THE PRIME MINISTER IN DEFENCE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 419, 30 January 1909, Page 4

THE PRIME MINISTER IN DEFENCE.

Three is. apparently- no end to tho Prime Minister's delightful; assurance. 1 Fearful of the effect of such criticism as the financial returns, for the December quarter might call forth, he arranged that his journalistic friends should print a long statement" intended to confuse the financial situation. ~Thel . figures' in this amusing document aro;. fairly accurate—oven Sir Joseph Ward cannot misrepresent cold statistics—but , the., arguments consist mainly of schoolboy abuso, simple mis-statements, hollow and uncaridid rhotoric, and plain misrepresentations of. the criticisms ; which He.'.' has learned to fear;; Xot m first Ytake him on a pointof, fact.',., It has. been' 'urged against him that at the end of each quarter he.makes haste to quote the revenue increases, and that, .ignoring all reference to expenditure, he goes into foolish' raptures over the proof which those increases affor,d of the;splendour'of his administration. "His, critics complain that he does notgive.the totals of expenditure , simultaneously with , .the totals of revenue. /He is pleased to distort this reasonable, request for. frank dealing into, ft demand, that the-expenditure should be stated with the revenue:immediately. af : ter-thequarter is '.ended.,'': Not con-tent-with, letting the; matter rest; with this- misrepresentation, he went on to tell-the, public that-his : ; practice-Mine practice ;of announcing -the revenue; promptly; and; keeping back the expenditure, fqr weeks—is "the practice,; and the only reliable practice,all over "the;-world." .'•What we have done," he said, "is exactly, the practice followed by. all the vari-' . ous States of the Oominonwealthi'v; and headded; that those who ask for' anythingelseare, "professedly wise ,, critics, who "dp. not;know what' they, are, : talking aboiit," and who "assume wisdom:with-' out possessing it.". We oughtjiwe,know, to feer-'quife.'-.'crußhed by this terribly clever.; sarcasm;'|)ut. we are. iiot. .. For, lookihg ,up the ' Sydney newspapers ;of •' January -1, .the; : day. after, the December quartor ended, wo find that the \ New 'South;. Wales. Premier/announced, V not only the.revenue, for the';half-year, 1 JulyDecember, but the expenditure also, and Ahe .balance to credit; ,;v : ■ ■■'.-'■.- ■■■■'■■ , ;;■•

;, no time .to .waste '.upon the Prime ' suggestion that ...his, critics aro only ■"the'professed.'.friends , , , .of,. the' country,. and that "disaster" was ."sedulously predicted. by jthoso 'who ' ap'-; peared to be; most anxious to bring it about." . We merely deplore his bad , manners, and the stupidity, which ■ still: 1 imagines that the public is so. vulgar as to, accept -. /Prime :•';■' Ministerial abuseK as criticism, or so ignorant as ■fnot; to tnow that the Government has; got the': coun--try's .finances into , an .unhealthy; state. Wβ. have already, admitted.: that! tho. j: increase', in the country's revenue .was> ■ a ■fairly,'good;one, but it' is''■ by ! no 'means so; large las we had. a right to expect in ,viow.;; of'. the wonderful'; natural advantages: of;, the Dominion, ■ ;.But. the,', ex■pendituie' is'growing , far ifastef than the revenue.; It was "owing to the enormous expansjon ; of the. revenue ,of;the pomin■ibn,:?.j'.the'. Prime Minister': says; J that; he' made the concessions.of which he talks so much, and he , regards it as "surprising , ! that, tho .revenue receipts;' "instead ■■'.. of showing a decrease, indicate a substantial increaso.'' ■'■' If Athis: mean's" anything,., it means-that he. expected,.tho 'revenue, ''to': depreasp. ; What-. Bedlam,- kind of : financo. is. this-;which contemplates, works for; and expects a' decrease in ;; revenue,: , , while -it exerts'itself to the utmost '.to iricre&s'e::the expenditure 1 '■} One. might'.properly, : ex-; :pect concessions in a state of:enormously.increasing;revenue; , '.but having':.made these concessions, would any, sonsiblo per? son hasten to stave off solvency by-cast-ing money away with;botli hands on thb expenditure side? 'The: revenue for r r the. nine months -oi: the year increased /by only £110,000; the expenditure increased .by'lover : £40d,000.:'; Fori'the. ninW month's the revenue actually .fell short/of .expenditure,by over £30,000, And.Sir:Joseph Ward rejoices ; over the ''rise in -the revenue;; r> , : •■'' "■■ ■■■■f--'--<-y:yy.= -: -..;v;.=> ■■. ■■;..■

When it suits. Mm, the Prime Minister is able to. insist that everything has two sides:;" We.must; take cognisance of; both sides 'of the ledger, for it would be : most invidious for anyone' to select the increase of : expenditure. for adverse criticism without also noting the .growth; of. :'th'e reVenu'eV- to 'earn ..which; : '-.bf !nece'ssity; an.increase of expenditure must to.some extent' be ' made." Nobody 'has., ever selected ■■ tho- expenditure ■ "without also noting the. growth of (the revenue," although -Sir Joseph himself, 1 who "so; 'insistß on .the virtue:, of. looking : at both sides of a,.question, habitually selects the increase )oi'. revenue for wild . rejoicings without 'referring to the growth 'of ; ex■penditure. '■ Probably a"n ..increase of.'' ex ; penditure'is necessary sometimes to bring in more revenue, but we put it to; our readers whether it is good business to increase, the expenditure by over £406,000 in orfer "to gain, only;.£110,000 moro in revenue. , '; That as what the Governmenthas done, and for a parallel to.this kind of finance vre have. to lookj to. the Irish--man.whci,'having'learned trjat by, using a gas-stove he'would save half his : fuel bill, resolved -to;, use two /stoves'-and^sayo.. ; it all:;' It;' is"'the same , '. species, of 'finance which added : £li296j4os to the capital expenditure 6n;.the built 17 more ■miles oi ;lin6j added''2Ss.B2o .miles to the train-mileage, and' appointed ■-. 1480; new men;to the;.working'etaffj;during the. year 1907-8, 'in Jor'der ■to increase'.tho net' profit on working by ;£61.-;'Those who have observed . the ■> stages: of the, Government's retreat from its old blustering defence the-railways under the fire-of criticism will not fail to. be .'struck by the 'fact that the Prime for' all his assurance, is : in: the "first, stages of a qimilar retreat in the matter, of, the .'gen-' era! finances of; the 'country.; His journalistic frionds are accompanying; their' absurd support: of-their chieftain"•••w.itti open- confessions that the wild .extravagance of .the Government, which they so furiously defended only yesterday, 1 must bo curtailed. The public may congratu-. lato itself on.the : fact, that'the- Government has become aware that the policy of false pretences will work no longer,-and we may safely leave time to convince-the public that a party-which has prayed upon the, country as. long, as r it could is. not.a party in whose hands tho policy of honesty and prudence can ever bo safe. ■