TOPICAL READING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8356, 11 February 1907, Page 4

TOPICAL READING.

The Neueste Nachrichten (Berlin) ascribes the choice of Mr James Bryce to a desire on,the part of the British Government to have as its representative in the United States a man capable of becoming a match for the dreaded Baron Speck von Sternburg. It writes: "It may be said that the appointment of the new British Ambassador in Washington has been made the object in London of one of the most extraordinary intrigues of modern times. Prom the whole treatment ef this question the only important conclusion that may be drawn is that the chief object in view was under cover of 're-es-tablishing the former intimate Anglo-American friendship,' and to drive a wedge into German-American relations. This is only in the nature of things, and we shall have to take our measures accordingly."

At the luncheon of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, the President, Mr George Shirtcliffe, in the course of his annual address, brought forward certain significant facts as j:o the colony's trade. In Mr Shirtcliff e's address the "memento mori" the shape of a warning that the increase in the value of our exports, which has brought so much prosperity to the colony, has to a very large extent been an increase in price, and not in quantity. He showed that during the past two years our exports of wool increased in value by 54 per cent., and in volume by only 8 per cent.; sheepskins 68 per cent., and 5 per cent., butter and cheese 18 per cent, and 11 per cent., tallow 19 per cent, and 13 J per cent. The value and the volume of frozen meat exports each showed a rise of 2 per cent. From these figures, and from the conditions obtaining in the colony, Mr Shirtcliffe drew the conclusion that the continuance of good times depends very largely upon the maintenance of good prices' rather 1 than upon any great increase in the volume of our exports.

Speaking at the Mayoral dinner at Christchurch, last week, Mr T. H. Race, Canadian Commissioner, said they had in Canada; one of £the most circumspect legislative bodies in the Empire, following closely oh the model of the British Parliament. Their Parliament was doing a good deal in the way of converting Yankees who came over to Canada into Canadians and British subjects. The people of the United States who came over the border to Canada soon recognised that in Canada they lived under institutions as free as those of the United States, and that the laws of Canada were more respected. Therefore, the more settlers who came over from the United States to Canada, the more subjects were gained to the British Empire. There were many reasons why the people of New Zealand should be very proud of their country. Not very long ago the'people of Canada knew very little of New Zealand. Canadians were accustomed to big things, and therefore, they knew more of Australia?, but when the South African war broke out, it was seen that there were bigger men in New Zealand than in any other . part of the Empire.

Some interesting figures relating to losses by fire in New Zealand and Australia during the past year are given in the current number of the Australasian Insurance and Banking Record. The total amount of the losses x-ecorded during the year is £750,136, and the largest items are as follow: Banks £26,846, dwellings £ls2,l32,drapers £21,868, general stores £35,678, growing crops £11,545, hotels and wine shops £52,173, ironmongers £45,926, manufacturing confectioners £25,840, printers £34,785, shops (not specified) £23,761, sawmills £15,799, stores and offices £16,086, stationers' warehouses £74,708, tanneries £28,102. It is needless to say that under most of the headings just recorded one or tWo large fires have occasioned nearly the whole of the loss. New Zealand and New South Wales have enjoyed pre-eminence as regards magnitude of individual losses. < The incidence of the 12 months per State is shown as follows: Victoria £149,029, New South Wales £216,879, Queensland £44,478, South Australia £17,014, West Australia £34,928, Tasmania £17,600, New Zealand £270,190.