Evening Post. FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1931. "THE MAN ON THE SPOT"

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 9, 10 July 1931, Page 6

Evening Post. FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1931. "THE MAN ON THE SPOT"

"We have too many blatherskites putting things over the people," said Mr. J. 'T. Lang at the Australian Premiers' Conference about a month ago. To many the remark may have seemed to be the wisest thing he ever said, and yet to look at the remedy that he proposes is to realise that there' is safety in numbers and that 100 few may be as bad as too many. For the remedy which Mr. Lang proposes, not merely for this deplorable superfluity of blatherskites, but for all the other ills that the flesh of the body politic is heir to is to remove all die checks and balances of a democratic constitution in order to concentrate every power of the State in the hands of one of the most voluble, reckless, and despotic blatherskites that Australia or any other country has ever seen. Who but must laugli, if such a man there be? Who Would not weep, if Mr. "Lang. ■ were he" Mr. Lang has attacked, browbeaten^ and insulted the Governor of New South Wales, denied his right to ex--ercise the discretion vested -in him as the. King's representative, and instituted an appeal to what, if anybody else had done it, Mr. Lang himself would certainly have denounced as the,autocracy of Downing Street. Mr. Lang has attacked the independence of the Bench, and when its honour was impeached by a' colleague, who, referring to some imaginary mistake of the Chief Jus-, tice, said : in the Assembly, 'They ought to sack Street," neither sacked this colleague nor made any other amends'for the outrage. -By virtue of what he calls a mandate from the electors Mr. Lang rules the Legislative Assembly with absolute power, and a servile majority supports him in interpreting this mandate exactly as he pleases, even to the point of violating his own definite pledges on which the mandate was won. To his complete domination of the popular Chamber and his successful defiance of the democracy, Mr. Lang has only to add the capture or the removal of the Legislative Council in order to establish a virtual monopoly of political power. Six years ago, when he was first in office, he foresaw the danger, but both his frontal and his flank attacks upon the Council failed, thanks largely to the then Governor's having just "as clear an idea of i constitutional propriety and just as stiff a back as his successor has. To-day, when the Legislative Council has just saved the State from the ruin threatened by Mr. Lang's latest taxation proposals, and has become the last ditch in the resistance to the consummation of his autocracy,' the issue Has become' of infinitely greater importance than it had, or appeared to have, in 1925. The despotism which was then seen "as through a glass darkly" is now seen face to face. There must be few countries in the world in which' a Second Chamber has usually excited enthusiasm except on the part *of its opponents, and New South Wales does previously appear to have been one of them. But an institution which many of its friends must have regarded as an antiquated, wormeaten, and rickety structure better qualified to serve as a cock-shy for Mr. Lang than as a serious defence hi'time of trouble has most agieeab'ly disappointed expectations. There is an unmistakable enthusiasm in the gratitude and relief inspired by the bold front' that the Legislative Council presents to its would-be destroyer, and as it is a national service that it has rendered the feeling is spread all over the Commonwealth. All eyes are now turned, or were turned till yesterday, on Downing Street, to, which Mr. Lang had made what, was in effect a double appeal. The..appeal .against the Governor's refusal, to swamp the Legislative with Mr. Lang's nominees involved His Excellency's s.latus as well as that of. the Council. But Sir Philip Game's anxiety'must have been greatly relieved ivhen he learnt that the 'Dominions Office was not being asked to treat his offence as a capital matter. This was put beyond a doubt by the statement of Mr. Willis, the New South Wales Agent-Gen-eral, which was cabled from London on Tuesday: , Neither Sir Philip Game nor the Dominions Offico seems, he said, to realise the strength of the democratic feeling in Australia. and the people's determination to govern themselves. The Governor personally is a splendid fellow, ■whose return would bo a real loss to New South Wales. Tarn not in-structed-to ask for his recall* Inm certain that--ho acted in all sincerity, but- misinterpreted' the. feeling of tlie people. ■■■•-...-■• So far Iron) asking for the head of Sir Philip on a charger, it was rather

"butter in a lordly dish" that Mr. Willis was offering him, and those who are as well versed in the psychology of the English gentleman as Mr. Willis himself will see in his tribute just that happy blend of familiarity, patronage, and flattery which should have appealed to Sir Philip. But His Excellency's heart is. evidently as hard as his back is stiff, and. he refused the chance of an honourable settlement out of court which.would have left no vestige of a stain upon his character.. Mr. Willis was perfectly, certain that "an acceptable compromise" Was ; possible, but the sweet reasonableness which'he Tiad probably caught from Mr. Lang was not reciprocated, and the case had to proceed/ ■■".', . Continuing his statement,, Mr. Willis said: ■ I hope it will not be, necessary to raise the constitutional issue. I expect I the whole position, will be cleared Up !by a friendly, informal discussion. i ! What issue except the constitutional i issue it was possible for him to raise we are unable to understand, but it is much to be feared that he has been | spared the necessity for raising the constitutional issue or any other issue. At the foot of Mr. Willis's statement as cabled the note was added that 1 the Dominions Office is at present silent regarding the New South Wales difficulty. ;' But two days later, and while the negotiations with Mr. Willis were still proceeding, the views of .the Dominions Office found utterance in what may be called "a friendly, informal discussion," though not of the kind contemplated by Mr. Willis. Speaking at a luncheon given to Sir William Campion, the ex-Governor lof Western Australia, Mr. J. H. Thomas, Secretary for the Dominions, discoursed at large on the relative responsibilities of his office and | the King's representatives in the i Dominions. I doubt, he said, whether sufficient ' appreciation is given to those who ac--1 cept Governorships and often make sacrifices to maintain the dignity of the position. I have always realised that no. Secretary of State should sit in Downing Street and assume' that he is a better judged of the situation than ..the man on the spot. It is the duty of the Secretary of State to trust him in every way and see that even in difficult times no selfish section of the community or misguided criticism prevents the Secretary of State from realising his responsibility to the mail he appoints to a difficult position. Common-sense, ""fair play, democracy,- constitutional government, and sound Imperialism are all happily combined in this valuable statement. Too often has "the man on the spot" who knows all the circumstances been "put-on the spot," in the Chicago sense, by men who do not know them, but find it less : trouble to sacrifice him than to' back him' up or to leave him a free hand. As a general statement Mr. Thomas's is quite unimpeachable, and its special application is as plain as daylight. There is a man in Australia whom Mr. Lang is endeavouring to "put on the spot," and 'the Dominions Office has been asked to help. Mr.; Thomas replies that the matter must be settled by the people on the spot. Mr. Lang must look nearer home than Downing Street for an-escape from his dilemma.