Greymouth Evening Star AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6th, 1911 THE GENERAL ELECTION.

Greymouth Evening Star, 6 December 1911, Page 4

Greymouth Evening Star AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6th, 1911 THE GENERAL ELECTION.

On the eve of a general election, one is apt to sum up the political questions which confivnt the country and upon which the electors w'-c 'expected to pronounce their decisions. Both Sir Joseph Ward and Mr. W. S. Massey, tiie Leader of the Reform Party, have issued manifestos setting forth reasons why the people of New Zealand should repose confidence in them. The contrast between the two is most marked. On the one hand, we have in the Premier's appeal for a renewal of confidence in the Liberal Party, a masterly exposition of what twenty years Liberalism has accomplished for the country and an outline of what it is intended to endeavour to carry out in the future. A justifiable air of cheerfulness and optimism pervades rite address which Sir Joseph Ward has made to the people of Mew Zealand per medium of the press. The record of Liberalism, shorn of its embellishments is a magnificent one. As the Prime Minister, who is leading his party on to a victory at to-morrow’s polls, points out, the Government is helping the settler with cheap money and cheap railway carriage; helping* the small farmers by providing a complete system of co-operative banks; helping the workers with cheap money to obtain good homes; helping the future sons and 'daughters of our workers and farmers, to obain further land for settlement; helping the Public Service by giving them increased pay and providing the members with retiring allowances for their old age; helping widows with children by giv ing them a- pension ; helping the oldage pensioners with children by reducing the age for pensions; helping the mothers by giving them a maternity fee of £6 for medical aeistance; help-

ing the general public by providing a national annuity fund to keep them in their old age; helping the inlant life by giving assistance to enable good women to preserve such life at its most tender age; helping local public bodies so that they can carry out local works for the comfort and benefit of their people; helping the citizens and settlers to have cheap telephones; Helping the back-blocks settlers by providing the essentials to their existence — namely, good roads and bridges; helping the development of -the country by pushing on a. vigorous but prudent railway policy; helping iso-' iated people in our country uy giving them increased postal facilities; helping to hand down our country to posterity as a British possession by providing an efficient and economical system of internal defence; helping to keep ocean tracks free for the transport ot our produce by standing uy tne old British JNavy; nelping to promote the well-being ol our future manliood and womanliood by spreading tne blessings of a good education ; helping our people by giving a cheap and pienutui suppiy or water-power; lielprng our industries by giving practical assistance, helping our financial institutions, timber industries, traders, and all classes by carrying on a practical development and policy of public works; helping by providing a sinking fund lor tne repayment ol the whole of our existing and future loans; helping to maintain a strong financial position lor the Dominion; and, helping, in short, to promote a policy tnat any man, Government, or country may be proud of. Against this grand programme, Air. Massey’s declaration of policy pales into insignificance. It contains such specious declarations as “we will reduce taxation in order to lessen the cost of living.” Where, hpwever, is taxation to be reduced if the present services are to be maintained? The relief of taxation so far as the Opposition is concerned would affect the big landowners and wealthy man alone. What is wanted is a re-adjustment of the taxation so as to relieve the poor man at the expense of those better able to bear it. That will only be undertaken by a Liberal or Radical Government; not by the representatives of the “fat” man. The Opposition policy also includes such worn-out planks as a Civil Service Board, the freehold (in order to place the man with money on the land and rob the people of their heritage), the opening of Native lands in such a way that they will become the prey of land jobbers, and an elective Legislative Council, on a basis which would practically preclude the workers from having representation in it. No, the Opposition will never do. Let us adhere to the Liberals or any other party which wall give us advanced. and progressive legislation, designed to benefit the whole of the people and not a mere section of the community.