WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 5 January 1917, Page 8

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

1 THE HOLIDAY SEASON'. | I lA. GAY CHRISTMAS.. (From Our Own Correspondent.) T i. Wellington, Jan. 3. Ihe holiday season ended as it began, with records in every direction—record leceipts on trains and trains, record attendances at race meetings, record inon tile totalisator, reco"d eiowds in tea rooms, record audiences at 'r. entertainment—and, so far as Wellington people are concerned, there is no occasion for them to shout to the German Emperor and to the world at large they are not down-hearted. Tliey nc\er have seemed in gayer mood, tut perhaps in this respect the capital city has some excuse for appearing less seuate and subdued in war-time than do the other big centres of population. It always has a large number of soldiers on its hands, and though many of the men got away to their own homes at Christmas-time, a large number remained behind to become the guests of the city and of private friends. The ■soldier cannot take his pleasures alone, and many a khaki-cHuI lad found himself the centre of a whole family group in the pursuit of amusement on his account. The spirit of true hospitality was abroad, and its sake the rest may be forgiven. THE WHEAT PROBLEM. The proverbial little bird has whispered that there is a difference of opinion among the members of the Board of Trade in regard to the price to be guaranteed by the Government for -wheat, and that a majority ami a minority report will be presented to the Acting-Minister of Industries and Commerce in the course of a few days. If this is really the case, it is toierably safe to predict that the majority report will recofnmend .a figure slightly below ">/- a bushel, and the minority report one substantially higher. The Minister was not inclined to give any further information 011 the subject when seen this afternoon, but in discussing the general outlook lie conveyed the impression of having thoroughly digested the various representations that have been made to him on the essential point in dispute. He believes that plenty of farmers would be prepared to grow wheat at 5/-, or even a shade less, and that if Canterbury were not satisfied with this price under a State guarantee, some of the other provinces would think seriously of taking up the. industry on a larger scale than they have done in the past. It is understood the Board of Agriculture has asked to be allowed a word 011 the subject, and probably it will confer with the Minister and the Boa r d of Trade early next week. RECRUITING. J ■ A "Dig tax is to be placed upon the 'military organisations at Trcntham and Featherston during the next ten or twelve /lays, when some 5000 recruits will enter upon their training, and the 24ths will Change camp in order to make | room for the 25th Reinforcements. An j enormous amount of work will fall upon the staff in clothing, equipping, accommodating, and allotting to the new drafts, but the Minister has no doubt of it being performed satisfactorily. Mr. Allen's optimism, which is, toy the Tray, a growth of recent years, is infectious, and the officers at Trcntham and Featherston are awaiting the test, of their arrangements as confidently as the civil head of their Department is doin\r. The delay in mobilising the 24ths gave many people the impression that the Minister was skipping one of the monthly .reinforcements, hut the arrival of the 25tlis only a week filter will practically make up the lost time, and fulfil the letter as well as the spirit of the Dominion's undertaking.

THE BALLIOTED RESERVISTS. Both the 24th and "25th Reinforcements will include a certain number of balloted reservists, and it is pleasant to hear of the readiness of the men already in camp to welcome these recruits as cordially as they have their own comrades. Thanks largely to the Minister's insistence upon the true military spirit being.observed, the men who waited for the call and responded promptly will be treated no difl'erently from those who anticipated it. There are still a' few reservists who have not reported themselves to the authorities, but probably some of these have not been reached by the notices dispatched to them when their names were drawn in the ballot If there are others anxious to test the reality of the compulsion which Mr. Allen has wished to keep in the. hackground, they will be discovered wlien their draft is mobilised, and will be relieved of any doubts they may have on the subject. The Minister has been very patient and considerate in introducing the new system, but he has 110 intention of allowing any reservist to escape his obligations by simply ignoring them.

THE EMBARGO ON LEAVING THE DOMINION.

The existence of regulations prohibiting persons leaving New Zealand without permits issued by the Department' of Internal Affairs has been impressed upon many people during the holidays. Intended trips to Australia and elsewhere have had to ! be abandoned in many cases, the Department of Interna] Affairs not being prepared to accept mere verbal assurances of intention to return to this country. Some persons have an impression still that a man of military age is entitled to receive a permit if he can show that he has volunteered for service, and has been rejected. Till is is not the case. A man who cannot wear a uniform as a member of the Expeditionary Forces is probably capable of performing some useful service within the Dominion, and the Government realises the importance of conserving the country's manhood as much as possible, in view of the heavy drain upon it for the maintenance of the New Zealand army in the field.

It lias been announced that ths regulations governing the issue of permits to leave New Zealand are to be enforced with increased severity during the present year. The number of permits issued is to be reduced to a minimum, in view of Jthe increasing shortage of labor within the country, and the possibility that the prolongation of the war may render necessary the organisation of man and woman-power for the maintenance of essential industries and services. The authorities do not wish to interfere unnecessarily with business arrangements which necessitate' r certain amount of travelling, but mere holiday trips will be discouraged finniv.

GOVERNMENT PURCHASE OP WHEAT. The Minister for Agriculture and the Board of Trade are formulating a scheme for the purchase of wheat from the New Zealand farmers, and it is understood that the price to be paid will not exceed 5s per bushel. It may even be slightly lower, since the information at the disposal of the Board indicates that a Government, undertaking to buy wheat at 4s (id per bushel for a perjod of two or three years would produce an adequate supply. Experienced Canterbury farmers admit that 4s (id is a profitable price, and there is some reason to believe that a firm offer on. the lines indicated would induce North Island farmers to grow wheat on a larger scale than they have done hitherto. Much suitable land is available in the Manawatu and elsewhere, and with a good price assured the fanners might be glad of the opportunity to break up foul paddocks with one or two crops of wheav. The Government certainly will not pay the fancy price suggested the other week bv a conference of Canterbury farmers.

THE WORK OF MOBILISATION. Official figures concerning the mobilisation of the 24th Reinforcements are not to be available for some days. The authorities have decided that on the present occasion the strength of the drafts received in the training camps from the various districts shall not be announced until the mobilisation is complete. Apparently the summoning of ballotted men as well as volunteers has complicated the work of mobilisation, and the responsible officers are of opinion that preliminary figures, such as 'have been given in tlie cases of previous reinforcements, would convey a wrong impression of the position. The position with regard to the ballotted men may not he disclosed by the figures when they become available, since the authorities are strongly averse to making any sort of distinction between the two classes of recruits. Thus they may not consider it desirable to indicate what proportion of the total draft consists of compulsorily enlisted men. It is obvious that a large number of ballotted men will be mobilised with the 24th and 25th Reinforcements during the next ten days. All those men who were drawn in the first ballot and did not lodge appeals, as well as many of the men whose appeals have been heard and dismissed, are being summoned to enter camp with the two drafts. This applies, of course, only to the men who have been passed as physically fit,, and every one of the available men is required to bring the troops in training up to the proper strength.