Loyalty and Politics.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17610, 13 November 1922, Page 6

Loyalty and Politics.

The warmth with which Mr Massey, in his Stratford speech, repudiated the charge that be has "prostituted tho "British flag to party purposes" may appear to somo Reformers to hare been unnecessary. They know; that the charge is absurd; they know, and they oan hardly believe that anyone does i not. know, Jhat the Prime Minister ♦Would hot dtfaam of imputing to the Liberals, either as individuals or a«' a'party, any backwardness, in devotion to the Grown; and to the Empire. Why tihen, they may ask, does 1 Mr , Massey trouble himself to deny, what is an ' utterly baseless charge P The answer is, and it ia surely a good enough reason for Mr Massey's indignation, that many Liberal candidates and some of the Liberal newspapers persist in saying that Mr Massey has called them disloyal. We ourselves, knowing tfce readiness of the Liberal politician to misrepresent those with whom he disagrees, have expressly said it would be ridiculous to y impute disloyalty to Liberals,- -who are ns loyal as any Reformer. What wo condemn in them is not a want of loyrJty but a very serious want of judgment in contemplating the pursuit of. office* in circumstances which would make them dependent upon a Party which is really | disloyal. What tho Liberals desire is that Mr Massey ghall give up reminding the public of the true character of the Labour Party. Ihis they deisire partly because, they do not like to be. reminded of tKa spirit of their prospective associates, partly because tbey know that a publio which wishes to register its hostility. to the disloyalist Labour eectiopwiUtum, not to the Ltb*rais,but the Reform Party, and ato In part because, haying no positive efcrima to advance for publio • support, < they think that something can be done by appearing in tba role'of the injured innocent. Mr Ma»ey used harsh tenrMi whe* 1m spoke of ' "the wretched tactio* of thaw

"people [the Liberals] who have not "the- brains to provide a policy for "themselves, nnd who are trying to " injure us by innuendos and trumped"up charges"; but who -will say that this language is too harsh? Far more to the point than groundless complaints against Mr Massey would bo some acceptable assurance by the Liberals that tbey will not associate themselves with the aims of the Labour Party. But this -.issurance they steadfastly rcfiain from giving.