THE DAUGHTERS OF THE HORSELEECH.

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14759, 1 September 1913, Page 6

THE DAUGHTERS OF THE HORSELEECH.

Ou Friday several members of Parliament pleaded very strongly for an enlargement of their privileges and conveniences at the taxpayers' expense. A good many people, on reading the report of their speeches which we printed on Saturday, will have growled to themselves that the M.P. has an altogether mistaken idea of the public's

attitude in these matters; that the public has no sympathy to spare for tho representatives who receive £300 for threo months' work, a freo railway pass, and post and telegraph and other concessions. These grumblers are mistaken in their turn. The M.P. is under no illusions on the point: ho knows that the public's heart does not bleed for him. It is not becauso ho feels assured of public sympathy, but becauso his own heart bleeds at the thought of not voting himself money, or its equivalent, that he is airing his grievances. His appetite has grown with tho growth of his emoluments. Mr Ell complained that Southern members are at a disadvantage as compared with Northern members in that they have to pay their passages to Wellington "when on "business during, tho recess." Mr Forbes and Mr Witty desired that members should be given 100 free copies of Hansard. Mr Laurenson and others urged that members should be paid their expenses, or paid eomethiiig anyway, when they visit public works. Mi- Veitch complained that they had to pay postage or telegraph charges when sending communications on public business, and ho said ho was "a private " member of limited means." Several other members asked that they should bo provided with typistes in order that they might keep abreast of their correspondence. (An M.P. may lose a vote if lie loaves a lctteir unanswered.) In short, theso members, and thoso who agreed with thorn, made it entirely plain that their conception of "the "right thing" is that privileges shall bo sufficiently heaped upon them to enable them to retire from politics with a modest competence. What the taxj payer, out of whoso pockets will come I the oost of tho luxuries required by the members as surely as tho money for his baker and his butcher, will think of it is not very difficult to guess. It does not appear to havo occurred to a gingio one of the members named that tho taxpayer has already furnished them with ample means to pay fox as many visits to Wellington as even Mr Ell could find necessary (and more, for tlio'ro is no reason why Mr Eli should visit Wellington during tho recess at all excepting on privato business), for as many "visits to public "works" as aro likely to be required of any M.P. by his conscience, for all tho letters and telegrams he may need to despatch, and for all tho typewriting that any of them may want done. They aro already paid £300 a year. If that sum is not paid to them to recoup them for their expenses, for what is it paid? It is amsle to cover any member's legitimate expenses. Mombers do not like it to be said that their "honorarium" is their wage out of which they must save up for their old age; yet that Ls exactly how it is treated. If members are not in politics to mako money out of it. £300 a year will secure them against loss. If £300 a year is not sufficient for their desires, then, obviously, they do want to make something out of it. Perhaps some future day will see members receiving from the taxpayer no moro than, in discharging their public duties, they actually out of their pockets. It is in that direction that any change ought to go.