Melbourne, Feb. 22.
First place must of course be given to the strange developments in connexion with the Commonwealth policy of employing Trade Comm: sioners, who, of course, are designed to fulfil much the same purposes as the commercial attackes to British consulates, and whose reports to the British Board of Trade invariably make interesting reading. I have already referred to the appointment of Mr. E. Sheaf, and at first it seemed almost natural that Mr. E. S. Little should feel affronted and resign, seeing that his colleague was apparently to yecoive a higher salary than himself. There were some who thought and still think—that Mr, Little's grievance was against' the lack of organization at this end. Then came a new story, namely, that Mr. Little had somehow fallen out with the European community at Shanghai, but that he had not officially resigned. Later, it was officially stated that he had agreed to '"'carry on." Now Senator Bakhap has left for China. He is Chairman of Committees in the Senate, and a particularly able gentleman. As his name suggests he has Chinese blood th his veins, and he can speak Chinese, and many of the dialects (so it is said), as to the manner born. The request that he should look into matters suggests that the trouble does not lie between Ifr. Little and the Europeans in Shanghai. If it does then why over a Chinese linguist. Surely, like Kipling's woman who gossiped with her ayah, Senator Bakhap is not going to discuss the differences between Europeans with the Chinese. There are other members of the Commonwealth Parliament also on the point of travelling "to the East," but whether they will interest themselves in the Trade Commissioner business, or merely arrive at Sing" pore in time to meet the Prince of Wales, is by no means clear. Amongst these gentlemen are Dr. Earle Page, the leader of the Gountry Party in the House of Representatives, and Mr. Pratten, a very keen Sydney business man, who was a member of the Senate and has recently crossed over to the House of Representatives by capturing the Paramatta seat which ad fallen vacant owing to the appointment of Sir Joseph Cook as High Commissioner.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.