man? So often, perhaps, that many of us have come to believe the story, and to fall into the idea that the world is following New Zea-

land as the tail follows the kite—forgetting that the kite without a tail is a most erratic thing. In the course of a. conversation the other day with .Mr. A. I'. O'Leary, who has just returned from a tour of Britain ami the Continent, a representative of tins paper learned Something ■ of the advanced conditions prevailing in Germany. For instance, there wan the industrial insurance scheme, with which he was even more favourably impressed than on his previous visits. It is really a I system for the provision of compensation anil pension. There are three grades, A, B, and C. The A grade pro- I vides for sickness and accident, and the worker pays two-thirds of the contributions, the employer paying one-third. In the B proposal, providing against old age or being invalided by accident, employer and emplqyee pay. the contributions in equal proportions. C grade provides for injury by accident that could have been avoided by the employer, and. in this ease the whole of the contribution is paid by the employer.

A workman who is sick receives full pay for thirteen weeks out of the sick fund, free medical attendance, drugs and appliances. Should he lie incapacitated beyond that period, he is supported out of a .special fund. When permanently incapacitated by accident the injured worker receives a permanent pension not exceeding two-thirds of the amount of his pay at the time of the accident, the pension being fixed according to the j nature of the accident, and the extent of the injuries. In all eases the liability of the employer ceases when tlie earnings of a worker reach two thousand marks, or about £l5O a. year, for

it is considered that out of such a salary s a man should be able to make provision for himself. Mr O'Jjeary was most enthusiastic concerning the German mode of life. "I think the German people have found j out how to live. It's really delightful." j The people, he said, seemed to live principally in the open air in the summer time. Beer gardens and restaurants are splendidly managed, and have every comfort and convenience for the inner as for the outer man, not excepting the music by fine orchestras and bands. In these places the men may take their wives and families and spend many pleasant hours at little cost, so delightfully simple are the pleasures of the people. In answer to a further inquiry Mr. O'Lcary said he had been much impressed by the cheap law scheme of the country, or the "armenrieht." The right of the poor to the law is there recognised. In the case of a litigant wishing to receive the benefit of this system, his case is investigated by a judge. If he thinks the case should go on he appoints an advocate, who is entitled to receive no remuneration from the litigant other than his outK)f-pocket expenses for stationery and stamps. Plaintiff and defendant, prosecutor and accused, each has a right to the law, and the right is respected. A poor man many in the same way carry an appeal to the higher court. Mr O'Lcary thought such a system might with advantage be introduced in the large towns of England. "With its provision for accident, sickness, old age, and'free law, the German people is very well looked after. And it made me think that after all this highly favored land of ours is not in the forefront of legislation for the worker and the, poor," he added. A serious problem in Germany is to find an outlet for the surplus population. The Germans say that Britain lias taken the most fertile over-sea countries for her colonies and dependencies, and all the best climates also. Sooner or later they must devise some scheme for the establishment of colonial settlements to make provision for the rapidly-growing population. At present thousands of i Germans are annually pouring into Cani ada and England, and even Australia can claim her Gorman villages and settlements. Mr. O'Leary considers that , tliey should make excellent settlers, and says that New Zealanders will make no mistake in encouraging them to come this way, 1 The prosperity of the rural popula- ' tion everywhere is most marvellous. ' All the holdings are small, and freehold. ' Mr. O'Leary says that when he saw ' these he could not help thinking of our great tracts of Crown and native lands untouched as yet by the hand of the farmer. No doubt the secret of the success lies in the fact that every man , owns his own little plot of land, and . every man, woman, and every dog, ia a

worker. It is claimed that there are no beggars in Germany. In his various rambles Mr O'Leary kept a sharp look-out to see if that statement is borne out by fact. He could see nothing bearing the slightest resemblance to the painful squalor and misery so visible in all the great cities of England. He was much struck with the clean, healthy appearance of the German people in citios and towns. This is produced by their method, and method and system are everywhere. They don't allow beggars. The poor are gathered up and Bent to industrial farms. Begging is made a criminal offence. It is criminal even to drop a piece of lunch paper or litter in the street. The hue for this offence is payable to the policeman, on the beat, or may be doubled if the offender allows the matter to go to court. "Does the policeman pay it all in, I wonder?" said the reporter. "Oh, yes. He's got to. He gives a proper receipt for the money. That's part of the system. System is introduced into everything they do. And nuw,'' he concluded, "I think I've given you enough copy. Let me add, however, that to keep a man thoroughly awake and alive to business, to keep the cobwebs, so to speak, from accumulating on the brain, there's nothing like travel. By travel I mean judicious travelling. Not riushing through a country at break-neck .speed; that's not travel. Travel for pleasure and business combined, not altogether to find out what there is to learn, but to find out how little we know. Good morning."