THE GENERAL ELECTION BATTLE

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 70, 16 December 1919, Page 10

THE GENERAL ELECTION BATTLE

■PRIME MINISTER'S MESSAGE :.■:;■ ;■ TO THE COUNTRY : ".-'. SAFETY 'FIRST TIE MOTTO NEWS, NOTES, AND COMMENTS

•■"lna Pretty Rotten VVay." , "Tho Liberal Party is in a pretty rot- '■: ten .way," remarked Dr. A. it. Newman, .•when sneaking at Clyde Quay lust night. "Tho Liberal Party to-day. is made up ... ©E.'njen who are not great men at all, •'.'not bv a long way, and they are asking vou to vote oh the past, and not tho present. The best part of them are . 'underground— they aro gone. The Liberal Party is divided into two. It is : old . and et'ete. Liberals want you to -/' nut..their oldand elfeto party into power . ...That parry shows no signs of coining ..'.back into life again." ' Whv Liberalism Lost an Adherent, , . "How do you come to be on tho side : of .'the Reform Party now, when you •were once a Liberal and once an Inde- . pendent?" asked a member of the audi- . enco that Mr. J. P. Luke addressed last .-'.niuht.. :, ' '.■'. .'"lt.was during the 1013.strike," said '....MrVLuko. "that I came into close asso- ''. ciation with the Deform Party.. That • : .party gave me then tho fixed conviction that it was the one most capable of serving, the best interests of tho people." That conviction had not lessened .with tho passing of time,' added the candidate :"' aid he was to-day a Reformer of Reformers. The Wizard's Figures. "New--Zealand Heraid":— "A city • with 250 million inhabitants," said Sir Joseph Ward nt'tho Town Hall ''(Auckland), when speaking of one of tho -'centres in France that has been swept .' away- by the war. "Wasn't it thou- ,/ sands?" whispered' someone on the plat- ■ /fo'rm. "Well,"' rejoined Sir Joseph 'Wai'd.with a laugh, "wo have been deal''ineso'much in millions lately that the ••slitt "must be excused." - .',;; Arid the reoplo may be pardoned, per•:Vtaps.";'if' this little news-item calls to ■'V-mihd'.-'other instances of Sir Joseph's .; casual ajid breezy way with millions. •••The Menace.of "Go-Slow." \, yoiiy ladies and gentlemen," V-eaulvMr. Luke at his meeting last evening, "if you are prepared to vote to put ..into Parliament men who would asso...ciate" .themselves with or conform to tho :'. conditions of Government that operato ■; inl/Eussia to-day? . . . You have in . c .;Ne"w'. Zealand destructive elements si'mi-';/lar,'to'-;thoso in Eussia. . . . The man. /-—_,who'--'goes slow 1 is- not doing justice to ...his homo or to his country. The policy ?.. is ..a., murderous one, ami reacts., against '~. the themselves. If it is ,true '.that after tho Christmas holidnys.ithere ...is going to be serious trouble .in.jH'his "..''country, if it is true that there's,: a" "■organisation that will attempt ... .the, country, then thoso people wijcjdtavo .!, the ..interests of tho country ' a't'.jmarl .'.will, ."I*hope, do their part to sefi n that .l.the attempt is riot successful.;?,,: (Apv.plauie.) ' "',, ; -. ; Word. '*§$ ' v:'.f"i l&d hoped," said Jlr. Jl'asMy in •'•.Auckland, "that when we .camef't'd '. the •lend-of the war wo would leave] ''fcarty /politics on one side, and concentrate ■'.-'upon a policy of development, but it.was not to be, and hero wo are again,'lighting tho party game, much against .the inclinations of most of ns. The policy of one'of tho parties is nationalist on, ,;nd that of the other h socialisation. I am not exactly sure of what the difference ~.'...i5." he continued,'"but it seems to be something like that blessed' word Meso- .. , potamia, which seems to contain an im- ... ;„mcnse amount of satisfaction for come , ft / people."' . 'No Stranger to Hard Work. ... "I .am accused of being against the J ..workers," said Mr. M'Lecd at Carterton ;..;iast night. "That charge I deny. I am ...no stranger to hard work. Years ago, ,-, .when my father was battling on his farm l','. .against ra/bbits and scab and low prices,- . 'and' all the other trials of the back-blocks ■:■ .settler, in these days I, with my brothers, ,■; take my part in,all the work of ...,,'the farm. It was my lot to work with , ; scrub cutters and fencers and other men '/employed on the farm. I worked shnul- ". der to shoulder with them, lived with " ythem in their camps' ate with them and ' talked;with them. I made friendhsip'i . in those days-which have, stood to m» all •'/my life." (Applause.) i ; -'--;A Doubtful.Scheme. <. /'The scheme of Sir Joseph Ward to 6000 motor trucks and nut them -.''on.the roads to carry •our produce at ';>-:• about a penny a milo appeals to me," ■■''-.said-Mr. A.'D. M'Leod at Carterton last ■'■night; "It certainly 'iffers \\ glowing ■-..prospect, to iis who .live in remote eoun•i. (try .parts, but-I don't know how it is ■: ■ going .to, work out. I do know that rural •.' people can't get their mails delivered at ' a penny a mile. Sir Joseph Ward's . ; . scheme is a good idea, but I don't think . it,is over going to work out." -•Sir -Joseph Ward's Bin Schemes. 'i .'■. "If youread the Hansard reports ot /■'last session," said Air. A. D. M'Leod at .-Carterton last night, "you will find.that the-Leader of tiio Opposition said on ';'more-;than one occasion that the.Gov'''..prnment was rushing the country into a ;-riot of reckless expenditure. Now what :'l; .'about all these schemes of his that no has been putting before the people—these big schemes that are all to tio completed within three or four years? lie is proposing to build 6001) houses in four years -■ estimated to cost upwards of three mil--1 lions, '■ iill. tihe hydro-electric schemes, which will cost upwards of 15 millions, .....more.than 500.miles of railways, to cost over .20 millions, and all -this in tho ..'spaca of three or four years, with prac- :. tically.no labour in the' country to do it all. ' There Is not enough labour in tho country now even for our industries, -.., to Bay .nothing of public works." He '/pointed out that.the shortago of labour .... .could' bo accounted for by -the loss of ...17,000 of our best young men killod at ; Vtlie,-war. and the loss by wounds or iin...paired health of probably as many more. 'Weniust ihavo workers, and an immigration policy would have to be adopted, ,',.'|but ,it would not bo by any means a •quick and easy matter to get yood nr- '.. tisains from Britniu whore wages were already high. Faint Echo of Mr, Webb. This 'is what Mr. P. C. Webb, the pride of the Labour extremists, said , irom bis seat in Parliament: If every member in tho ijouso looked at this question from the point of ■ v-.vie.iy of the Labour members, the ■ -'soldiers would havo nothing to re- .■;, gret: Now is the time to show our •■• ■■ patriotism. Now is our opportunity • -to show how much we appreciate the ; work done by tho boys who havo -'gone away. -:-A ■ little later Mr. Webb was called . -Mipon. to show his patriotism by taking '',VM's::turh among tho boys at the front. •-He: preferred to go to- gaol. '■■ Mr. :Massey and Black Labour. ';>. When speaking of Samoa r.t Palmei'stou North yesterday an intcrjector interrupted Mr. Masscy with, tho question: - ..'.'.WJiat about, black lalwur?" .■.■' Mr.'' Masscy: My friend asks what :about'black labour? Well, wo don't Want black labour of any kind or those Hvho sympathise with it. Jseihhcr do we !want,aiiy disloyal people in (his country. '•'■' This country is going to be kept for white j»6ple ali'd'loya'lists? "'Th'o C! o v-l , „<srnment. in.|eud (s r tf,ler,,.tl|is to.miiko pro-j .to pr'6i-.cht' ; ';dftloyal ppbpje ,'eutc-r- ---., idc/'tlio couhfjy.' '~,'.'.['• [] ..'. ' ; '.'.■','..'..

