Contrasts Down Under

Waikato Times, Volume 119, Issue 19899, 30 May 1936, Page 15 (Supplement)

Contrasts Down Under

New Zealand the Paradoxical : Confident Australia.

(By Anthony Winn, in London Times.)

1E RETURN OF THE LABOUR PARTY {i to power in New Zealand last n December attracted little attention 8 in England; yet it was one of the s oddest results in the history of Parliamentary 11 government. The party had never been in 1 Miles before; in the departing House it had 5 only 2t members out. or 80. In a country i where daily newspapers thrive it had no paper, nor were political broadcasts ‘ allowed. These disadvantages were not i offset by any outstanding men. 1 Is this state of mind a phase or a gen- 1 eral trend? in New Zealand itself opinion 5 is divided. The former explanation postu- l tales in time-lag of three to four years in 0‘ political thought between England and the ~ Dominion. On that assumption the opinion ‘ of one economist or monetary expert now equals the word of three statesmen, much as it did in Australia and England during their crises. As in Alberta now and in Aus- r trails a few years back, Social Credit is t More Than a Talking-point. ‘1 -PM Labour Party's active flirtation with it ' was only checked. not finally ended, by the j news of .\ir Aberhart's dimcultles. ‘ Rupert Brooke. visiting the country just 1 before the War. described it as ”all very : senile. and Fabian.“ Armed with the ilrst f ‘ompulsory arbitration courts. State tire in- ‘ surance. anti non-contributory old-age pen— 3 sions. .\‘ew Zealtuul proudly called herself “the experimental laboratory or the world." 1 \\‘helher he abuses or praises it. (and he prefers the former linel, the average New Zealander has more dealings with the Gov- t ‘rnment in the course of his daily existence . .han the citizens of any other democracy. ‘ This is the environment which has assisted a the New Zealanders to be physically fear- 1: less and mentally tearful, Out hunting they 1 jump open wire from choice as much as necessity. but. cannot face a conversation which leaves the rutted tracks of sport and a farming. They have also preserved. with- y in a one—class sqcialislic framework, an .1 Edwardian outlook. l The people themselves are not happy i about this paradox. \\‘hat is not clear is J whether the new Government has been put I in Mike Out of '0» or Courage. 1 Either way the overriding fact is that New Zealnnd is an economic annexe of Great Britain and l"\o\\s how impracticable it is for her to plate her national life in disagreement with her lllilill customer and rrullilur. \\‘hat worries the New Zmlzintler who has 1 his \‘<lllnil‘_\'< future it! heart is the lit‘it‘l‘~ - niEnaHon an-l regularity with which all ziliie ‘ men continue to einixrtiic :it ihe ilrsl opportunity. The emigrants mukr- mum‘s for themselves alu‘muli hilt thrv do not relurik .\uslrnlia: exhilvitinn. as .\i. .\‘ioxt‘rivil suinl . 2n years as“. “.\‘livinlism \\ilhuut its :lm'— ‘ triiies.” is at prrsvnt the most inll‘rcslinK . immuniv union: the ll;liillll~l a 3mm: )0! siaiiv I‘vtllllll‘)‘ in .i «hunmir \\urlll. l'uliiu‘ other Ili‘lllill'i‘lll‘it‘fi‘ particularly ”It‘ l'uiiz‘ll Males. in \\ilil‘il it .il'rnrtl.‘ u wuuplvil' roil—trust, Australia li.i.\ tin iner legislation Uil il’ll‘ui. \ii thv mn‘ial Ivzislniinu I'llllHlii‘l'Pii nvressar) i.» wruro the lllilii‘llililllli “‘ls P.l\>(‘ii lwi‘nrn‘ iiii' \\.ii'. ’l'liv liliiil‘iillilllll dill uni .irrn-x lint \uslralin €|l'l‘l‘lli|‘ll iiil- tli>‘ .ippouiiuiriit \\liil ill‘l' il.litl|ll:t[ mlnr 't‘hu ni-Jst .\l‘l‘l-llx i'l'liil‘l‘ili is nt‘ linllenacs 0' the “ New Despotlsm.” \ Lime .luil lumi'riul tii\ii Srmire \\Eiil i’.l>} i“|illliiutil\ ui' I'ilii'_\ is .llil‘L’l‘li iu lu- .~\\Hiii'li u-iilmi .iu-i tin-twinui‘iilh', \\ ..n i'\li|t]-iu'. Hivrn is tin- ~inl} iiil‘ l‘u‘il’i'iJ” .\inimii nunvr, t'iill‘l‘iJlllili: .ill \;!}t~i..l. um. .iiiutuui .t rem-iii our ill “inrh .:i.-“i~‘r l.tlliill\\||l'|‘ iilii .i[-]n'.ilv-l guru-5v

