WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 March 1917, Page 7

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

DR. NEWMAN ON THE WAR. (From Our Own Correspondent). Wellington, March G. "Nobody in the Army will tell you whether or not the war is going to end this year, but many have hopes that it will, and there is a considerable possibility that it will," said Dr. A. K. Newman, M.'P., in the Town Hall on Holiday night, in the course of a lecture concerning his recent visit to the United Kingdom. "Ultimately we will win. There is no serious danger of the eonquest of England. 'But there is this danger: We have a number of Allies fi.flliting with us, and the enemy may offer one or more of them specially advantageous peace terms with the object of leaving us alone in the war. It is for that reason, and also because the war is so terribly expensive, that Mr. Llovd George and the Army heads are making a mighty effort to finish the war this year. Everything hangs on the British Empire now. We have to carry the responsibility for the Allies, and if we failed the whole Alliance would fall. We are supplying money, munitions, food and coal as well as armies, and if wo British cannot win the war, then Germany wins it. That is why we must not fail. We have got to see. it out." DECISION IN THE WEST. Dr. Newman proceeded to refer to the coming ''big push" on the West front. He said it was all nonsense to suggest that the war could be decided in the Balkans or on the East front. The decisive battles had to be fought in the West, where the 'British and French faced the most important masses of the German armies. Whether those decisive battles would be fought this year, or next year, or even the year after that, remained to be seen. The heavy fighting would begin in April or May, as soon as the .weather was fine and the ground bard. Stupendous preparations had been made by the British and French armies, and the attacking forces would pound away at the Gentry lines light through the summer in the hope of breaking them and so bringing the war to an issue. It had been said that 'Hindenburg was contemplating a return to open fighting and the abandonment of trench warfare. The Allies would be delighted to meet the Germans in the open. But the probability to be faced was that the Germans would stick to the trench-warfare and that as they were pressed back from one line they would hold another, so that the advance of "the Allies would be slow and accompanied by a tremendous expenditure of.raunitior.s and men. It was idle to prophesy as to the result. The wisest men cf the n&tion, soldiers, statesmen, bankers, traders, had found tftiejr most confident predictions falsified during the course of the present war, and the people, of t'V United Kingdom had ceased to talk abcifc the future. They had set themselves' grimly to the task of winning the war with the means that cfiine to hand, dealing with problems as they nro?b and awaiting the results of their efforts with quiet determination. He believed himself that Germany was '•groggy," although still tremendously stiong, and that the next six months would chow a very great change in the general situation, but he had no prophecy to make regarding the day of peace. ■• GENERAL DEVELOPMENTS.

Referring to the general developments, of the war. Dr. Newman said- that both sides would produce r.ew and formidable engines of war during the present year, but he was confident that the Allies had the lead in this respect. Britain and France had some surprises for the enemy in addition to their almost limitless stores of the proved weapons, sheds and guns. He mentioned a fire-shell that weighed BOGibs and that was capable of destroying all the men in a German tier.ch if pitched truly. The tanks had been a success, partly on account of their unexpected character, and many more of these engines were being built. But the new tanks were smaller and faster thaa the moving fortresses that had been used during the Somme offen-

«:ve last year. He believed that the losses cf the Allied forces in the coming offensive would not be as great, proportionately, as the losses in the first lomnif offensive, owing to the increase in the supply of munitions and the derelopment of new tactics. But inevitibly the losses would be enormously heavy. The submarines were a grave Peril, and Britain had to strain every nerve- tc prevent her mercantile marine being cut to ribbons. But it appeared that the danger was beii;g countered. The British Navy was prepared for anything that might come and fully expected to meet the German battle fleet in action before the close of the war. Naval men believed that the German fleet would be sent to sea as a last desperate vcr.lrre when the tide of battle had turned definitely against the Germans on land.

T'U: BREAD PROBLEM Now that the vj.cmler; c; the Beard of Trade have returned to Wellington after attending to the meat problems in the North, something may be done with regard to this city's bread, which is costing lid per'ilb loaf delivered, and lOd over the counter. The Board has succeeded in • reducing the price cf meat in Auckland, v.here the butchers, after a short struggle against the Government shop:, selling factory meat at export prices, have fallen in with the scheme suggested to them by the Board and have reduced their prices all round. The bread problem appears to present greater difficulties and probably the Board will have to consent to higher charges in Wellington than it considers necessary over the Dominion as a whole. The crux of the question here is delivery, which the bakers claim costs over twopence per loaf in certain areas where access is difficult.

The Wellington Trades and Labor Council lias called the attention of the Government to the experience of the Defence Department at the military camps, where a very great saving in the cost of bread lias been effected by the erection of bakehouses for the supply of the troops. The camp stall's can produce bread of the best quality for something like twopence a loaf below the price quoted wholesale in Wellington, and the Trades and Labor Council contends that the. Government or the municipality ought to take charge of the delivery and so enable the public to buy bread at a price that has a reasonable relation to the manufacturing cost. The master bakers admit that 9d a loaf over the counter would be a profitable price, but they content that if they sold bread on this basis they jyould have to charge at least a shilling a loaf for bread delivered in some parts of the city. They prefer to strike an average.

EFFECT OP REPEAL OF MORTGAGE TAX. Anything in the nature of political controversy is out of order at tiie present time, but t'Fie effect of the repeal of the mortgage tax is not escaping the notice of the politicians, while it must be giving the Minister for Finance a certain amount of concern. The returns for the completed eleven months of the current year show that the land tax has produced £690,971, as against £ 1.024,227 in the corresponding period of the 1915-10 year. The land tax collected in February, 1017, amounted to £1540, as compared with £12,403 in February, 1010. The actual ios sis not as large as the figures suggest, since fcome part of tlie missing land-tax will appear as in-come-tax, but there is no escaping the fact that the result predicted by the opponents of the repeal of the mortgage tax has occurred. Whether or not mortgagees have been effected for the purpose of evading land tax through the loophole that now exists remains to be seen.

VEGETABLES INSTEAD OF FLOWERS. "A world-wide shortage of food may be -one of the results of this,war," said Dr. A. K. Newman, M.P., at' the Town Hall . the other night, . /'England, is threatened with a serious shortage of food and is taking drastic measures to meet the danger. 'Public and private parks are being ploughed up and town with wheat and potatoes. Soldiers are being given leave in order that they may dig allotments for cultivation by their wives. The necessity for economy is being, impressed upon, the nation, and no effort is being spared to increase the available supply of food by the development of home production. We people in New Zealand have a duty in this matter. We ought to set to work to grow more food." Dr. Newman appealed to members of his audience to set aßide the flowers lor a year or two and grow vegetables in their gardens. He advocated the reduction of train services and the planting of public lands, as well as a general effort to stimulate production in view of the possibilities of the next year or two. There was no assurance that the war would end this year or. next year. If it did not, famine would be staring half the world in the face, and the demand for food would be heard in every country. Now was the time tc prepare for the future. "Never mind about the flowers this year," said the member. "Dig up your gardens and grow food. I urge this matter strongly upon you, because I believe that the needs be great and that we should be wise in. time."