MINISTER'S REBUKE

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 125, 29 May 1928, Page 14

MINISTER'S REBUKE

'RECKLESS CONTROVERSIALIST' "Mr. Poison is tho most irresponsible and reckless controversialist in the Dominion," said tho Minister of Finance (the Hon. W. D. Stewart) in a reply, to the president of tho Farmers' Union .handed out for publication befolio his departure for tho South last night. • "It is clear," said tho Minister, "that he is still smarting from tho fact that last year his erroneous interpretation of the trade figures in their bearing on the public finances was exposed and refuted. His recent speeches are an attempt to rehabilitate himself. But in each successive, speech he not only continually changes his own figures, but, what is more serious, ho distorts, mangles, and misquotes the statements of those who differ from him. "It is.interesting to uoto that even when he quotes the borrowing for the last seven years he fails to point out that £15,700,000 of the loans were for State Advances, which cost the taxpayers nothing. Considering the many millions raised to help the farmers in their difficulties, Mr. Poison might have stated whether he disapproved of that aspect of our borrowing." ' Mr, Stewart said that at a later date ho might deal more fully,with the innumerable fallacies that Mr. Poison kept reiterating. He added, "But_ it would save time if he would pin himself down to something definite that ho is prepared to stand or fall by if tho argument is to be of any value to tho public."