THE REFORM PARTY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 771, 21 March 1910, Page 6

THE REFORM PARTY.

The work and tactics of the Reform party have been very freely discussed in our columns of late, and it cannot be said that those who •have contributed to the discussion have failed for want of : candour. The correspondent who joins in the fray this morning disagrees with both of the principal contributors as' to the tactics of the Reform party. All are in agreement as to the evils associated with the existing Administration, but while our first contributor on the subject argued that the Reform party badly needed a "detailed coherent platform," and the second proceeded to show that the party already has that platform, the correspondent whose letter we publish to-day takes up the stand that the. Reform party. kills its own chances all the time by providing suggestions for the Government and by forcing Ministers, to abandon or amend'the more harmful of their legislative proposals. .This last-men-tioned idea is not a new one. It hafe been contended in some quarters for a long time past that the easiest road to office for the Opposition would be for it to allow the Government to go blundering on with its ill-considered legislation and its grievous maladministration until a long-suffering public rose up and, as a matter of self-protection,; ended its career. But the Reform party has held that its duty to the public compels it to direct, attention . to such shortcomings as may appear to exist in. the measures brought before Parliament,' and in the Government's administration, and to. endeavour to remedy them. The contention that it is better that' the oountry, should suffer temporarily from the legislation of the Government than that the Government, with all its attendant evils, should- be given a, permanent tenure of office: by the Opposition keeping it "straight," is a plausible one, but it is not a course that a conscientious member or party can follow with unconcern. There can be no question that the Opposition has repeatedly saved the Government from serious blunders, and it has on occasions forced the Government to completely change its policy, but how would the Opposition have-stood with the country to-day had it not done these things 1 Opinions probably will differ as to the tactics of the Reform party in this respect, but. the party can at least claim that it has always placed _ the interests of the' country above its desire to score a party advantage.' : ,