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Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 192, 18 September 1914, Page 6

The best that can be said of the member for Grey Lynn, Mr Payne, is that he can make a bored House laugh at him. His- two chief assets arc a supreme self-confidence and an enunciation that Is not suited for a. sick bedside. These, coupled with a pronounced unorigiriality of thought and almost complete lack of practical-ideas, will assure him a place in Parliamentary memory when he himself is relegated into the. outer darkness of political life. ' Mr Payne, as everybody knows, and he is proud to acknowledge, is a leading light of the Federation of Labour. He flaunts the red flag on every possible occasion, as, for instance, in the wasteful little debate in the House last evening concerning conscientious objectors. The member for Grey Lynn declared that the Minister of Defence was instituting what was practically a system of serf labour. It's the sort of thing Mr Payne is expected by his political friends to say—it would argue little for his intelligence if he really and sincerely believed such a thing. Mr G. W. Russell aptly described this nonsense as "froth about anti-militarism" —the phrase is fitting and extremely happy. This empty asseveration has staled, and is nothing more than a cheap catchcry. . Having thus delivered himself, the member for Grey Lynn —it is to be hoped for his own sake that the relations" between him and a large number of his consti-

tuents are more cordial than they were some time ago —went on to drag in the hoary old allegation about the war being engineered by the capitalistic class. Here again. Mr Payne is simply cribbing phrases—he is expected by his Labour denomination to make such a statement, and lie talks accordingly. In this way he truly represents his political party, but unfortunately he cannot justify his: election to Parliament until he truly represents his constituency. Still, this loquacious Parliamentarian is making the most of his time in the House. He has achieved a considerable amount of publicity by an offensive disregard on occasion for the rules of the House and the ordinary conventions, and no doubt has been acclaimed for it in his own particular circle. He has made no improvement as a politician, and his tirades in the House have advanced the cause he advocates not a step. In the face of what has happened lately, his attempts to revivify the corpse of antimilitarism are a waste of good time.