full a ainst his Federal land tax assess.menyt. 8"on." said the official. "he'didnt get. away with that. \Ve assessed his D9l” sonal income higher.“ The station-owner mentioned the strong GOmmEMS made b}: the Judge who upheld the appeal. “ 011said the official cheerfully, “we EOt him 100‘ He'll be assessed higher this year." But these are pinprioks to a WWW which reduced its percentage of unemployed trade unionists from 39 in 1932 to 13.7 at, the end or last year. Recovery was not. even checked by bad prices at the wool sales of the t 934-35 season. Wool is the linchpin or the Commonwealth, much as cotton is of the Old South in the United States. Other primary products or the country do not pay their way. The Country Rides on the Morlno’s Book. Such dependence accounts for the good relations with Japan. The English theory that Australia lives in constant terror of.the Japanese Fleet is one of the most lively of our many illusions about the Dominions. The Australians, with their first-rate physique and sell-confidence, cannot yet bring themselves to consider the Japanese seriously. Those parts which lie nearest to Japan are so far from Sydney and Melbourne as to seem part of another continent. These are subconscious reasons for confidence; if the threat became immediate they would \‘illllsll. But. the percentage of the wool (‘lip bought by Japan rose from 10 in 1926‘27 to ‘2O in 1930-31 and is still rising towards 2:). .\s a buyer she is a good second to Great Britain. and well ahead or the Continental countries. If in any one year Japan were to fall out o! the market, wool prices. and with them the nation's welfare, would break down completely. It ik not surprising that only the far—sighted should think of Japan as a Potential Threat and not just as the woolgrower‘s good friend. Another reason for the refusal to think of Japan as an enemy is that .\ustralia does not conceive herself in he an empty country. There is a standing misapprehensioin Europe that thc yast (men spacf‘s in the centre indicatr a wasle of opportunity. But half the population is not crowded into Sitiney. Melbourne. and Brisbane without a reason. 'l‘hr core of this reason Is that Australia, always the must :iriii continent. is not getting any \\l‘tlt‘l'. .\gmin. tho drift in tho ciiivs has roused and ”iv desire in go Ilili'k in tho igintl has roiln-nl-ti. \‘ni lin‘ru is tun nun-h unonmluy— Illi‘lit in [tin i-ilirs for British artisans or l-iilitlll't‘l‘S in lu‘ \\‘rlmnni-il \\‘iili iliii‘il nrins. Young :15 [hr country is, it is .ilrinuly lll‘\l'[‘ oping n ilt‘i'l'lii'l ur. .|~ \\‘v sny t‘lltllli‘llilsiirally. .i .\[t'W'id] ill'l'd in tho nurtin'rn (’(lilllii‘ltlS of Now .\VHIHI \\lilt'n. In such .l siinniiun Ht!‘ rviiu-innu't' of .\us—traiinns in vni'nurnsi' innnijzrziiinn is why it. lintivrstnnvi. Mon ”intuit Hit-fr []iiinyp In spunk out is linl‘ortnnnttg 'i‘hny .n-t- tii'|'-li-nm :ni'miti Hm. ir iiii'y nit]. liii'ir \\lti'il\ \\nliixi ln' inisiiilrrprrimi into it General Dislike of the Imperial Tie. \‘l‘l “it‘l't' 1‘ tin lintilmuln. Xn'u Zm'nntl iIIA I"ii4'li'4i. \\Eiirii is ninri' lilli‘l‘M‘i‘H‘llLY ]nwi .illil \\iiii'ii l‘ iwilt‘r .iiiiu In t‘ltlllltilli‘ [vl‘iill' ill iis n\\n n Iliuil .tiiy \\iiii :ii'i'i-I-iiun t'ur lii]: i.tnni \Ki‘dl .lil4l .i:.t.n tiin ii’.l\l'”t‘i' liniis inniw-li' in\uilini.tr:i\ i-nnipuriu: .\tisirnlin \\nn Hi.» i ”lll'tl <1..:.-\ :n.I lilitlliltf lilll‘ (‘SM‘IP iinl iiit'i‘wri-nn-w. \ti~iri|i.i is. .is it Iniiinn. ‘lli‘l' n.‘ iii-i'xvi! .in.i Iliiilliin; lil'i' Ill‘hiill}. \iisiriion 4'ilii‘lii'}iitl'li. ”\t‘i] in iuisl‘uriziniin .'“~' \\..\ t-t lii'”:l.‘iii, il.i\i‘ (It'\l'|l']'l'il it |I i’iimi ll“ \i illi‘i' .IHI' >|i‘.|l“i|.\|ll('\\' .it‘ \\tinu: i'iw; .iil' Hll.i\\-ii‘l‘ In All I‘il'i‘illll< \Mnu-m t‘irn‘ iil‘ti|\_ him HII'II' \4ll‘.itilli-li‘it’>. .Ht‘ iii-uni} lnii unlmumL