His Ten-and-Sixpenny House, Sir Joseph Ward referred again to his 10s. Gd. house in the Town Hall last night. In fact he elaborated the proposal a little. He said he would provide a five-roomed house at 10s. Gd. a week and a six-roomed house at lis. Gd. a .week. But lie did not give any of the details that practical people would like to possess. Does he propose (1) to' pay part of the rent from Mio Government funds, oi (2) take the people's money from tho Savings Bank at less than current rates of interest? If there is some other way of providing these aheap houses, tho electors would like to hear about id—before the election. Two Ideals—Widely Dissimilar. "In the Labour world to-day," says Lord Weir, who was an engineer before ho became Director of Aircraft Production, "we find two distinctive movements —one seeking to improve existing l conditions, with legitimal>.>. aspiration and ideals; the other a definite movement for a something labelled Nationalisation and ultimately involving tlio abolition of the wage system. In face of this position it is clear that those whom wo elect to govern ns must decide either for a policy of improvement built on existing foundations or for one of demolition and experiment—either fflicy nvust plan for evo-' iution or revolution. On one hand they must visualise a plan for running the country without the' wage a.nd capital system clearly and definitely enough, to warrant them' in subordinating the happiness and contentment,of this and the next few generations to tho'achievement of something which to-day no one dare term other than fantastic, divorced from experience, and' Mio actualities of life. If,they do, then let them declare it so that all may know wliat to expect. On the other hand, if thev appreciate its fantastic impracticability, then let lihem equally clearly say so. and .'it the same time declino to allow that influence to affect them in their construclivo plans." . i

