TOPICAL READING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXVIX, Issue 8125, 27 April 1906, Page 4

TOPICAL READING.

There is now in the hands of the Government printer an exhaustive report prepared by tho Chief Dairy Commissioner, Mr Kinsella, on his recent visit to the Argentine, Great Britain and Canada. Jn this report the Commissioner deals with the methods of butter production in those countries. New Zealand butter on the Homo market an 3 its sale, tho Danish manufacture and system of selling and controlling the markets, cool cmitig cheese in Canada, and the system of testing the herds in vogue in Denmark, in addition to suggestions arising out of his observations, that should prove of value to the producers of this country. It is hoped to have the report ready for distribution among dairy farmers and others interested in the produce trade at an early date.

A Libeial and Noneomformist member of the new House of Commons, writing to a friend in Christchurch, says: "There is no doubt that the education question will be one of oar difficulties. I believe the vast majority of the people of this country wish to have Bible lessons taught in scnoob, but the difficulty is that the strong denominationalists, including the Roman Catholics and High Anglicans, are able to say that if there is any form of religion taught, nothing is satisfactory to them that is not in harmony „witb other special tenets. My own impression is ttiat if our present Educational Minister were to introduce his Bill on the socular lines, indicating that be would bo perfectly willing to introduce the Bible for all schools, if general con sent was. expressed, ho would be taking the wise course. The present House of Commons is perfectly different from any that has preceded it in the composition of its members. There are a far larger proportion of workers of all descriptions, and I should be surprised if some good work is not done."

On his way to England Mr Powlds, spent a month in South Africa. He visited all the battlefields of tbe late war, stopped at Johannesburg, Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Kimberley, where he used to live before settling in New Zealand, and then went up to Mafeking, whence he travelled south to Capetown to join the Briton. At Johannesburg Mr Powlds discussed the Chinese labour question with some of the mining magnaves and the representatives of labour on the Rand, and saw for himself the conditions under which the Chinese coolies worked. The Chinese were well treated, and, though lodged in compounds, permission to visit Johannesburg was readily granted to the coolies. The conditions of their employment, he says, are not nearly so rigorous as In the case of the Kaffirs in the diamond mines at Kimberley, where the natives are shut up on their location for the whole three months of their engagement, in order to prevent illicit traffic in diamonds.

Another religious question which is bfling mooted just now by varioas bishops and clergy ia formulated by them as "the tyranny of choira." It is being strongly urged, writes a London . press correspondent, that muob of the devotion and earnestness of the church services is sacrificed nowadays to the mere desire of self-displjy on the part of the choirs, and that, except in rare and special cases, such as those of the great cathedrals with their fullyequipped choral institutions, the singing of elaboiate anthems and equally elaborate oantiule services should be abandoned, more congregational methods of obanling being adopted and greater pains being taken to ensure a reverent and expressive interprettion of the hymns. It is freely asserted that many organists and choirmasters "scamp" in the most careless and perfunc tory way the mere chanting and bvmn-singing, devoting all their efforts to ensure—aoft always with entire success—an effective and sometimes dramatic performance; ot florid cervices to the canticlos and of highly elaborate and sometimes strikingly operatic and unsuitable oratorio selections as "anthems," sometimes even actual adaptations from aeoular operas being employed.

At the annual oonferenoe of the Association of Chambers of Commerce ia England recently, a discussion took place on the subject of preferential treatment in relation to shipping freights to the colonies. Mr Goodman, Birmingham, moved a resolution-"That this Association is of opinion that the preferential treatment accorded by British steamship oompanies to foreign freights, particularly in connection with shipments to South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, is in-, jurioua to trie commercial interest of the United Kindom," Mr Goodman pointed out that the large preference given to Amerioan goods was highly injurious to British interests. JHe gaiVe an instance of goods being shipped from Hamburg for New Zealand, via London, at 31s a tou, while, if the same goods were manufactured in Birmingham and shipped from London by the same steamer, the freight charge for them would have been 60s a tou. The resolution was carried. A resolution was carried in favour of the universal adoption of the penny postal system. It was also agreed to press on the Postmaster General the desirability of adopting oheap parcel or sample postage to colonies on a soale not higher than that adopted with New Zealand.