ESTABLISHED 1866. The Marlborough Express PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1914. THE GENERAL ELECTION.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVIII, Issue 285, 8 December 1914, Page 4

ESTABLISHED 1866. The Marlborough Express PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1914. THE GENERAL ELECTION.

Th© electors of New Zealand will on Thursday b© called upon to choose between, returning the Massey Government to office and power and relegating Mr .Massey and bis supporters once again to the cold shades of Opposition. Tho electoral campaign lias been carried on very strenuously by both sides, and on th© whole, with a few regrettable exceptions, the leaders have wisely and laudably refrained from personalities. Certainly in its general lack of party acrimony and personal bitterness the campaign has been a great improvement upon its immediate predecessor of 1911. Perhaps-this is due in some degree to the still all-overwhelming interest j taken by the. public in th© progress of the momentous struggle in which the Empire is engaged, whatever b© the cause, it is undeniable tluut despite the frantic attempts of th© party champions to 'work political feeling up to th© pitch of excitement which is ; usually in existence at a general elec- ! iioxijf there has been, during the last j few'weeks, a curious lack of public j interest in the* sayings and doings of ; th© politicians, and we shall not be ; .surprised if the total or" the votes polled, on Thursday 'throughout the Dominion is much below that recorded this time.-throe years ago. Each party is, wo are toJd, cheerfully optimistic as to the result of the;elec- ; tion being in its favor. Th© supporters of Sir Joseph Ward claim : that the country is ripo for and will demand a change of Government. Mr Massey is equally confident, it is said, that the electors will show by their votes that they are satisfied with the legislative work and administration generally of himself, and his colleagues, and that Hie day when (the Liberals shall resume possession of tlie Ministerial benches will be postponed for at least another three years.. It is difficult, we think, for even the most assiduous student of the .course of events political to predict with any reasonable confidence the success or failure of ©ither party. Certain general circumstances conditions likely to affect the result may, however, be briefly examined: Undoubtedly ther© has been, throughout the country, some reaction .in public feeling in. favor of Sir Joseph Ward personally. At the last ©lection 'that gentleman, it is notorious, was treated rather scurvily by many who had been actual or nominal supporters of the Liberal party. There was, too, a fairly general feeling, especially amongst those who were not strong]y enamored! of either' the on© party or the other, that the Liberals had enjoyed too long an uninterrupted 'fconure of political power, and. that; a change of Government would tend to create amor© virile and a healthier interest generally in politics. -Although Mr Massey did not, at the1 election of 1911, have an absolute majority, still it was clear ' that tli© Ward Government as it'theii existed was doomed. Whether Sir Joseph Ward would have acted more wisely by at once resigning and leaving it .to Mr Massey to forma Ministry, is still a debatable question: With the course oi' events which led to th© formation of the Mackenzie Government and with the circumstances attending its downfall our readers are acquainted. The Massey Government assumed office, and; the question to be decided on Thursday is whether It- possesses the confidence of the majority of the electors or whether Sir Joseph Ward sfoall form a new Ministry and again control ih© political affairs of the, country. T|ie Opposition leader must b© credited.with having put his side of the cas© before the.electors with much spirit and ability. If he has not been able to formulate a. particularly striking or attractive programme for th© * future, it is that N©w Zealand already leads th© world in experimental legislation, and that there is relatively little new for eifther the on© party leader or the other, to offer in the way of novel and progressive legislation, bir Joseph and his lieutenants have therefor© had to fall back upon ; criticism of what he and they claim to have been the mistakes and faults or t!h© Ministry they seek to displace. Into the intricacies of Sir Joseph's criticism of Mr Allen's financial policy we need not enter to-day. The chief critic and (the gentleman criticised have each put their case as to their respective loan transactions before the public. Whether th© public is, after all, very much the wiser we do j riot care even to speculate, still less1 say. With" regard -to th© naval defence question, w© have already ex-j pressed tlife opinion that in view of th© complete ignorance which, exists as to what has exactly taken place in th© Pacific and Indian Oceans ?n connection, with the,'naval side of the war, it-is simply absurd for.■either Sir Joseph Ward or Mr 'Alien to dogmatise on public platforms as to th© relative merits or defects of their rival schemes. Not until the war is over will the public b© abl© to judg© which was the better scheme, and in all probability the scheme eventually to b© adopted will b© one which the experience gained during the war will very largely influence, and which th© terms of peace may not improbably actually dictate. Perhaps th© gravest charge brought against th© Government is that it is « fi "rich raan^s a ] squatter Ooyernmerrt"; that it has ] no sympathies with Labor, and that <