Disloyal Peters. A scathing denunciation of the disloyal Labour-Socialist extremists was delivered by Dr. A. K. Newman, Reform candidate for Wellington East, when speaking at Cly'do Quay last night. "Labour has no chance of having a majority in the next j Parliament," ho said. "It has a very good chance of being weaker than it is to-day. I think the people of this counI try are loyal, and are sick of the disloyalty of the people who don't seem to have any affection for New Zealand. Many of these people are foreign born. It will do yon good lo look up the lists | to see how they have come from other countries. They ate no good to New Zealand at all. Wo want New Zealand to be ruled by loyal New Zealnndors, who have an affection for New Zealand, whose interests are here, and who will only do good for it. Many of these people seem lo have no interest in New Zealand. They are ready to smash'up everything and everybody, and aro ready to play ducks and drakes witli everything. All they want is unrest. . They have no loy-' alty to King, country, or anyone else. That sort of tiling is unsatisfactory. But, this is what I object to: Nearly every ono of us has had a son or !• brother, or some near relative, killed at the war, wo havo .had our years of anxiety, and these people voted against conscription and against everything for winning the war. Now we have won the war, and New Zealand is a free country, they want to step in and govern it. I hope this election will give them their quietus. Quite a number of Labour candidates throughout New Zealand, when asked if they follow these disloyal men, say 'No,' but they have to sign tho Labour 'platform. They are very liko Peter, who denied his Master. They .are all willing to deny their master, lOf course, thero are sane anil sensible Labour men, but it is the disloyal men I want to see knocked cut at this election." (Applause.)

Bolshevism in a Nutshell. The salient features which constitute the programme of Bolshevism, as it exists to-day in Russia and is presented to tho rest of the world as a panacea for a)l ills, may be summarised: as follows:— The repudiation of democracy and tho establishment of a dictatorship. Tho confiscation of all land and the improvements thereon. The confiscation of all forests and natural resources. : The confiscation of all live stock and agricultural implements. The confiscation of all banks and banking institutions and the establishment of a State monopoly of the banking business. • The confiscation of' all factories, mills, mines, and industrial institutions and tho delivery of the control and operation thereof to the employees therein. Tho confiscation of all churches and, all church property, real and personal. Tho confiscation of all newspapers and periodicals and all mechanical facilities and machinery used in the publication thereof. The seizure and confiscation of all public meeting places and assembly halls. The confiscation of all transportation and communication systems. The confiscation of the entire estato of all decedent's. The repudiation of all debts against ' the Government and all obligations due the non-Bolshevik elements of the population'. Tho establishment of universnl" compulsory military service regardless of religious scruples and conscientious objections. The establishment of universal compulsory labour. The abolition of the Sunday school and all other rehools and institutions that teach religion, % • ■ Tho ■ absolute separation of churches and schools., The establishment, through marriage and divorce laws, of a method for tho legislation of prostitution, when the .mime is engaged in by consent of the parties. The refusal to recognise the existence of God in its r»overnuiental and judicial proceedings. The conferring of the rights of citizenship on aliens without regard to length of residence or intelligence. The arming of all so-called' "toilers." and tho disarming of all persons that had succeeded in acquiring property. The discrimination in favour of residents of cities and agninst residents of the rural districts through giving residents of cities five times as miich votinii power as is accorded to 'residents of rural d'-stricts in such elections as are permitted The disfranchisement of all persons employing any other person in connection with their, business. The disfranchisement nf all ner-ons receiving rent, interest, or dividends. ' The disfranchisement of all merchants, (r-'ders. a.nd commercial agents. The disfranchisement of all priests, elert'vmen. or employees of churches and religious bodies. The denial nf Ihe existence of any ina'ienable rights in the individual citizen, Tho establishment of a judicial «r<. tern exercising autocratic power, envtotintf persons and imi'"simr penalties in their absence, and without onnnrltinilv to ho heard, and even adopting th" 'dea'l'h,, ,jieiial.l,y.ifoi' numerous crimes atul mhloniennoi's.' The inaugural inn of a reign of fear. terrorism, and violence, '