THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1913. THE BRITISH TERRITORIALS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 12 February 1913, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1913. THE BRITISH TERRITORIALS.

The latest figures relating to the British Territorials are ominous. 1 Last year there were 57,000 enlistments and 63,600 retirements, which means that the forco is going back in, number-s. The Territorials have now .been in existence for some years, and it looks as if the wave of public interest in- the movement'is ebbing. Jn ispite of appeals and organised advertising, the force is somo 50,000 below the establishment, and there is no reason to suppose that- this year, will be better in the matter of enlistments than was 1912. The plain lesions of the Balkan war do not seem to have had any marked effect on enrolment (savs the Christe.h'urch Press) We cannot tell whether Englishmen in the mass realise the supreme danger of being unprepared; at any rate, they are in no hiirry to offer their services for the defence of tlie nation. Perhaps a good many of them believe that tho Government is only -playing with the problem of land defence. Xo less a. person than Lord E,slier, a member of the Imperial Defence Committee, ■has said there is a widespread view that tho authorities do not take the Territorials .seriously. Of course, a great many people are suffering from sheep apathy and lack of imagination, and until tho'party leaders give them a lead they will never pay attention to the warnings of Lord Roberts. It is possible that before long tho Government will bo compelled to f;;eo the problem. In two or three months, the time of a large number of Tenitorials .will have expired, and if most of these resign, the force will stand condemned in the eyes 0 f nil. Lord Haldn.no. the creator of the force, has himself said that the Territorials are the last barrier between the nation and some form of compulsory service. He and his successor have all along professed to bo satisfied with' the progress of the scheme, but it is impossible to think that they arc really so at heart. Lord Haklarie expected the nation to respond to his efforts, and the nation has not dore so. This, and the fact that tho men are badly equipped and insufficiently trained, ought to make tho Government realise that the time lias onrpo for facing facts and calling upon the J le-ople-to do their f-Jain duty to the I ?onntry. 1 * "* "

"UN*EALtXEI) INCREMENT" IN PICTURES. — * I A souk 1 what curious and »ot niiintc:-- j osting point has been under diu'us- ! sion recently in the Old World, the ! right of an artist to -some share in , the increased value of his pictures, , even though he may have/ definitely and legally parted with tho ownership. The particular incident which j has originated or at anvrate given force to the .suggestion is the sale j of a. picture painted by M. Dega, an artist how 80 years old, on-o of- the great masters rf the nineteenth century. M. Dega .sold tho picture in the first instance for £2O; he'has l:v----cd to so? it acquire the great, vidue of £'17,100. He enjoys fame, his reputation is world wide, but it is complained he gets as little material profit from the reputation as if 1• o had died a generation "ago. While 'his old works sell at fabulous prices, ho, lit seems, has "to live in a iitth floor in Moiitinatro," which would appear to indicate genteel or distinguished pov-erty; and wo are told "be finds it curious that tho good taste of the original buyer of this picture should bring so vast a reward to bis heirs, while there is no reward whatever for tho genius of tho artist." This view of the matter has appealed so strongly to the sympathetic mind that the French Chamber is to be asked to consider a. Bill, tho object of which is to ensure to painters and sculptors isomo sharo in tho profits made on their works during their lives, and -for a. limited period after their death, to their heirs. It is asked with sou:.? fcree, "If the owners of land may be charged increment duty, why not the own ens of pictures and statues, who do nothing at all to add to the value of such property?" Advocates of tho new departure agree that whenever a picture of a statue is sold there should be paid to the State a tax on a ming scale nccortlirg to increment value since the previous sale, the. whole, or most of the tax, to go to the creator of tho work. The most cogent argument against it is that the sc-lteme is impracticable, because it would 'be very difficult to trace the sale of pictures except in a small proportion of cases, and that evasion would be extremely easy in ■ respect of any but public, sales. Still j the d: icussiou is of interest, and I shows that the vf " ie en "unearned inJ crevnent" in other things as well as 1 land.