CURRENT TOPICS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 78, 11 July 1910, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS

UNANIMITY. Public unanimity will affect any change without the help of State machinery. If every person did what was obviou?'-.' just, there would be no need for stam f e law. Most State machinery is by way of necessary coercion, because most people must be driven to do the r>gfit thins?. Uninimitv is powerful for good nr evil. A bunch of united millionaires can sow widesprea d destruction, and the I unanimity of the people can destroy thej •millionaires' plans. A large number of big business men in Auckland are unani-j mmis that (rambling must be stopped,' mid tliev are goinff to ficrht the bookmaker. These men. however, plan tol irot the 'help of ('ho State machinery. As| it is deemed to be necessary to employ State mach'Tierv, it is obvious that the unanimous business men have no hone Hint. the public will bo unanimous. The State mav make bookmakincr or any other form of enterprise illegal, but cannot. o'liminnte it. To make betting impossible the bottin? public must be cured of its affection for it. A great oh on rro pnnriof be effected bv the i\mwlline of licenses, or f he fininsr or gaoliiicr nf n unit and there. Tn re<™H to TjpH inrr "ml lviaiiipss men, it is prolv nlilp tlmt tlio Till sill" C« Iron-> iio<?cinr* both l.vllrwtl". T-vl""'!. «»n ipii"" 1 "!"-j niyip showing that employers have had serious losses because em-

ployees have needed money for horseracing. But one point seems to jbe overlooked. Temptation discovers the dishonest, but lack of temptation does not make people honest. Opportunity only is lacking. Although euiorcement of a moral code cures no person oi his i sins, it may make him fear uie conse- 1 quences of them, and this is the reason | for the making of all law. The pres-j ence of evil persons in a community is 1 our only method of knowing that some people are good. "Comparisons arc oaorour," but they are the only means of distinguishing the false from the real, the rotton from the sound, tne black from the white. If the people cared, betting of all kinds would cease as soon as they were unanimous. The mere fact of a small section of the public ordering their brothers and sisters to be "good" has no real effect, but it frightens sonic of the evildoers for a while. So, even if a section of the Auckland business public has decided to fight something that they believe is an evil, they will frighten somebody into quitting bookmaking, or at least into doing it privately or underground. There is no possibility of telling how much money people bet with agents, and to assert that betting grows or wanes wrth tlie years is mere assertion after all. This is certain—if it became necessary to gaol all the people who bet in New Zealand—who would carry on the work of the country?

INDEECNT PUBLICATIONS. The necessity for the very drastic provisions in the Attorney-General's Indecent Publications Bill was brought about by persons outside this country. The Bill would never have been drafted but fer the evil enterprise of outsiders. But an outsider coming to New Zealand and reading the provisions might be pardoned for believing that the press of this country was widely indecent. There hag never been any inclination on the part of journalists to follow the example which has necessitated the Bill, so that the enterprising folks who have fed New Zealanders with literary offal may pride themselves on having been means of setting very complete State machinery in motion to smash a single foe to public morals. The value of the new Bill lies in its completeness. It is a measure that has been carefully drawn up by a man who has had unique opportunities of knowing how readily proprietors of indecent .publications have avoided the consequences of the laiw. The definition of indecency in the new Bill is very wide indeed. Conviction of a person selling an indecent publication may be summary, and there is no doubt about the person or persons who shall be deemed to be responsible for the offence. In the case of indecent newspapers, it will not be necessary, when the Bill is passed—as it' will assuredly be—for their proprietors to be in this country. Presumably all or any of the servants of the principal can be fined, up to one hundred pounds, or gaoled. The best effect tJiis will have will be that men will be chary of taking employment under proprietors who batten on indecency; that the only reason for the existence of journalism wnich the BilV is' framed to kill, having vanished, the said journalism must either become decent or die. Notable convictions in the past have made newsagents chary of selling some publications before scanning them' for indecencies. Where it is necessary to search publications for fear actionable nastinessmay be found, there is reasonable hope that agents and the public will get tired. That there is no need in Britain for such a drastic measure as the one to be made in New Zealand, is a reflection on this country and upon the ot.her Donr'nion that has not vet definitely _ dealt with the subject of filthy periodical literature.

EDWiAPID GIBBON WAKEFIEtD. The British are a quaint people. They <4e 6 rnm r J' 0 " 7 S ° l7 taleS aoout wi!i, mantlc P as t. and caa tell you without a moment's hesitation how many of his wives Henry the Eighth « to be executed. The iLSfiS past is not so well remembered. This particular phase of the British character goes overseas, and we see it in all p m , m . , Ne f Zealand - Edward Gibbon Wakefield is the greatest figure in New Zealand history, merely because there could have been no New Zealand i*r British people but for his bravery' pertinacity and genius. Wakelield, light officialism, and founded a thriving community in spite of it. He was one of the greatest ligurea in the whole scheme of British colonisation, and no difficulties ever appalled him. It is unnecessary here to mention detail what Wakefield did for this country, our point being to show what Zealand has not done in remembrance of a great man. The tomb of Wakefield is in Wellington, overgrown and totally neglected. A year ago a ismall newspaper agitation was raised, calling attention to the neglect, not only of this grave, but of measures for making the people remember their greatest benefactor. It was then suggested that a suitable memorial should be raised in the capital city to «ommemorate his deeds. Absolutely no Interest was taken in the matter. A suggestion now comes from Christchurch to the effect that the Government should subsidise private subscriptions to erect a suitable Monument in Wellington. There is no particular partiality for effigies in New Zealand, and most' of them are unspeakably inartistic and useless, except for sheltering the loafer and giving the mob orator a chance of an eminence from which to speak. If Wakefield is to be remembered, the most fitting monument to his memory would be soime useful institution whtcii should bear his name. At the present stage in its history New Zealand is unable to afford works—and mere monuments are unreproductive. AVe are quite certain that the public, before it I is asked to subscribe to such- a memor-| ial, must be educated to the point of knowing who Edward Gibbon Wakefield was, why they should remember him, and in what manner. From the children in the schools to their parentis there is little knowledge of the man. The memory of Wakefield should occupy the place in the public esteem that the memorv of Washington occupies in the Unincr States. His life is an inspiration to every Xew Zealandor. not only for its bravery, pertinacity and work for others, but for its hish-mindedness and seJf-ftl»nesration. And we how that should the people be roused to the nnint of raising a memorial to him. it will be worthier of the man than any statue can possibly be.