CURRENT TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 179, 8 November 1910, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

THE OPERATIC SOCIETY. The world is indebted to the players, to the people who sing to us, dance for us, play to us, and "make the worlo young for us." We are all actors, more or less, but most of us act badly. Some of us insist on singing when we have no voices; others act without conviction and without amusement or utility to the audience. The person who has the gift of amusing his fellows is one of the world's biggest boons, and a world that nowadays wants amusing more eagerly than ever recognises this. The great lauah-maker commands i> larger" salary than the great statesman, the great sailor, or the pre-eminent soldier. This is reasonable, for. .the public demand amusement as an antidote to increased work and worry. Xo training ean create great or even passable musicians, or outstanding players. Any community possessing folks whose hobby is tlie adequate entertainment of the community is a lucky community. New Plymouth is consequently lucky in its Amateur Operatic Society. The public and the critic are apt to overlook everything but the actual "show." The recent production of the comedy opera '"Dorothy" was a triumph, not only for the principals, but for Iheir discoverers and teachers. The pupils were lucky in their instructors, and the instructors were still more lucky in their pupils. Both instructors and pupils naturally and admirably show a greater desire to cater to the public liking for entertainment than to their own self glorification, and so it is necessary that outsiders should pay a tribute to the excellence of their work. New Plymouth is sometimes accused of a lack of the artistic element. When an Amateur Operatic Society i'.ttracts so many people whose talent is unquestionable the undeserved aspersion must he removed. It is hoped the Society contemplates fresh conquests, and .we hare no fear that its career will be successful as its initial elicit has proved.

THE LICENSING BILL. The new Licensing Bill has passed its second readiusr without debate, and the problem as to what if will look like when it emerges from committee is one that is enlacing people and politically alike. For the politician, the position is extremely difficult, for, if the Bill

either as it - : > ■ » -mended state is .passed this -> ■ ■ •'- > liiof political J business v.ii- ■■■• ■'■• ;■:■■'. x.<i> the feelings i of his cons: ill'■•,' ' " vote accord- i ingly. Wln-iv '."!■■!- :\:-;-i vote "all or none"—or li-pi■ ■. " < ■•"' iuiianee—it follows that p.dii; ;.."- must be very care- J ful of them->•!•-•• . 'i '■■• Premier has said . that when ilie ' : ' ; 1- in committee he will see thai ; 'e •mid-rate party will ' have a chance ;•; .-,■■■.■ m local option as distinct from !,•■■' . : ;.inhibition. That : is to sav, 1 i\.i■ ;■■■•;■'>■ who hold alcohol i to be bad on!;. )' - i,,.- communities will ' have a chance •■> -■ i -••. The light will i wage round lh- :-::>•: : -::per and the adhesion to ihe :, ib :.!' !!.>ne" idea, or the variation of ■'<■■■• '■--<>. The New Zea- . laud Alliance i • ,-,. ■■ ih;it it is a dominating factor '■;■■ ■■\pi''ssing its approval of the Liceusinv. /Ml. with the very important objection of ilic greatest feature of it. The party wrongly threatens to make the issue a political one, and it has been shown that, tin-re is an intention to combine with I lie Labor Party to bring! about the "demands" of the Alliance, it) is the statin "i_> majority of the people! who can make a demand, and a political alliance to further a sectional end is morally not permissible. Support of the ■platforms of both Labor Party and Alliance (the interests of which are so diverse) cannot be counted on. It would be as logical to conclude that because a ■ man believes in preference to unionists he believes in prohibition, or that he was in favor of the nationalisation of the sources of supply because he believed in local option. There seems to be a probability that the Bill may be among the "slaughtered innocents" this session. THE AGE OF PICTURES. It has been promised by a scientist that before long by kincmatography it will be possible to see the human brain at work and so detect abnormalities. The importance of the kinematograph both as an educator and amuser cannot be over-estimated. It is used in every branch of scientific research and every day the world is using it increasingly. In many great cities of the Old World theatres wnere dramatic entertainment has been hitherto provided are now being used for moving pictures. An English expert recently said:—"The picture theatre and the kinematograph are still in their infancy in this country, great though the boom has already been. England is far behind America, France and Germany in the development of moving pictures. In America school children are taught geography, physiology, and natural science by kinematograph pictures; while in France no expense is spared in stage-managing scenes which are afterwards to be reproduced as moving pictures. Yet the advance in this country has not been inconsiderable. There is over £5,000,000 of capital invested in the business. There are over 5000 pictures theatres in this country (there are nearly 300 in Greater London alone) capable of seating on an average 1000 people each, and most of them give four or five separate performances daily. The prices charged for admission are low in many of the theatres, yet they take on an average over £l3O weekly, which for the whole kingdom means weekly receipts of £650,000. There are at 'least «iine men actively engaged in the business who five years ago had scarcely a shillins in the world, and who now are worth over £IOO,OOO apiece." The very considerable advance in the picture business in New /fcaland reflects in a minor degree the extension of this branch of educational enterprise.