The Press. Wednesday, December 10, 1919. Who are the Reds?

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16702, 10 December 1919, Page 8

The Press. Wednesday, December 10, 1919. Who are the Reds?

There scorns to bo an impression in I some quarters that tho " revolutionary i Labour" Party consists only of Messrs Holland, Semple, McCombs and P. Frtuer, and ono or two others. Sir Joseph Ward and his friends know bettor than that, but they aro endeavouring to ©nconrago tho belief that tho Labour candidates we have mentioned are tho only extremists with whom ilm Liberals are required not to as- ' sociato. It is just as well that tho j public should understand that it is absurd—as tho Liberals know to pretead tlint as politicians there is or ! will ho any difference wliatover between Mr Holland and Mr Semple on tho ono hand, and on tho other hand any other member of tho Labour Party's army. When any politician declares that ho will not hold office if dependent upon the assistance of revolutionary Labour, or tho extremists, or tho Reds, he mnst mean, if ho is flincero, tlmt ho will not hold offico if dependent upon any ono of tho j gentlemen who will be fellow-units with Mr Semple and Mr Holland in the Labour Party. Inside the Labour Party there is perfect equality of subjection to the caucus judgment. As Mr Semple votes on anv motion or Bill, so will vote Mr A. Walker or Mr J. W. Munro or Mr J. Iloliertson. There Is no member of the Labour Party who ran be selected by Sir Joseph \Varcl or r.nyon? else as less a revolutionary than Mr Holland, so far as his position as a politician is concerned. They aro all j members of tho forces of " revolu- j " tionary Labour," ns the "Mnoriland | Worker" itself calls its Party. When j Sir Joseph Ward in 1914 choso as tho beneficiaries of tho Liberal votes which he had in his jift tho seven candidates of the Hod I'ederation, ho was choosing men whose political creed is the same as Mr Holland's, whoso platform was Mr Holland's platform, whose political likeness to Mr Semple was complete. When, therefore, lie says that ho will not hold office in dependenco upon "tho extremists" or "the lleds" or " revolutionary Labour.'' he either means that ho will not toko office if

dependent upon er#n one vote from the Ti.nljour Party, or else he mo.ms that he ""ill accept the support of any revolutionary Labour man with two or three except ions. Which of these two things does h« mean r If ho means tli.it ho will not nTopt any assistance from the extremists—and all of tho Labour I'rriv nro equally extreme in their views, since they have all signed the -nme platiorm—it would bo well for lisni to say so. He has not paid so. lie lias hitherto sought to ronvoy the im-pre.-.«ion that sr. as lie enn do v.iihout Mr Holland or Mr Semple, ho wj|! be keeping J)j< j-.lchlur- not to hold office with the support of the cx-iremi-tv, even ii ] jr- has to depend upon '■omr uf Mr fellow-lleds. lie has frequently derjared his affection ior '"moderate Labour." and since there is no ''moderate Labour 5 ' can•l fin.tr» -.vit], t ] lr sn , a |] CPt r J )anCf , 0 f C ] PC . Linn ('and. indeed, hnrdlv any offering themselves nr a!i), it is natural to conflud" that Joseph would have us belirve ;hnt many or most, of the official Liihoitr candidates, vvitli the exception of .\L -srs I folia nr]. Semple, MrCombs and Frasor, are "moderates.'" ITc appaiontlv trusts the public to ignore tlie fact that every one of the forty odd candidates of the Labour Party have tho same platform and given tlu- same party pledge as Mr Holland's and Mr Semple's. In the ".Maoriland Worker" there is printed week by woelc the list of forty odd official Labour candidates, and there is no distinction whatever made—why should there be? —between Mr Holland and Mr Semple and the rest. Sir Joseph, who is now in the North Island, has been invited bv the "Post" and the "Dominion" to make a clear statement of his position in the light of the facts wo have here set out concerning the Labour Party. It is a simple thing to do, as the Dominion" snys, and the requirements of candour, as the "Post" points out, places an obligation upon him to clear up the matter. If ho declines to do so, and persists in evasion and equivocation, tho whole countrv will know what to think. And it will thinkeven loss well of him than if he were to embrace tho oxtremists as frankly as lie did in 1914.