THINGS POLITICAL.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 231, 16 September 1911, Page 5

THINGS POLITICAL.

(By X.) Concerning Financial Fictions. The Hon. Mr. .Buddo. ’*n reply to Mr. Mass'. .. : aid he proposed to "deal with the Opposition plltform liy criticism on legitimate lines," and his procedure .as after this fashion:- Mr. Massey had s : rd the "I im c rnn“d was a had one.'' Mr. Buado ciitn-isfs this statement by siymtr that "it ii-e s not appear to be -o aft; r2l ;.eir ." Hi spi aks from appt at antes oniy. then fore lie does not cr-t’-ei'i Mr. M is-iy's stitemeui at all. This r« fr i nee to the 21 year* may lit- taken with si ver.il meanings. He may taenn that after 21 ytar- Govcrimie.it is no longer a bad one. or he may mean il years is too < xhausting a period for good Go virnmcnt to exist. Anyhow, whathc said and what he wanted to infer was not the utterance of a crit.-c "on legitimate lm< Then lie quoted from a British newspaper, shewing tli it the prii-e of stock hid fallen 1 per cent. f< r a tew hours, and Mr. Massey bid said it Ind affected the country's eicdil. Naturally one would suppose so. to a certain degree. but the great eritie again made a f-idure; lie could only contradict. L iter on he r ivr d at "the litiinci.il fictions on the floc r of the House which were not worth llic-r value in waste paper.” Coming from a Ministerial crit-c this statement 's doubly ridiculous: bow can a financial fiction have any value at all even in waste piper .' That financial fiction' do litter : lie floor of the House is undiiiibtctlly true, and no one seems more sins ble of that fact than Mr. Massey Irmscif. It is the constant burdi n of les complaint against G:v i rnment. Where docs M r Budd'.’s fine criticism come in in tins direction I It is too tedious to detail the inanities of such ci’t’cisms. Thev are all on a par with the general piffle wasting the tunc of the House. Lane’s Lapsus Lingu.-E.

I There was considerable charm in i Mr. Eustace Line's address in llasti digs in pursuance of h:s eandidatlire | for the Hawke's Bay scat. He | t.’lked long and loud of what ought J :*”.d wh-it ought not to be done and j ti.e m.-iny piditical measures he I would ir.ing forward to advance the f country and make Hastings the hub I of the North Island, but his enthusi- | a.-m rather cirricd h m away toi wards the close of his oration. While i erit ici'ing the oppe-ing i-ind-date.s | for tb.c Hawke's Bay Hectorite, he [made -itch a ludicrous pri.notii’ce- ; meat that he brought down the i house in an uproarious burst of : laughter. To bring the peroration •of h : s address to a forcible and cffcc- ! tivc point, he accused one candid.-itr* ; for a *ea: in' Parliament with being I the possi -*<•;• of a wish-bone in the I space Nature has ordamed for his back bone .and -mother candidate 'he exhorted to assume tb.c magi nanimous and self-reliant attitude iris shown in say ti.e soda water j bottle —but not them little tins with ino ends on 't in. It is easy to un- ' derstand this attitude may be diffi--1 cult of accomplishment, but one i fails to see what would be the result [in a matter of progress. Political : somersaults are not at all uncommon lin electioneering manoeuvres, and i there arc few identities incapable of tci-givt rs-ition. but if Mr. 1-me reallv wishes to be useful to us. he >liou!d introdr.re tbi- m w teat lire ”1 t deportment nt liis nr.xt polit-r al 'uliilriss by giving i physical illust-i--ticn thereof. The act would be inspiring. judging fri-m the effect produced on the -iiid’rin-e at its mere ' vuegrstion. Mr. Lam? is a man of maitv ideas, ami now and again they culminate, as in the present >.n-st-i:;<-. in i--ch.lv m ; xed metaphor, i He wiii. however, always secure a| good hearing, for hi is a real live; man. His speech at Hastings de-i mon 1 1 rated this. ' i “whither shall I Wander?’’ | ( b-o-.-uscy gamier I Whither I shall I wander l'[> North, or down South, or back to Grind pa’s ('h im-| ber.' John is still negotiating for a sit-i upon. He is t ; ri dof play ing nnis: | cal eb urs. It makes him too demined tired, yon know. Thev .-in* going to trv l’uss-!ii-thc-('orncr directly. John Lmw*; of five coiners; surely one of tb.cm must be ; n ‘.he middle. I i tli-nk lie menr.s four corners, ami | John hi the ni’ddle. | Political Pensionary House. j There Iris been a iot of .-irgiiment I about the usefulness, or the non-| u*r filli>e:-cf -in I 'ppcr < 'hm.bc r. , .-■nd the quest ; on might be I tirlhe■' discussed a:- In the adv's-ability cf making : t a duim’-.ng ground for u.-cd-up J" !'t icians. •11-l a reserve ground of lighting matiriil far the F’.-irty m power. That this pr-ict !<-e imp; i lls good (-'ov ernment is fully app-irrnt. givrng a;- it docs uiifaii' iiippor! I" tb.c Govrrnmeiii. The u'cfr.lms- of Secernd Chamber ’s (l*.;>e ;<w:iy with i l ' t lie members arc iin; Hi’ctcd in thr same way as the members f- r the Lower House, lie e.u:-r the f.ai-t of members of the | i.owcr Home being promoted to the ( pper ( b;:mbcr by Inc ( .’billet gives an «,;ipor: unity tor undue ■tipport of Govermnent measure::. Cat:*!’dates whose careers in the l.'-wer House have been mere blanks in the march of Progress have no I claim to appointment in the Legisiathc Cr>ri)i'U- The Cuum ,! l b'is Viren , made ;i Pcn*hi -.,iiy ' ■ ’ablishnier.t ; under the l. ; bt ra! Government evc-j since Mr. Scddon found it useful for! his measures. ami it it tune fhe | country h.ad some thing to say about paying ptiisii’iis under colour of political salarie s. The office of M.P. is no: such .an arduous occupation that whii i mm in- to retire from office ■ br< needs to he pensioned. The fight ! that men put up to get nito Farlta- ■ ment shows that ;t is a good billet, and the i emimeration given :* fully ; equivalent t<* tiie services rendered. 1 If any ri tiring iiiiiiihcr is entitled to •i p' its><-:i tor any ?p< eiai merit, by all me an* let him have it. but to turn , the I pper ( hninhet- into an Old ! Mun's \!:ii'h<’iisc mo*: objcctnmabir. Tiie Legi-lat :ve Couii-I should

