THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, MARCH 19, 1909. THE OBVIOUS MORAL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 3141, 19 March 1909, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, MARCH 19, 1909. THE OBVIOUS MORAL.

There is an old saying "Each age has its pleasures," and we may go further and add each age teaches its lessons. The history of to-day in which we live, and the circumstances which we have noted in the past, should be sufficient, if we are willing to learn, to direct our actions to better purposes in the future. Whatever we may have achieved in the past cannot be better than what it is possible to accomplish in the future, because perfection is unattainable, and the experience of the past, together with the lesson of the present, should both instruct and encourage us in regard to future action. To-day we are hearing a good deal about "the slump," and there is certainly no disposition on the part of many people to make the seriousness of the situation appear less than it is, but, in viewing the positii 1 as a whole, one must ultimately come to this conclusion, that there is a great meed of satisfaction in the reflection that the present "hard times" are only of a passing character. It is impossible, considering the resources of this country, and the prices that are being realised for the Dominion's produce in the Home markets that depression can continue for very much longer, but though the country generally will right itself, in Masterton no recurrence of the "boom" may be looked for.» The pogressive air which Masterton assumed for a while was inevitable when exceptionally high prices for produce ruled for a number of years consecutively, but as inevitable as the boom may have been, it was equally certain that it could not continue, even if there had been no drop in the price of wool. The boom in Masterton was more or less artificial, but for a while it was beneficial to many, and the obvious lesson that it taught was that it is distinctly in the interests of the community to develop the business atmosphere of the town as much as possible, and that the more hustle and bustle is locally, the more strangers come to the place to the benefit of the community at large. That Masterton is capable of being developed into a large town must be obvious to every intelligent ! person, but that this will come abom ! for many years may be questioned from a knowledge of the activity of its citizens in the past. No town in the Dominion has shown' itself more inert in the matter" of close settlement than Masterton, and it is questionable whether any other community would have been more greatly benefited by it. We are told that local industries are required, but we may depend upon it that if the surrounding country is sufficiently closely settled, that local industries will most certainly follow. The development ot Masterton upon sound and progressive lines—a movement of infinitely greater value than any "boom"—is entirely in the hands of its citizens, and we may rest assured that if the people of this town will not help themselves, i-hat nobody else will.