NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2114, 3 April 1914, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The Metnbfir for Avon, who is regarded by spins as better equipped than Sib Joseph Waki) for the posjtio.n of Leader of the Opposition, is plainly on his niettlc just now. '.While his Leader is bombarding the i Government. ia the northern part of the South Island, Mr. EussEtL_ is firing away at the centre, and fiurly uat-Heroding Herod in recklessness. The extravagance of s.omcs > of his assertions would seefn to indicate that the Canterbury member finds it difficult to make an impression unless he can discover something more than ordinarily startling or outrageous to talk about. At Ashburton he dragged out the hoary old charge that the fate of interest had goiitt up since the M.isssy Government camp. into office. This decrepit old friend should have been pensioned off long ago as unfit for further exploitation, but Mr, Russeia is slow to learn. Finding apparently that on this occasion his audien.ee knew that the rate of interest had goi» up all the -world c\er, and that the Massky Government had no more to do with it than they had to do with the ebb and flow of tiro tides, he made a further bid to arouse their amnwsity against the Government; Not only bad the, rate of interest gone tip, he said, lmt—and -we can imagine the garrulous gentleman leaning forward to properly empha* sise his dreadful accusation—''the policy of the present Government was to raise that rate," Mr. Bussku. may of course believe thai assertion. Some people can believe anything it suits the 111 to believe. But if Ma. IlussFXii really does believe that the Massbv Government's policy is to raise the rate of interest, thou lje must be singularly ignorant of current affairs, and more especially of what the Government has been doing to provide cheap money for farmers, workers, and local bodies throughout the Dominion. It would be foolish, no doubt, to take the member for Avon seriously as ail 1 authority o:n finance— tig one does that—and the charge which he made against the Government respecting tpe rates interest is only one more absurdity to be added to his account. The fact that he, has been driven to resort to such a line of attack is tho very best e>vidcnce possible of the unhappy position of the Opposition and of the weakness of their ease against the Government. Possibly Mn. R"SsF.rx knows this, but what CM the poi>r man dot Ilia Leader will not •®Wn give Wm a' policy; to talk about,

A foist which lias been rather overlooked by s-upporters of the Reform Government was made by M.it. G. T. Peakce, member for Patea, in the eo'.irsa of a vigorously outspoken speech at Hawcra. on Tuesday evening last. One of the stock arguments used lVr years past by AntiKofm:nwcs against Mn. Massev and his friends ivas that if the Reformers ever got into office wage's would be reduced; that uneniTrloved would stalk in their thousands through the land, and thai, soup-kitchens would spying into existence to relieve ths distress of tire unfortunates unable to find « living wider the dreadful conditions which would swely spring irifa' r.Milcnce should \\ ardi.sm ever be relegated iti the cold shades of Opssosition. Those circ.uktiug these fictions of coursc knew thaf. t'hcjr- weiie untrue, but a good many simple people pro!al}ly believed them. Th:sc Must be filled with astonishment, to fiii-d wWthas.iii'tMally hanpmcd with the axlvent of a Jlcform Go\crnmci-ri As Mb. I'eaikf. pointed out, all th/J jtlocnajy predictions .have boon falsi,fie.il. Th? Government instead of reducing wages lias bettered the lot 01 State employees. Railway servants, sehafrl teachers, I'rintintr Office employee?, tile Foliec Force.,, and others have had . their _ positions improved, and more is to lie done. Not only have wanes been bettered where circumstances _ warranted it and imnyoved conditions been established, hut. the countrv crnerallv is more prosperous than This may be Very disofniyatrin.T for out Anti-Reform friends, but it- is lii'rl'.lv satisfftctor-y tr, the ■fiwsti bnlk of the n-r-nle. and'Ain Pemice r».itij'r,iflv omri* ft liifc with his em* s-Mta'ente vVn he dwelt on this phase of the politicnl situation.