TWO MR. M'NABS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 523, 2 June 1909, Page 4

TWO MR. M'NABS.

Sir,—When Mr. Seddon's proposal to send ft contingent to South Africa was beforo tho House Mr. M'Nab, roombor ■ for Mataura, , in opposing the motion, said: ?.'; "Then it is said wo should respond to tho callof the Empire when tho Empire is in trouble. Well, Ido not think for a moment we can say there is suoh a call now. At tho present time.thero is no danger. It is perfectly true that it will be a popular movo on the part of New. Zealand.. It would have been equally popular had Now, Zealand sent a contingent to tako part in the fighting in the' Soudan. Any .operations ,by which the ..New Zealanders can get an outlet for their energies, whether it is with the rifle or under tho old English methods wo hear of, is always, popular. Of course it would be popular. It is the smell of-Wood' to the Anglo-Saxon.that makes iihe campaign so interesting."-.' Then Mr. M'Nab went on: "There may bo an' ; argument that, as the Imperial authorities sent-soldiers to this country during a time of waT, we" should be prepared to take our part in sending men to meet an emergency in any'part-of tho world. I would say that would be defensible if, the Mother Country asked for any support. She has not asked." , . And so Mr. M'Nab voted against the proposal. May I ask Mr. M'Nab, Did the Mother Country ask for a Dreadnought? If not, why does he approve- this offer of the Government, made in a moment of hysteria—an offer of two millions' in cash, and yet he refused to. vote for a contingent for South Africa of 200 men (estimated co3t,to colony £20,000), at a time when a declaration of war had already been made? Mr. M'Nab may answer that this proposed Dreadnought is for the defenco of the Empire, and not for an enlargement of the Empire s boundaries.. That argument has. beon used before. As a matter of fact, Mr. M'Nab hit the nail on tho head when he asked, in 1899, whethor the Mother Country had requested assistance. Since then the exMrmster has changed his views. He 'doesn't want to know to-day-whether England asked for a Dreadnought or not. Sir Joseph Ward presented it. Therefore it was the proper .thing to do. Mr. M'Nab's loyalty to his chief forms an interesting' comparison with his "Transvaal" loyalty. And now ho is going:. to stump tho country on the ques-' tion of defence. No doubt he will say, "Oh the Dreadnought's all right. You won't have to pay. We are savingtho'monoy to pay for it by sacking Civil Servants .and getting rid of a vast aoum'Uation oi "rbttera" : to whom w© have had to give billets in return, for services rendered. Some day, no doubt, Sir- Robert M'Nab and the Earl of Awarua will chortlo largely over the-way they "fooled most of the', people some of tho time,'" and while they chortle we'll pay.—l am, etei, ■ ."DREAD-THE-WINTER." ' May 12. ; . .