STORM IN HOUSE

Evening Star, Issue 26154, 16 July 1947, Page 6

STORM IN HOUSE

REFERENCE TO BOOK IMPORTS BY MR NASH RAISES IRE

• (Special.) WELLINGTON, July 16. The stormiest scene in the House of Representatives so far this session arose from references by Mr G. H. Mackley (Nat., Wairarapa), yesterday afternoon, to pamphlets imported 26 years ago by the Minister of Finance, Mr W. Nash. A vigorous reply was made by the Minister, who rose to a point of order. Interjections and replies were bandied across the House; both the Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, and the DeputyLeader of the Opposition, Mr K. J. Holyoake, were more than once on their feet in protest, and finally Mr Speaker rebuked members for disregard of the standing orders. ' After quoting from statements by the Prime Minister and Ministers, of the Crown, both before, and after, they had taken office. Mr Mackley. said that in 1921 the Minister of Finance liad brought to New Zealand, a document entitled : ‘ The Communist Programme

of World Revolution.’ which, according to? report, encouraged violence and lawlessness.. The Minister also brought with, him on that occasion a special message to the Industrial Workers of the World-, from the- Communist Internationale at Moscow. The message from Moscow was reported -to Have indicated, advised, or advocated violence, con- __ tinued Mr Mackley. A magistrate had said of the pamphlets: “ They are as; dangerous to the .body politic as typhoid germs deliberately placed in a; city re- ' servoir.” 8 . - ; ''Asked by Mr Speaker if he-was casting' a. reflection on the Minister, Mr Mackley said he was only repeating' history: as lie found it. MINISTER’S DENIAL;

“It’s a lie. 1 1 brought no special message about Communism, ’ declared the Minister, who immediately-' rose to a point of * order, on the ground that he had been very seriously misrepresented. The member for Wairarapa, he said, . had quoted from a pamphlet which had been distributed in the Hutt electorate for the last 10 years. After making arrangements’ with publishers overseas in 1921, he niet a man’in Melbourne, who asked if he could sell some of his pamphlets. Mr Nash said - he,'agreed, and the pamphlets were placed in a case with other books. “At the wharf,” continued Mr Nash, “ I was met by representatives of the .Government, and everything 1 had was examined.” : , \ Opposition members :■ By police ? . Mr Nash: Yes, by .the police under instructions of the Government. A parcel containing those; pamphlets was taken away. I had never seen them. A detective-said 1; would have to be charged with importing i those' pamphlets, and one was a Colimunist manifesto by Karl Marx. The Minister produced a book-, remarking: “Here it' is—from the General Assembly Library. It is in every decent library throughout the world.” , . Mr Holyoake: The Minister did not know what Was in the parcel ? “ That is* so,” replied .Mr Nash, who added thatanother charge was laid for introducing the Communist programme on world revolution. Mr R. M. Algie (Nat., (Remuera): This is another speech. Mr W.iJ. Brqadfoot (Nat., Wai:tomo) : He’s had'thousands of opportunities—— ' APPEAL FOR BREVITY. ■Mr Speaker intervened, declaring that there had been, enough, interruptions, but thp Minister should be brief. Mr Nash explained that he had neither seen nor read the pamphlets in the parcel's, but;-the insinuation was that he was poisoning the minds of the people of New Zealand by introducing this literature. . Mr W. A. Bodkin (Nat., Central Otago) : Did the Minister appeal to a higher court ?" ...“ I urged my lawyer to do so,” replied Mr Nash; “ but'lie said it was not worth while.” A Government Member: That was under a, Tory .Government. ATTACK ON COURT? Mr M. H. Oram :(Nat., Manawatu) asked if the Government interjection was in order in impugning the highest court in the land. Mr Speaker>did not make a ruling on this point, but repeated his suggestion that the Minister should make his explanation-as ' briefly as possible. Mr Nash, continuing, said the ; member for’Wairarapa had quoted from a pamphlet which had alleged that he had; been twice bankrupt. “ That isyanother lie,” declared the Minister, amid an uproar from the Opposition; Mr Mackley being heard to say he had a newspaper report, and-Mr Broadfoot to exclaim: "Take the whole afternoon." Mr Speaker ruled that the Minister had. introduced another subject, which was outside the remarks of.the member for Wairarapa. Opposition interjections continued.' “ I protest.” exclaimed the Prime Minister. “ And* so do we,” said Mr Bodkin. t The Prime Minister declared that .Mr Nash had not finished his statement. Mr: Speaker said that the Minister had! the right to make an explanation, but his statement was going outside the lines of the remarks to which he objected. ; TURNING THt ATTACK. ’ The Prime Minister'then took his opportunity of entering the debate, and pointed out that- under these condi-

tions lie was not limited in what he could say regarding literature which had been distributed among electorates stating that the Minister of Finance had been twice bankrupt.

“I say,”, he continued, “that this is a. deliberate lie, with not one iota of truth in it, distributed by. political opponents;” The document, he said, could be obtained from the party’s head office. He was not reflecting on the mental composition of the member for Wairarapa, he continued, but lie remembered bis enthusiasm when he was pleased to serve a Socialist Government as General Manager of (Railways. Mr Mackley: Entirely incorrect. “ Disgusting sychophancy,” was the description the Prime Minister applied to what he said was Mr Mackley’s attitude when a rail car was first taken around during the late Mr D. G. Sullivan’s tenure as Minister of Railways. POLICY ADMINISTERED. “ Right, 1 will withdraw the word ‘ syeopijiuit ’ and alter it to ‘ compliant,’remarked the Prime .Minister, in reply to an Opposition protest. Mr Mackley, ho added, bad been conrpliant in administering the Labour Government’s policy, even to the,extent of suggesting ways and means of implementing that policy, by taking over road transport services and the acquisition ot the ferry services between the North and South Islands. The latter, however, had been recommended in 1919 by' a Select Committee of the House,* on which Labour was not represented. Mr Mackley, on a point of order, said the statement that he was pliable or plastic in the hands of the Government he served in the capacity of General Manager was contrary to fact. The first thing lie did when the Labour Government came into power was to go to the then Minister of Railways and the then Prime Minister and offer his x-esignation in person. This was not the action of a man who intended to be pliable or plastic. He had served the Labour Government faithfully and weir as'he desired to serve his country. 0