THE GREY RIVER ARGUS TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 1925. THE TEACHING OF EXPERIENCE IN AUSTRALIA.

Grey River Argus, 23 June 1925, Page 4

THE GREY RIVER ARGUS TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 1925. THE TEACHING OF EXPERIENCE IN AUSTRALIA.

Ql' LABOI'R ADMINISTRATION Ml actual practice Australia has had more intimate, more general, a nd more lengthy experience than any other country in the world. -This is a proposition thtat nobody would question. At one time or another, every State, I us well as the <’omnio»nwealth itself, has had its governmental affairs in the charge of a Labour Ministry, so that. 1 as experience is by far the best of all teachers. no country should bn qualified ; to pass a better-informed verdict than 'Australia upon the desirability or ' otherwise of putting Labour in power i-ii the State. It is, therefore, interes.t--1 ing and instructive to consider the dcgree to which the Australian people to-day trust their economic, and social destinies to the var P of Labour, a nd , to contrast the position of the nonLabour parlies there with that of LaI. hour, as well us that of the non-Labour administrations in our own country, where th ( > protagonists of the wealthy class are forever alleging that Labour is not to be trusted. There is only 'one Australian State to-day that is ; j without a Labour Government —\'i.c- -• I toria, where a fusicn. recently by a I Tory majority, contributed to take I away the administrations from th<» La- : i hour Party. The indications moreover are that ere very long ev ( >ry Australian administration- will be One r.c- • present ing the largest section of the I commiMiity, namely, th P working class. ' As an indication of the unanimity of | the present fiv<» Labour administrations | in the country, a Sydney cablegram ’ yesterday recorded the fuv.t that the now Governmc’nt of New South "Wales, • >*. b/dialf of all the Australian States, except \ ictoria, is preparing for the British Government a memorial asking r that the principle of appointing Aus-tralian-born citizens as governors of the States shall be henceforth adopted. It is in keeping with the self reliance of the Australian working class that, 4 having Governments in record with their democratic, sentiments they should have Governors if at all, similarly disposed, importing the Conservatism of older lands neither in the form of political principles nor in that of personal exponents. Australia, bps tiied tested the Labour platform, and has not found it wanting. The indications are strongly that, despite /the fusion and other manoeuvres of their opponents, the Labour Party at 1 the »next Federal elections, will „ add another triumph to its record in being placed in control of the administra-, tions of the Commonwealth. The ! recent Labour victories in New South Wales ami Tasmania are a forecast of | comi’ng events. In both States, con- * sidering all of the stupendous odds I massed wealth arrayed against Labour, the victories were a remark- | able endorsement by the people of the I

ideals and policy of *li<» Labour move- | mont, as well as a protest, in the ca.se j of New South Wales against the proven incapacity and stagnation of the Tories whose administration despite the Country Party politicians machinations, was ousted from the 'Treasury bench/.s. Bankrupt of policy, the Tories in Australia have been relying G'ii cries of extremism and sectarianism to fool the people, whom they have only disgusted, because the public have in tli M oast had practical demonstrations of Labour’s impartiality and fair play for everybody, with special previliges for none. The decision of both the New’ South Wales and Tasmanian electors is going Io exert a profound effect upen the coming Federal elections, and it is safe to predict, that inside a year the Federal Government will be a Labour Government. The whole political situation in Australia has a significance far greater than a merely local one. It represents the reasoned verdict of Australian experience, and in every other democratic country, sooner or later it is enrtain to be reflected. For N e w Zealanders, it ! is an object lesson of the truth that | anti-Labour propaganda is baseless; is I nowise warranted by experience whore Labour has had even a slight chance to display its merits; and when our general election comes presently the recruits in pvery electorate to the ra’uks of Labour supporters will find in Australia an added assurance that their own judgment is rio-Jit.