Labor has nothing to expect from Mr Massey and his colleagues in the way of industrial and humanitarian legislation by which the masses will benefit. If all these charges could be substantiated the Government which now appeals for a second term ot office should undoubtedly be given the shortest of shrifts by the electors. For New Zealand is par excellence a true democracy, and those who oppose theonward march of progressive ideas aaad who, either through timidity or through actual antipatxny to democra> tic principles, would fain constitute themselves an obstacle in the path of political progress, are assuredly not the men to whom should be entrusted the onerous and honorable duty of government. But can these charges be substantiated? We'do not think so. During the three years Mr Massey and his fellow Ministers have been in office this journal has often felt compelled to disapprove of and, on occasion, most caustically criticise certain of their political actions. Being as we are, entirely free from party ties -and party influences, we have been abl© to give praise just as promptly and honestly as we have felt it our duty to award blame. We fail, however, to recall >any legislative actions on the part of the Government whicli would support the charge that the Massey Government is in any way "against" the working classes. During the strike it certainly did put the full strength of its administrative powers into the scale in behalf of law and order, of commercial security, and of the peace and well-being of the majority against a certain section of the workers—men who, for the most part were led away by dangerously mischievous demagogues. To argue ihat because Mr Massey and his able and courageous colleague, Mr Herdr man, stood forth and helped so materially to stem tlie tide of something narrowly approaching 'anarchy, therefore they have no sympathy with, therefore they are, as the cant saying goes, "against" the workers, is a gross' slander, none the less gross in that it is at the same time inexpressibly stupid. We cannot believe, however, 'that the bulk of the workers are so foolish, as to believe that Mr Massey is their enemy. On the contrary, when due allowance has been made for the circumstances under which, the Government assumed office, and for the special and trying condiI tions brought into existence by t!h© strike, the smallpox epidemic, and the war, the Government must be* credited by all fair-minded workers, ias inj -deed by reasonably-minded men and | women of all classes, with having been ; singularly active in their attention to ; political and social reform's. The exten- ; sion of the Old Age Pensions scheme, j the energy displayed in the building of workers' homes, sth© amendments to th© National Provident Fund Act j th© widening of the scope of the Advances to Workers scheme—in ajl these and many other directions th© Government has clearly and practically proved its sympathetic interest in matters specially affecting the working classes. Substantial increases •have, also been made to the pay of the railway servants and teachers.' Through the special financial strain caused by. the war it has been found impossible to reduce the cost of living by any such material alteration of th© Customs duties as was promised- by Ministers when they were in Opposition. But at least'there'has been no increase such as has been the'case in Australia, and we have it on the express word'of the Prime Minister that .should extra taxation be rendered necessary by th© war it will be placed on the shoulders of those best abl© to bear the burden. On the. whole, Ministers have a very creditable record of work don© and work attempted, upon which to base their appeal for an expression of the people's confidence. Th© Massey Ministry can certainly not be rightfully called • a "Ministry of All the Talents." The country has often had ■ much ' cleverer, .more'"able men in office than are the Prim© Minister and his colleagues. But at least it may be said of them, and with truth, that they ' are honest, straightforward men, - who know their own minds and have the courage to carry out- their- own convictions regardless of any temporary popular farbr or disapproval. Whatever .may, liaye been- their mistakes, either of omission or •commission, they cannot justly be accused of trimming the sails of the Government ship to catch every passing -bieeze of public feeling, "if they arc granted a .second term of office they will, we feel sure, exercise the same qualities, of caution .with regard to experimental legislation, and honesty and common-sens© in their administrative methods as they have shown during the past three years. No '•'fireworks" policy is to be expected from them. They are not th© class of men to offer the people any short cut to an imaginary political and social paradise. They are far too sober-minded and cautious for anything of the sort. But on the other hand, they cannot with justice be deemed timorously unprogressive, still le%ss are they justly to be" termed "Tories." The plain truth oi the matter is that with regard to general policy there is very little- material difference between th© leading men in th© two parties. Whether, however, it would be wise at the present juncture, with th© future, especially th© financial future, 30 gravely unsettled- as it is, and must necessarily continue to he for some time, by reason of the war, to make a change of Government, "to swaphorses." to use a homely adage*, "whilst crossing a stream;" is entirely another question, one the settlement of which must b© left to th© electors to decide. We can only hope and trust that whatever that decision may be it may be on© which will conduce to th© political good of the country amd th© social and general welfare- of the people. The people, have the ordering of their own political future. May they decide wisely and well.