TOPICAL READING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8245, 25 September 1906, Page 4

TOPICAL READING.

The description of houses as possessing "back yards which would not meet the requirements of the regulations for air-snace in a London slum," is a difficult one l;o conceive as applicable to faot. Yet the Wei lington Distriot Health Officer, in his report to Parliament states that there are such dwellings in New Zealand, and not in the .congested cities, but iu baukblocks villages such as Kapunga and laihape. At Taibape especially some dwellings are already to be found—miserable shanties crowded together on small sections —tha outoome of the land speculator's desire to make the most of his investment. If such a condition is permitted during the infancy of these townships, what will be their state (aska the Health Officer) when they arrive at oid age?

Tlii Spectator has formed a high opinion of the Report of the War Stores Commission, whioh is "one of the ablest State papers whioh have been issued for many a day." Two changes seem urgent; and indisputable. One is a departmental reform at the War Office, whioh shall make sunh confusion impossible for the future. The second is a complete overhauling of the Army Service Corps and Pay Departments. The duties of these two corps are difficult and responsible, requiring teohnical qualifications of no mean order. But, although they possess many able officers, for some reason they have also become tho refuge for the flotsam and jetsam cf the Army, and the man who is considered too stupid to command a blockhouse is considered able to face intricate questions of pay and supply. This practice, if continued, will land us in similar scandals in the next great war. In in the Volunteers, and in the Yeomanry there are many men who have had a business training, and if Mr Haldane applies to this question hia principle of separating military services of a civilian nature from ordinary military duties, he may solve the difficulty. "We must realise, in the words of the Report, that tbe Army Service Corps, is, in faot, a commercial undertaking, and its officers must be taught to recognise that it must be conducted on business principles, and should be trained tu act oil them also."

®gJTbe English reviews just toband of course deal with the revolutionary decision of the Court of Appeal in regard to the payments for religious teaching. The Speaker observes:—lf the House of Lords makes intolerable demands for the reconstruction of tne Bill, the Government may obviously be obliged to drop it. What then will happen? The great body of Liberals ure certainly not prepared to devote a great deal more of the time and energy of Parliament to an Education Bill. The Government has before it large and important responsibilities, which it certainly canuot disregard. To mention nothing else, it must introduce iu the near future a large and generous measure for giving Ireland self-government. It has to uniertake a large series of sooial reforms, all of whioh turn upon a democratic and drastio treatment of the land question, and tho reorganisation of our rural society. It has protrised an important Licen sing -Bill. If, therefore, circumatanows should oblige the Government to abandon this Bill, the next

Bill must be a brief one. For our parr, we ar« bopeful that tbe Government will be able to place ita own Bill of this year on the Statate Book, and that that Bill, wisely and magnanimously administered, will put an end to this long story of discord and agitation

President Roosevelt, in a letter to the United States Assistant-Secretary of War, has expressed, his gratification at the remarkable progress that is being made by'tbe enlisted men of tbe regular army in markmanshlp. The American private soldier, before the war with Spain, was declared by tbe army officials to be the finest shot in the world, but the addition of h large number of volunteers during tbat conflict bad the effect of greatly, reducing tbe average of the riflemen. Since the reorganisation-following the war the average 1 niarkmanship bas become as high as, if not higher than, it was at the beginning of *the conflict with Spain. 'Xhe figures that called forth the President's praise showed tbat whereas in 1903 there were, in tbe whole army of GU,OOO men, 68 expert riflemen, 349 sharp-shooters, and 500 marksmen, as the' various grades are known technically, last year there were 596 expert riflemen, 3,371 sharp-shooters and 3,436 marksmen. The Assistant Secretary of War attributes the improvement very largely to tbe fact that Gongreaa allowed an increase of nay of 12s a month for expert riflemen, 8s for sharp shooters and 4s for marksmen.

The newly-elected president of the Australian Federal Council of Chamber of Manafacturea, In his opening address, said:—To-day we have met representing the employers In Australia, with the value of production from manufacturing industries—that is the value added to raw materials in process of manufacture —amouuting to £10,580,000, or £7 3a Id per head of population. In the manufacturing industry the number cf establishments in 1905 was 3,700 and the number of hands emrloyed 72,175, of whom 56,117 were males and 16,058 females. There was an increase of 4,139 number employed of whom 2,660 were males. In 1905 females comprised per cent., of the number employed, as against 21 per cent, in 1904. During 1905 the total amount of wages paid was £5,191,350, or £7l 18s per bead employed, the total output was £30,028,000, • and if from this do deducted the value of materinls operated upon, and fuel consumed there is left £10,818,739, representing the value added by manufacturing processes. Thisjast figure differs from that in the other statement by £238,310, which represents the value added to raw materials already accounted for iu the dairying industry. Deducting this total there remains £10,580,000, the real value of production from manufacturing industries. ;