Breeding revolution

Opening of the season at the  Dunedin Bowling Club’s green. — Otago Witness, 26.10.1920. COPIES...
Opening of the season at the Dunedin Bowling Club’s green. — Otago Witness, 26.10.1920. COPIES OF PICTURE AVAILABLE FROM ODT FRONT OFFICE, LOWER STUART ST, OR WWW.OTAGOIMAGES.CO.NZ
The Western world today is trembling on the brink of a crisis precipitated by powerful movements in the financial, the commercial, and the industrial worlds. Unless by wise counsels and sane action the crisis can be averted, there is an alarming prospect of a war to the bitter end, culminating in financial panic, commercial depression and industrial unemployment. This menacing situation is an aftermath of the war, accentuated since the cessation of hostilities by a reaction of apathy and an almost universal greed of gold. This apathy and greed have combined to create a tension which, as the days and weeks went by, became more and more intolerable and which failing remedy was bound to find vent in an outburst. The danger of the moment is that the whole structure of compromise and evasion may be swept away by a front of human passion, unwilling to listen to reason and seeking satisfaction in bootless revenge. In brief the Western world, and with it the British Empire, stands on the verge of revolution, unless, at the eleventh hour some way out of the impasse can be found. The British as a nation are a peaceful people, yet they are being caught up in the well-nigh irresistible current of anarchy and Bolshevism which is lapping the shores of the Western world.

Firms on shaky ground

There are several disturbing elements in the trade position, notably failures at Amsterdam, in Java and at Christiania, the trouble of a Mincing Lane firm and the limited moratorium in Cuba — all more or less due to over-speculation in sugar, rubber and other commodities.

The position in many neutral countries is causing alarm, particularly Scandinavia. During the war neutral countries made huge profits through supplying the belligerents, and many new firms indulged in the wild buying of commodities, forcing prices unduly. Since the Armistice the value of these articles has steadily declined, and many of the speculators are now burdened with a large stock which is unsaleable except at a heavy loss.

Unwelcome passenger

A Waihemo councillor had a strange experience while travelling in a motor car the other night. Wandering on the roadside in defiance of the county by-laws, a cow, startled by the glaring headlights, gave a bewildered leap and landed on the rear seat of the car. Fortunately, the back portion of the car was unoccupied at the time, and the intruder was quickly ejected, leaving behind her plain traces of her unexpected ascent upon the moving car.

ODT, 18.10.1920.

Comments

Thundered the Times.
As it happened, the Roaring Twenties had a ball, drinking and dancing. Flappers, bless their hearts. Morality went out the door, but there was No war.

Nothing is ever on fire, fire is on things!

It depends whether someone sits on it.