THE PEOPLE'S LEAGUE

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16699, 6 December 1919, Page 13

THE PEOPLE'S LEAGUE

The Executive of tlie People's Lenguo lias addresscfl tho following lei:or, dealing with ihe Cost ot Living and Profiteering, to overv candidato contesting cousutuenrv at the coming elections > Christchurch. December stli, 1919. Dear Sir, —In submitting for your consideration the enclosed manifesto of the People's litvague, the committee dosire to emphasise the fact that the League is not conccrncd with par:y but is coccerncd with the evcr-lncrea.-mg of living, and tho widespread profiteering that exists, and i< determined that- effective steps bo taken to make operative tho laws already in existence. In paragraph 12 you will observe that the League demands from every candidate :i pledge "to opposo every mrmber of the present Ministry, who have so utterly failed to proioct the public from exploitation, going back to ministerial office." In this connexion the enclosed pamphlets No. 1 and 'J fully sot out the League's reasons for dtv this pledge. Since August 10th. 191-J, statutory lnfiislation lias existed for tho purpose of preventing profiteering ftho legal definition of profiteerim: is '"charging a hinder mte of net profit t'lan was ciiarced tor the s.'irn(> commodity prior to the wnr'M. Durini: tie whole of tint period —over five v»ap<—only on<\ prosecution iias uiken place, which ignotninioiisly failed. The fact that the authorities' have taken i;o .■•d<v>ufltc steps to enforce the law. nFonls proof that they never intended to dn so.

Thw is not ihe only otvasion on which the Prime has failed to ad-' minister the law impartially. In the =!urar case. ir<l'_'. there woro eighty-six (inns, members of the illegal sugar ring, of whom throe only were prosecuted aJid finid £'1('00 each. Mr Massey refused to nrosecute tho others, although tho evidence showed that, this conspiracy, stood to make £'3f1,f!00 P«r annum in illegal discounts, and that mevnlwrs of i tho sugar ring obtained extra discounts j over and above the largest buyers, who 1 obeyed the law, so that, it naid to break i the law. and law-abiding traders wero • penalised. ] A\ hen laws are onactcd such as Con- j scriplion Acts, Licensing I?egnlations, ' Pure Food> and Drug Acts, etc.. tho' laws take their course minis-: terial ftbstniction. and definite author:-! tics exist all over tho Dominion to sw ' that the laws are obeyed. Tho only ; machinery nrovided by ihe fiovernme.nt.j to dcaj wiih 'The Regulation of Trade; nnd Commerce Act - ' during tho war; period was a Board of Trade, which had : no authority to enforce the law. Ttj is for this reason that tho People's! League demand that definite tribunals! lw e.st;iblished in every centre in New i Zealand to deal with profiteers and j prices, and the regulation of trade as I elaborated in paragraphs 8 and 9. j The committee observe that some ministerial oiuididates aire trying to find cover for their criminal neglect in t.he utterly absurd estimates of tho Government Statistician that pric«s had only advanced 10 tier cent, sinco the war. These, estimates do not include drapery, hardware, boots, furniture, crockery, and other commodities, -which have advanced over 100 nor cout. Tho committee can prove that tho cost of living has increased fully 80 per cent, during the last, five vears, but if the increase was only 10 tier cent, it, would be no <lefence for a breach of the law, and will not justify, bnennse of tho war, fivo per cent, of the community becoming excessively -wealthy at tho expense of 9o per cent, of tho people, including dependants of killed and wounded soldiers, whoso small pensions have been depreciated by unscrupulous and un■patriotic profiteers. During tho last five years £."50,000,000 have l>cen raised in >.ow Zealand in war loans, and in-comc-tay returns have produced over £20,000,000 more than pre-war returns, which is convincing proof of tho widespread profiteering that has been nllowed to ore vail.

Tho People's League has now a largo membership in Christcburcb and Dunedin, and is increasing at tho rate of nearly one thousand per week. Time will not. permit the whole of Now Zealand being covered before tho general eleetjons in December next., l»ut it is tho intention to establish branches throughout the Dominion to compel the authorities who may h*» in power to protect tho consumer's interest. On behalf of the People's League wo aSk vou to giyo us a definite pledge whether yon will support its platform or not. AVe are, Yours faitlifullv, .ANDREW FATftD-URX, President. DONALD SMITH, Secretary. fAnvT.l