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Grey River Argus, 2 July 1914, Page 4

The- "Flying Squadron" evidently consider that they are now proficient in their various parts, and each one is saying his little bit, in the course of the Address-in-Keply. The chief comedian in the person of the Leader of the Opposition dropped his bomb shell in the shape of a no-confidence amendment to the Address. Unfortunately for him, instead of terrifying the: Government it was greeted: with laughtor. The "Toy Navy" bogie seems to be the principal weapon of the Dreadnought BaTonet, but- on this occasion he has to makeVhi's statement in an uncongenial atmosphere. The members of the House are too well acquainted with the history- of the Dominion 's naval policy to bo caught with any chaff that the Leader of the Opposition may produce for their delectation. Our evening contemporary describes the speech as vigorous. The Minister of Finance used exactly the same term when referring to it, but he also pointed out that it was all froth and no substance. Mr. Allen said that the Liberals were complaining that the Government had not carried out all their platform pledges during thetwo years they had bteen in office; but the Liberals who had been twenty years in office had not even attempted to pVovi'de for insurance against sickness and unemployment. Tlj.e peculiar thing about the attitude of the Opposition is this: Before the election the present Leader of the Opposition when he heard the Befornr Party's policy said that there was noth ing in it. When the Reform Party put the same "nothing-in^it-policy"- into practice and proved' that there was a great deal in it> the Opposition set up a howl, and complained that "the nothing-in-it-policy ' ' had been stolen from them. What ar-e we to make of such people? Evidently, by the way the Opposition Party are shaping they intend to pursue their usual blocking tactics so as to try and prevent the Gov-

eminent's carrying out its programme. If they succeed in this they will be able, to stump the country prior to the election using the broken pledges catch cry. This will be ja far easier task tlian framing, a policy for themselves. From the time of the death of the Rt. Hon. R. J. Seddon, the Liberals had no policy, and the work that they carried on was what Mr. Seddon had_mapped out before his death. His successor lacked initiative, or rather the courage to put his ideas into operation. He found himself year by year with steadily decreasing majorities, and greater .turbulence among the motely crew under his command. He gave concessions here and concessions there. The more he gave the more they asked and the more boldly they asked. At length the Liberal leader became nothing but a figure head that the x«ed Feds and other agitators could face which way they chose. The people of New Zealand have had ,one experience of this kind of rule, and are not likely to repeat the experiment.