be a 'trietiy elective mir. t*» winch . ; ,|. i ; , bl I>’ . I* .1 V Ulf t i.<- I ... A ■ 1 iI. Il .

Rabbits and Noxious Weeds

The Budget nfirr all due consid- < i’atio-.i has been given to it app* r* iiiii-e fareial tlrin satisfactorv. Jc -cph has cv idciitly so const meted ’t as to -ivo : d cr’licism and points of attack arc by n > means prominent. Sir Joseph lias carefully avoided the i-onteiitioiis questions <1 land settlement and food supplies The land question, hawever. has reached an acute stage in pol'm-tu liiaturs which can no longer I e avoided, ami the aspiring can ! ■ 1 ■ a m.-’y- find ir to Lc tli<* Pons Asii“»:t«m vvh-eli lie? will be nimble tn cro#There is a great outcry for land, but the Crown laud nvaila'd? t r settlement, in a d'-cadc or tvv ■ . w >J lie non esl. and unless some con elm ion cmi he arrived at with regard to Maori waste lands, tlie f land setth merit policy must come to .a dcadloek. The rights of all men, both .Maori and Parcha, should be re-spi-'-ted. but we want no "dogs-m-thc manger to obstmet the development of the country's resources. It wculd he bettor to get into cultivation the lands that at ilie present lime prcpDgale rabbits and grow noxious weeds rather than to cast ri■*. eteiis eyes on areas already developed. The waste land should be the first u: ilised h r settlement mid the in ".ey vvbi'-b landed estates would e«’st i’O-dd he spent in road:-' and bridges, that the settlements may lie rendered homes and not pliers of exile. The Gov eriinieiit’s policy should be to make two blades of grass grow where m.e.ie grow before.

Dear Food Problem.

The emiti'li-omdy increased prices of living arc creating severe discontent ai’H mgst all classes of the people, but the very rich. From this source much danger may arise and it. behoves the Legislature to enquire into the radical cause of the trouble and find some relief for tl.ose who suffer most. The folly of raising the workman's wage:; to be q uickly followed by higher prices for his f .I'd has now become appar-r-.-.t to everyone, although at first the fact wis only realised by the keen i.bscrver. The injustice of this is felt: cruelly by indigent folks who earn but little or have only small st-itionary inecmes, because they have to pinch themselves of neers-

i.aries at every increase of the workmen’s wages. There will have to he a statutory price of provisions to protect 11-c poorer class from the .avarice of tiie meri-h.ant. In France the women have taken the matter in to their own bands and at the market i f R nibaix. if they cannot buy at i fixed prict^they annex the goods and then there is a riot. M e do not want that sort of thing in New Zealand. but with the increasing unrest of the vve.rking class, some day. if tl ings are allowed to go on as they have been doing f>r the last fewyears, the ram" stern reality may be experienced even here.