CURRENT TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 285, 25 April 1911, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

INVITATTOX TO "TCTNT! BTLLY;' Up to recently, although, the Commonwealth placed no obstruction in the way of the landing °f Maoris in Australia, the New Zealand Oovcrnment objected to the landing of Australian blackfellows in this Dominion. The restriction has heen removed, and in future the dusky, hairy folk with the thin lefrs. may. if they desire, become tourists within the Dominion. On the whole, the permission is a. little (lilherlian. and probably if New Zealand invited the Esmiimauv to make what use they liked of New Zealand, the E-quimaux would refrain, as the black fellow will probably do. from ncceptin<_» the invitation. The "civilised" hlackfellow has almost disappeared. The while man has seen to that, and if re-

cent illustrated article* in Australian papers ure any criterion the ''warrigals" who are not civilised are not getting much to eat. There are few blackfellows in Australia who either understand the value of money or possess any. They are unlikely to leave their gunyalis to become tourists. There are no "higherclass" blackfellows as there are Maoris, no landowners, no "chiefs" who have a better right to the title tlAn an occasional brass plate awarded by facetious white men in token of "sovereignty." The only blackfellows New Zealanders are likely to see will be those who have been gathered by entrepeneurs, circus men or philanthropists. It is unlikely that Australian philanthropists will become addicted to awarding 0 urn tree Jackie or Emu Bush Harry a trip to these delectable isles. The average, blackfellow usually becomes a hopeless physical and moral wreck in his relations to white men, although there are isolated cases in which they have not drunk themselves to death before the age of five-st-'-re and have l>arnt the alphabet afvr careful study for twenty years. A st-iry of a blackfellow who went to London is appropriate-. Jackie was shown all t.'ie sights. Of course, when he returned to South Australia he was a nov'ty. He was asked what he thought of Lo-id-.n. He was t.)o full j for vord* He l-'-i a st ■•:, proceeded : to an ant-hem, end poked a hole iu it. I The snts ereergtd in their tn-'riads. "Al! t.■><• same l/mi.n" was his only comment. There is no fear that there will be any noticeable invasion of New Zealand by blackfellows, unless they arc driven aboard the intercolonial boats before they have time to 'knock down" their passage money in the delightful way taught them by their distant white relatives. THE ENEMY IN DIStJCISE. The person who sutlers with influenza or a mere common "cold" does not always understand that he is trying to drive the first nail in one's coffin when he sneezes in one's presence, but it is a fact that the "cold-carrier," as a London specialist calls him, is a friend to the undertaker and the medico, as well as an indirect contributor to the mental hospitals. The average person with a cold which he will assuredly pass on t» someone who doesn't want it. generally struggles along and does his work until he either gets well or gets worse, but the specialist above mentioned says he has no right to work, not because he will damage his own health, but because he will damage the health of others. He has mentioned that there should be a hard and fast rule that all people suffering with colds should report themselves to the local authorities in order that the patients may be quarantined for four days. He further recommends that inveterate cold-carriers suffering from chronic catarrh should be vaccinated with the serum prepared from the bacilli they are infected with. He pointed out, too, that colds cost workers and employers in London alone a cool couple of million pounds a year. Naturally an epidemic of influenza is a godsend to the employee who can't contract it, and it was pointed out that quite a large number of holidays might be avoided if incipient colds were notifiable and the first cold-carrier observed among a group of. employees sent to quarantine. One has noticed even in New Zealand that influenza attacks a larger proportion of Oovernment employees than any other class. This was also noticed in London, the conclusion being that civil servants in norma! health retired from business temporarily in order that they. too. might not become victims. There is, of course, no doubt that most people are too generous in.passing along the most common of, all ailments. The kindly mother who takes her whooping children into a house not infected with whooping cough, may be preparing a shroud for her friend's children. The matter is at least worth personal consideration.