The Ellesmere Guardian. SATURDAY, OCT. 31, 1896. The Political Situation.

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume XVII, Issue 1789, 31 October 1896, Page 2

The Ellesmere Guardian. SATURDAY, OCT. 31, 1896. The Political Situation.

definite policy. _STot a Candidate of them but will talk glibly enough about reforms |of an abstract character. Who is there [m these days that will not say he is a reformer. If there be such a one he mußt be companion to the Wellington hermit^or some Troglodyte dwelling m a cave away from the haunts of men. But the Opposition talk m this vein means nothing. It is rest they, want— political ' quiet as opposed to drastic action by Parliament— -*nd to comfortable people nothing can be more pleasant than to be let alone, with their business as the " oversoul " of the community. Occasionally we have notices that some foolhardy Oppositionist has tried . his hand at a programme. He had bettor have let it alone. He only made a mess of it, or of himself. He would remove the control of the railways from the Parliament and the people ; he would not reduce the railway rates ; m fact he would make the management as unpopular as possible. Is not such a proposal simply idiotic P He would , return to the Property tax, and get rid of the Land and Income Tax. He would repeal the Land for Settlements Act, and deal only with Crown Lands, which are for the most part covered with bush and unfitted for the town artisan. He would go m for a lavish expenditure upon what he calls defence purposes — on which the country has ' abfeady spent tens of thousands of pounds, which for any practical use might as well have been thrown intothe sea. So much then for the Opposition and for our forecast of the more immediate future.

♦«- - " Time and the hour runs through the roughest day," and time and the procession of months and years have brought the Twelfth Parliament of New Zealand to an end. Its history latterly became rather disappointing. It began with a laTishness of promise, but finished off with a paucity of performance. Like other human institutions it may not unfairly be spoken of as Too bad for a blessing, too good for a curse, We wish it were either better or worse. The good it did, however, despite the Shakespearean maxim to the contrary, will live on and fructify, while the bad can be amended m tha future. No more at all ereuts, can be made of it, save m the way of pointing a moral, inasmuch as it has hirdly material of the stuff required for adorning * tale. In these circumstances the public are naturally inclined to turn their attention to the future rather than trouble very muoh I over the past. Can the next House of j Representatives be an improvf ment on its Sredecessor, and how will the electors be isposed to treat the present Government? Take these questions m their order. Nothing seems easier than to get an improved House of Representatives, but we do not see much likelihood of such consummation being attained. It is perhaps too early to speak decidedly en the subject, but so far there appears little difference ia the class of men who are offering themselves as candidates, and no difference whatever m the modes of speech that are suggested. There are new men, but they are neither better nor worse than the old men with wham we have already made acquaintance. It is pleasant to notice that a largo portion of the electors are at least shaking off their listlei sness as to politics proper, and it becomes them now to remember what wo have often stated m these columns, that they are as well represented as they care to be. Now is the day and now is the hour, if the electors please to take advantage of it. Nevertheless, as we have already said, it looks very like as if the next parliament will be very similar to previous parliaments, or that even if it should bs somewhat different, the position of the country will remain ia all essential respects unchanged. And what of the Government ? Is its reign to end after the election, as Captain Rossell says it wil I ? It strikes us that the wish is father to the thought with tha Isader of the Opposition. True enough, the Government is not so strong as it was, Tho latest additions to it are prodigious failures. They are nowhere m debate. And Mr Seddon himself is not the popular man he was • his undisputed power has rendered him arrogant to thosa who differ from him ; but ho is still njore oj* less popular, especially m the large towns, 4f fc er a reign of six years, and after the inevitable , mistakes of a period so protracted, it is ( ] wonderful how popular lie continues to , , be. It is therefore our impression that , after the " leap m tho dark " of the \ elections, he will once m-^re meet ParHa- | ment with a majority to back him vp — a if majority doubtless shorn of some of its j i fair proportions, one not so numerically l strong or so ready to answer to his bidd- ; , ing as the dinjwta membra oi the past, now scattered up and down the country seeking rest and finding very little. The chief reason which leads us to predicate m this ] direction without knowing is to be found m the fact that the Opposition appear to i be entirely destitute of plan or programme. Its members find fault with •■' _ enthusiasm worthy of all praise, but r is so easy to find fault. A party cannot live by criticism alone. There is harder work to be done than noting with a i ' smile or a sneer tho blunders of which j Soijr advernarip* can ba guilty, and thus I f w Q^pwiUoa km w nUjiag tty~*no f