The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED DAILY THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1924. MR ATMORE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.

Gisborne Times, Volume LX, Issue 9723, 5 June 1924, Page 4

The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED DAILY THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1924. MR ATMORE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.

There is at lea's t one member of' tho “Lib-'Lab” party who lias no doubt at all as to the advisabloness of a determined campaign with tho object of combatting the Marxian doctrines which permeate the Socialist movement in this Dominion. 'We refer to Mr Atmoro. the member for Kelson, who, in the course of his pro-sessional address, at Nelson, indicated that, in his opinion, such a campaign would do an inestimable amount of good. It may at once be said that if Mr Atmore and his colleagues would devoto more attention to this particular mcnaco it would be much more in the interests of their party, as well as of the country, than if they continue futilely to belabor the'Reform party. Tho “Lib-Lab” attacks on Mr Massey’s party are nothing short of ludicrous in face of, tho fact that tho Opposition led by Mr Wilford is ready at any time to join hands with the Reform Liberals, provided that Mr Massey will leave the political arena. It is certainly the position that not much harm will result to either the “Lib-Labs” or the Reform Liberals as the result of the sham-fighting that has been in progress for the past few years. In the meantime, the Marxian agitators may not have made any great'advance, but, for all that, they continue to have a strong following in this Dominion. It really should not be difficult to persuade tho great bulk of tho misguided workers who stand under the “Red Flag” that Marxianism, or Bolshevism, or whatever it may be called, cannot make any country a workers’ paradj.se. r lhe alleged benefits which Red rule brought to the workers of Russia in the first instance cannot now be pointed to as actualities. Maybe tho adoption of Bolshevism did, at the outset, have the effect of paralysing a lot of autocratic monopolies which had, over a great period, had a blighting influence on the poorer classes in Russia. But Lenin and Co. wrecked the whole country by the adoption of methods much more autocratic and despotic than those which they sought to do away with. And, to-day, Russia still remains knockcd-out! In the circumstances, it is a great pity that Mr Holland and his party will not admit that Marxianism, having been put into, practice, has proved a rank failure. It is, of course, amazing that any large section' of tho workers of an enlightened country like this Dominion can still be fooled into the belief that good results can be obtained as the result of crippling a nation. After Russia’s experience of Marxianism, the bulk of tho workers of Britain are quite satisfied to have none of it! That should be a good tip to the workers of this Dominion. Mr Atmore summed up the Red agitation in this Dominion rather tersely when ho said: “A revolutionary of 20 showed that he had a heart, but a revolutionary of 40 showed he had no brain!”