ANOTHER REPLY TO "BLOW OUT."

Horowhenua Chronicle, 15 November 1911, Page 4

ANOTHER REPLY TO "BLOW OUT."

To the Editor. Sir,—ln yom issue of the 11th instant, I suggested that your contributor, "Blow Out," alias "Blow ii Out," sliould conic out into the limelight. As lie has not acted on my suggestion, I am under the painful necessity of dragging him out. "Now for tiro limelight! To go no further hack than three years this month—the horizon of the average political personality (I use the term in its most Abstract sense wheal applied to Mr William Murdoch, of Shannon) of ''Blown Out's" typo is circumscribed by the triennial electors—Mr Murdoch was the most vehement. most vociferous supporter of Mr Byron Brown, the man whom lie now—under an appropriate 110111- ! de-plume—gibes at in his "Political notes.' Tt was "Blown Out" who, more than any one else, did his utmost to upset the result of the election three years ago by making allegations of infringements at the Shannon polling booth. Tn spite of the support accorded him by your "resident representative." Mr Hrown c-amo within an inch of capturing the seat. T me passed (a.s usual) and -at the very height of that great political calm that precedes and succeeds every general election, Mr Murdoch announced himself as the Labour candidate for the Otaki seat! Xo uninerous, influential deputations of the "horney-handod sons of toil" waited 011 his doormat, and with tears in their eyes beseeched him to come forward in their interests. No Labour organisation, no union of workers, no workers, not ono solitary worker nobody at all asked him to champion their cause. Xo one, but himself, is actually certain what his motive was. (Tt may even have ueen Limelisoht). I might however, he quite frank, and tell you what I suspect influenced him in this momentous decision. Ho had a call. Duty moved him. The great heart of the man was stirred to its debths when ho _ viewed the wrongs and inequalities under which the workers suffered. The marrow froze in his bones when he saw the travail of Labour. What was he to do? What would Napoleon havo done? He had an inspiration. "Thou art the man,' he said to himself, "the friend of the toiler, the deliverer of the wage slaves, the white man's hope!" (I am not absolutely certain whether ho had the "inspiration" or the "call" first). Whereat he communicated his tremendous secret—murder will out—to his prospective supporters, and one said, goandgetyourheadread," or something less blasphemous, and another said "I see tliou liast thine old brown hat on," which, was neither literally nor, scripturally correct.'— "The prophet- was not without honour save in his own country." You will understand, of course, that I am only communicating my suspicions, but .1 should like to see one genuino working man in Shannon acknowledge in tlio pages of The Chronicle that he asked this soi-disant champion of Labour to stand; that he intended to support tliis self-appointed popularity re? ounccd. Labour candidate. .It was feared that if he were "barracked" too much he might not come.forward, and an influential I committee was actually formed with the avowed object of controlling and regulating the entertainments which (his local meetings were bound to provide.. Alas! in spite of all precautions, the fears wore only too well grounded. "Towards the end" he descended to asserting that if he only got his own vote he would stand! This, of couise, was carrying consistency to an extreme, and so when Mr Robertson appeared, nominated by the largest body of organised Labour in the electorate, he must havo fetl that he could not rely to any great extent on his own vote even. Ho did not publicly, or in any open, straightforward fashion, inform the electors that he had decided not to make' a fool of himself; he simply turned a somersault and began to support "Willie" Field—to whom he was so strenuously opposed last election—for ail he ("Blown Out") was worth—a minus quantity in this district. Yet this political quidnunc •has the effrontery—under a pseudonym, of course—to gibe at Mr Brown, whom he so zealously supported last election! this self-announced liberator of the toilers attempts to cast cheap sneers at Mr Robertson, the Labour candidate, who has the confidence and support of what is practically a block vote of Labour— in its most restricted sense—at this end of the electorate. I must apologise for wasting your space, vour time, your readers time, and, above all, my own time in writing at uch length on such an entirely insignificant topic, but my excuse for so doing is the assertion made by "Father of a'Family," who.says: "Who cares a jot who any contributor may bu; it is. the mattei contributed." Were the circulation of The Chronicle cor.fined^to]/Shannon alone I would never have bothered replying to "Blown Out's" "political notes," because in this .district the aforesaid contributor does not count, but the people of Levin and other parts of the electorate may be under the impression that he . is, something better than & political.' weather-cockerel. I have Wtime ailment to throw tJie limelight 'on"Tiis connection with tJhe No-license-Continuance movement. If anyone else—under the' cloak'of anonymity—is desirous of "getting one

on to me," now "is thoro opportunity. Yours, ctc., " ' ' ' B. K. SELBY. I>.S.—l have always understood that Mr Murdoch was the fathor of a. family.