"The Daily Telegrah. THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 1884."

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 4082, 21 August 1884, Page 2

"The Daily Telegrah. THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 1884."

The defeat of the Stout-Vogol Ministry will take no one by surprise. We had the assurance of Sir Julius Vogel that tho words put into tho Governor's mouth at the opening of Parliament so sufficiently comprehended the policy of the Ministry as to require no further explanation from the Government. Tho Ministerial statement, that is generally looked forward to as an enunciation of tho policy of a new Administration, was consequently robbed of its only interest. For the policy therefore Aye : must look to tho opening speech delivered ! by the Governor, and here we must be per- i nutted to say that on no former occasion do i we remember the Queen's representative i being, made to identify himself ivith the ] schemes and the fads of'his responsible i advisers. This, however, ivas exactly Avhat I 1

was done by tho Stout-Vogel Ministry. The speech read like a jumble of Gubernatorial and Ministerial sentiments ; sometimes it Avas the Governor and sometimes it Avas the Premier Avho spoke, and bctAveen the tAvo it was the very worst speech of its kind that we havo ever read. It opened by the assertion that "my advisers are of opinion that it is undesirable that questions of abstract policy should --t present be dealt ivith further than circumstances render imperatively necessary." Considering that the House is a iioav one, and that during the elections tho country never expressed any desire that Parliament should deal ivith questions of abstract policy, the opinion of Ministers on this point Avas uncalled for. It is a fact that, scarcely without an exception, the candidates at tho general election who relied on the sido they took on questions of abstract policy were rejected, and the practically minded men Avere placed at the head of tho poll. Why then tho Governor should have been made to refer in any ivay to abstract policy we aro at a loss to conceive, unless it was to disarm opposition to the presence of Messrs. Stout and Montgomery in the Cabinet. These two members of the Ministry hold some very strong vioAvs on questions outside the area of practical politics, and, as it might have been thought that they would give expression to them in some form or another, the reference to abstract policy was probably made. The Governor went on to say that "concentrated attention should," not if ill, "be given to many urgent matters relating to material economy and industrial interests of the Colony." Put in this shape, the expression of such a sentiment, though honorable to Ministers, no doubt, simply signified nothing. Then there Avas more unnecessary verbiage, such as " great importance is to be attached " to this ; " it is of the first consequence that the country should possess" the other; but there avus not one word to imply that Ministers would set to work to obtain cither for the Colony. These opinions Avere given vent to, apparently, for no other purpose than to catch tho support of men Avho care more for sentiment than for action. Ministers Avero A-ery careful nil through the speech that they should not be bound to any particular course. If they rushed into the Avildcst possible public works scheme they would have been able to have turned round and said that their intentions were indicated in the opening address. If they did nothing at all, they would have been equally in a position to have said that their policy, as indicated in the Governor's speech, never included anything more than ivliat their predecessors had been authorised to carry out. Thus avo had in the speech that " it cannot prove economical to construct Avorks in a manner so sloiv and fragmentary as to postpone indefinitely any return from the money expended," as indicating an intention to push vigorously on with ivorks now in progress ; and, on tho other hand, "my Ministers consider that great care should be exercised Avith regard to extending existing engagements,"" to show that Ministers do not intend to ask for further authorisations. Those inconsistent sentences were made no more explainable by the succeeding statement that sundry lines in all parts of tho colony must bo at once proceeded with, the mere mention of which implied another loan of several millions, but not a Avord about borrOAving occurred in the speech from beginning to end. Indeed, throughout there Avas a marked reticence concerning ways and means. The speech proposed to do away with the property tax, aud to impose a "moderate land tax," but Aye Avero not told hoiv the deficiency was to bo mado up, although it Avas considered necessary " to establish an equilibrium between expenditure and receipts." A hint Avas thrown out that local government Avas to be strengthened .by the localisation of the land tax, Avhich was to give an assured income to local bodies, but Aye Avere left to imagine in Avhat ivay tho General Government was to recoup itself for the loss of so much roA-Uuo. The same shilly-shallying verbiage ivas noticeable with regard to native lands, though it ivas easy to believe that, Avith Mr Balance's uncompromising hostility to Mr Bryce's firm policy, and his proposed reform of the existing system of dealing Avith native lands, it was intended to drift back to a sugar and blanket course of procedure. Tho railway proposals ivcro no more satisfactory than other parts of tho speech. It ivas proposed to establish a board of management for tho Middle Island, and another ono in Auckland for, avc presume, Auckland railways only, while Wellington was to retain its department for the control ofIT;iAA-ko'.s Bay, West Coast, and Wairarapa lines. 'Thus we might have had three different systems of management for the mere sake of pleasing three centres of population. Mr Thomson was loudly applauded by the House when he roso to give notico that he intended to move an amendment to the Adress in Reply, and the country Avill still more loudly cheer tho result of the division that avus taken on his motion.