Evening Post. FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 1912. THE PREMIER AND HIS PARTY

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 70, 22 March 1912, Page 6

Evening Post. FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 1912. THE PREMIER AND HIS PARTY

Sir Joseph Ward is to be congratulated upon the many flattering testimonies of the popular sympathy and admiration that have crowded in upon him during the last few weeks. The enthusiastic vote of confidence which he received from. the membors of his party in the House of ' Representatives has been repeated at meetings of various kinds in all parts of the country. These demonstrations of sympathy have been especially frequent during the last lew days. We- are naturally not prepared to endorse every epithet in this remarkable chorus of eulogy. Impartial history 1b not to be written by the friends and followers of a political leader who at a time of crisis has announced his intention to resign and whom they are endeavouring to induce to alter his decision. Under the stimulus of gratitude and sympathy, of hope and fear, partisanship is naturally moved under such conditions ■to an eloquence- of p*rsuasion that is eveh further removed than usual from the critical detachment of the historian. But 6o striking a display of party and personal loyalty is in itself v fact that the historian will be unable to ignore. It is beyond question that -the regret at Sir Joseph Ward's contemplated resignation i« widespread, intense and sincere. He has over a, long period of yea is rendered valuable service to his country and hie

of causes ha-s arrived at the conclusion that ( tho time has com© for a change, it is perfectly clear that, whether it is to be in office or in opposition, the party would prefer to retain the present leader. Being human, Sir Joseph Ward ha 3, of course, made mistakes, but now that on hi 6 own initiative a change is imminent, even those of his own party who have been freest in their criticism are doubtless painfully alive to the fact that it is always easier to criticise a good man than to find a better one. The extraordinary difficulty of finding a successor may well make these critics just as sincere in their ' presant regrets as they were in their fault-finding a few months ago. The feeling throughout the Liberal Party being as we stated, its members have done the right thing in expressing it. but they have not alt been wise in the manner of their expression. It was right to assure Sir Joseph Ward of their sympathy, their goodwill, and their confidence, but it was wrong to attempt to persuade him to alter his decision. .If their persuasions had succeeded, they would have struck a deadly blow at the honour of the Premier and of the public life of New Zealand. They would have put him on tho samo moral level as the plodgo-breakers who saved tho Government from defeat on the no-con-fidence motion. The motion was rejected after and in consequence of Sir Joseph WaTd's promise that if it waß rejected lie would resign. To go back on that promise watt plainly impossible without dishonour, yet this is what resolutions passed at Liberal meetings in all parts of the country have been asking him to do. The fact that the deputation of Wellington Liberals that waited on the Premier yesterday, large and cordial though it was, was not more representative may surely be attributed to the reluctance of many of his loyal followers to urge a request which they felt that he could not honourably grant. As was to be expected, Sir Joseph Ward apput ciated the obligation of his promise, though bo many of his supporters did not. He told the deputation that his mind was made up and that he stood by the announcement that he had made to the House before the division. We wish we could add that the reet of his spoech was equally to his credit, but that is impossible. Ho indulged in a furious philippic againßt "the hirelings ol the land-owning press" and so forth, which was entirely out of keeping with the occasion, and was calculated to do nobody any harm but tjhe man who uttered it. We say this without modifying the opinion that we have previously expressed — viz., that Sir Joseph Ward has had to face a great deal of bitter and unjust personal criticism and. innuendo. A large proportion of the sympathy which he has so freely received during the last few months is in our opinion the outcome of these savage attacks, but the best way to check that sympathy is- to retort in the unbalanced and undignified fashion that he adopted yesterday.