WELL DONE, "DOMINION."

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1322, 28 December 1911, Page 2

WELL DONE, "DOMINION."

pas ailtl, ,0 '"i at ol t!ln MnlMt is • w 1 ! ' ■ H sm f ko ° f tattle • cleared v si/lc to HI. onl V<l«»s«lilo bill adtisawe to lako u retrospective view ,>f theC UO tfi aUd c l o ° « certain tho (lelPtttcd 'candidates nn °* men Vlheuit come S to be a quesCi""r serial thousands so deciding, it may |, u airly assumed H.at amount that iWc numliei- (here arc many quite as capable i>l orimiiß an independent opinion mi political matters as ihe newspaper men on ho Ministerial.side, it must bc-ad-iniUi'd fnal.sucb writers do. not po&so'ss •a riiptiqpoly of- natural intelliapuec, oiu■cution, ,ov political niodoin. That bciii" 60, it follows that those on the other sido may be moro correct in their judgment, lnat they have been more successful in disclosing acts of wrong-doing, and in condemning those, at tho same tiuio appcanug to a. discerning public to provide a constitutional remedy, limn those on the other side- have been cither to coiidoiio or hide glaring; wrongs or inconsistencies, cannot Ix;- questioned; - Tho results aro so convincing and so plain that all who run may read. To have brought about so great a change ill public opinion, even to reducing such an overwhelming majority as the .(.iovcrnment once possessed, is a wonderful achievement; but to take away that majority is even better still. Judged by tho numbers who voted, it appears that « majority of over 1 18,000 voted against the Government, and. if such numbers have not secured an absolute • majority they ought ty have done. It is a pity sonic of the whining followers of the once allpowcvful Government cannot accept the constitutional decision of the people in a more manly fashion. To assert, as it has been done, "that it is no credit to tho I electors of Par hell or of Grey Lynn thiit they should refuse men of such patriotism and culture as the two late Jliuisters." I am of opinion that the crux of the question at issue was neither, "patriotism nor culture," it v,\is distinctly one of principles, a matter of greater importance thnu either patriotism or culture, or even both put together. Allow inc. sir, to give one instance of real patriotism which cannot be questioned. The ' late Sir Harry Atkinson, durin; the early stages of the Jlaori War, '-ot together a baud of patriotic men, drilled them, and took the field, and endured thij privations, ran all the- risks of a soldier's calling; at the end of the war lie Ikul attained Hie position of major, id <=uch he w.as entitled lo a land grunt as compensation for his' services. Did ho hike his due recompense? ISo, ho. proudly scorned to take an inch of laud, as others did decliu'in" "that h man who would not risk his life to defend his country was no patriot." Again, when times of trouble arose, and tho country was on the verge, of repudiation brai-'ht about by his predecessors in otiice hi! reduced all the salaries of tho Civil Servants to endeavour lo meet the pre--inu' obligations of tho country. Jt is wcU'lcnown ho started first on his own salarv" ami reduced it to an extent Unit i'uvo'cimvineiiii,' pruof of his sacrifice and his patriotism and devotiun to his countrv. Contrast this with the late l'ri'inii-r Swl'lon's action, the latter iiicrensi.'d his own salary up to .CUiOH; only .CIO less Hun ~ the" Kilavy uf lUp I'vemicv of Caiiadi!, v.hich country is X> times larger I hail ours, and its present population at least seven limes larger. During our late period of depression, when retrenchment, was found to Iw necessary, did Premier Waril ixduue his own salary" lo niakn up tho 10.-s? Oh dear, no! His principles are like: ihose of his predticessui - —they aa> Lib--:ralisiu—which in New Zealand means no sacrifice. If sacriliCL , bo necessary, then let others maVe it. "It's nut for .loiepli. oh dear, liu!" Jiut, say some of his admirers, he

Kavu a "Dreadnought." Would it not be nioro in accordance with Ihe truth to

say that; he conmiitU'd tlio country to that expenditure, without direct authority of Parliament ?. In that he made no pcrsonnl saerilicc wliiiiover, thu benefit (if any) wliicli accrued to bimfclt was a Biirouftcv: and tlio people, by their aelion at tbe" elections, havo plainly deckncd that coiuUict does not mccl willi lluir nppridjiificn. As (<> the roiidjiilor Knipb!, who went Jloino (u fix up the Ion;; impeiHliils WebVicr claim-, are llicy linally drilled: j Has any report been 'made to Parliament .-how-in;; the work sii|i-]Ki-.:'il t') liiwu Ixt'ii pevl'nvmtil, and I'ltr which the ex|i:'iifcs lo the country nnd the disuily of Knighthood were c-.mi|ien>>-tir-n': , .IndgiiiK their netions. when coinpaml with (he -ictious of at least one of Uleir predecibsor.s, they iib-.ulutciv fail to cmno up lo I ho required standard. All 111;' weak, but reiterated pivlciisions of J.iberiiliiin, humanism, p;i ( riotj.-iu arc simply a fraud, and m> the people, bv .a majority of over 18,000, -hiive y.i decl.iV"d tli'Mii. " ■ : In brinj,'in,u' nbaiil. I his yreisl and neeossiirv i-liiinsa in our politie-il life none has rend, red r-o K i-iml a >n'vic;e a> .'l'm.; |.1,,-' MlNinN—nuiri' (iuwit Iμ il! (llhcr papers, I freely admit, have rendered veoman MM-vie.-. which if -ivoulil be .uut>.'nimii\ir.il lo ai-kni>wled K i- and express K iaielul iip|in«-iaiion lo|-...1'ul in-no iu>liinci' has iillj pi\VV Il< oil |K'l>a!iy,| l<., (1,,.. ~N ( ,.,,|. 11l it. Tin: Di.MIIMON h,[.,. iviiili- il. reii. dered to the public uniluitoui tcrvka:

>l«inliiiK Hie illorl. l» p.inlih it, Iμ i|j>,. iri'lil. in mikm- .1; il :,iml 11,i.i.. „!'. il,(,f l» lii.v rcl-liiin I'.M'iulwli"' hlii In,-,-«• ii'il !" !,i .»- '"'■ "".vlliiiil! iVn.-r il.i |~.|.r il, head prainlly nl'ill, IVklliik II.:,I il. |~I H ''<">,- j;ii,i>| tvnrli, which l|:, iiiiiiii.riiii n-adi-r,. linn lU Nnrlti Cii|,,. 1,, 11,,, Willi', lllll|llll|(l|lv !l|l|ilil'illll'. I hi.iirlil" '"iifrniiiililp Tin-: Dominion mi 11,/, l,i,;i, l»i-iliiiii il lia, |;:,i,,,-,l » )( ,,\u-t li-,n-v ii'M--I Minilrly nil, il ; wi11,,,., : ,,,,| ' ,|,,|| '. I" liil'l. I'M ill 1.1 i.V wn.v ~,,|1,H|,,| t, ill, 11. '■'■ MITCV <:llli,llllM. ;ill ,| ;, ||~| l|pv S< K ) ■. iHMI I-M1M'1.1.1.! ILt I IH'ICII ,V HIV nik: "Well il<m,, |),,.,,inh,n/ | ,„,, *",{, A(iill(,'Ol,,\.