TOPICAL READING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 3214, 14 June 1909, Page 4

TOPICAL READING.

FRENCH PROBLEMS,

M. Briand, the French Minister for ! Justice, delivered at Neubourg last month, during the height of the labour troubles, a remarkable speech on the present political situation in France. He acknowledged that the Republic had reached a difficult stage of its evolution. French statesmen were now face to faca with a serious serious problem —namely, that of the relations of organised bodies of individuals with the commonwealth. The trade union movement and combination among Civil servants were a sign of the times and not the result of a political propaganda. "Events spring," he said, "from the social milieu because we enjoy more liberty. Other countries will experience the sam e crisis and the ideal country of the future will be the one which will have calmly grappled with the new problems and solved them in a spirit of liberty and social justice." M. Briand analysed the steady advance of the trade t union movement in Francs, and acknowledged that in certain respects these fresh social facts might become disquieting and dangerous. As to combination among Civil servants, M. Briand refused to recognise that form of trade unionism, but he admitted that many of the complaints of the Civil servants were justified, and that they were due to an abuse of ParliamentJ arism-

OPEN UP THE JLAND!

j Throughout the North Island the . need is being felt for opening up idle lands. At the annual meeting of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce the president (Mr. Shnackenberg) said:—"l don't know whether you are aware of the fact that in this island there are only 15 million acres occupied out of 2%% millions, and that there are only seven millions in the hands of the Maoris. Could any legislation be imagined that would be more productive of national prosper ity than the opening up of that land, of which such a large proportion is the vast territory lying between Taranaki and Auckland provinces? But to open lands, the great essentials are roads, railways and bridges. Fortunately the Government li3s realised the advisability of providing these in thi3 province, and during the summer a genuine attempt has been made to promote settlement, a maximum of 500 man being employed on roads and 600 on' the railway from Stratford to the Main Trunk. It was therefore, with very great regret that I learned that ibout 300 have lately been taken »ff each Department. It is all very well to say the Government is limited by it funds. It is no such thing, or you would not have found it making the Otagi Central through land so poor that Sir Joseph declares that the railway pays only 6s per cant on the cost. You would not have found them spending £600,000 on a tunnel through tIW Southern Alps to open up sections through land so poor that when the ra'lway is completed it will not put six extra farmers on it, whereas the same amount spent in completing the Stratford line would have put 6000 people on the adjoining land and thus promote the prosperity of the Dominion as a whole, and of Taranaki in particular."

AN ENTHUSIASTIC SJLDIER

I We have the publiaher, I Mr Chas. Bond, of Hamilton, a copy of an interesting publication, viz., "Military Lectures and Speeches on National Defence," delivered by Lieut-Colonel Allen Bell. Information of interest to volunteers is, also, contained in the brochure. Colonel Bell is certainly an enthusiastic soldier, and it is gratifying to; realise, a3 one does, from reading his lectures, that he is endeavouring to awake among those with whom he comes in contact, a sense of the necessity for adequate defence in this country. Following is and extract from one of the lectures:—"On one or two occasions I have been unable to di&= tinguish between the courageous man and the coward* The pluckiest man I have ever kuown> lost his head completely the first time he was under fire, and went to the •fear for all he was worth, yet he afterwards proved himself to be one of the most courageous of his race. 1 may tell you at once that the courage i which I consider is an absolute I

essential to the sddier is moral courage. Physical courage you can get in any bulldog; you have also seen it in men who are the lowest types of humanity. There is another courage, begotten of a bras? band, whch some of us have also experienced. 'You are moving out of the town, headed by a brass band playing "boldiers of the King." or some other martial air and at the moment you imagine that there is no such thing as fear in your composition. - In the face of the enemy this disappears, and the only courage that will stand by you then is moral courage, the courage that assists you to do your duty, the courage that displays itself in silent effort and endeavour, the courage that you frequently see in women, as exemplified by Jeanne d' Arc, Lady Franklin, Florence Nightingale, and many others whom I-could mention. Tha courage of silent effort, endeavour and selfcontrol is what is wanting in the hour of decisive battle. The courage that will enable you to ru3h into danger shoulder to shoulder with your comrades 13 often useless-, you can get that in mob of sheep. The courage that you require is that which will enable you when standing alone, to turn and stand with your face to the enemy. This kind of courage was always necessary; even when fighting was done in close order it is a hundred times mor3 necessary now when men are fighting with long intervals between files.