THE SLAVERY tap THE WORKING CLASS

Marlborough Express, Volume L, Issue 86, 11 April 1916, Page 3

THE SLAVERY tap THE WORKING CLASS

[10 THE EDIXOa.]

Sir,—Mr Massey was against ex- j ploitaig the public while lie had a j very precarious hold on the Premier- ] ship. Once .the Premiership was j assured by the tusio.ii of the parti&> i bis concern for the exploiting of the | public oeaseii. Mr Mu'mo—who is a master Itakei— said, in ••ontestihg tlie j Dunedin scat, that the public were paying lJci. to'^J more tor the loaf; of "bread "than Lhey -should. Was wneat not worked to keep up the price of broad '? The people resident in a country should have first claim on the products of uhat "ountry. Mr Vavasour w-iaits to point out to the worker the harm chat his Socialistic lenders will do him in the future. Yet Aylnlo the worker can be exploited ~Mr Vavasour i,nd station holders r.ro not v.< be exploited in the iiiaUcr p!" huicft Milder cur present system, but which would not orem1 under t-ho. ."-.lin rot" system or Socialist:! to which- ho is opposed. Is the (juestion oi' allowing the Dominions a nay ;i> the politics of the .liation not Socialism? What did soldiers get fcr lighting for their country some yc:ars back? Are tho old-age pension .•aid .soldiers' pensions not .Socialistic \deaa? Lord Milner approves of the, spread of. Socialism where the Stavo comes in as third partner with capital and labor. "With the working cias.;, jf by industry and frugality a man and his wife have managed to lay by some money for their old ago, when applying for the old-age pension it they own a certain amount they a<"j penalised; yet a Government official in roceipt of a good salary year in and year out gets a pension or ietirhig allowance of some huntireds, and no questions asked. ii tho oki-age pension is trood enough for l.ho workoi s it should bo i'or others w-ien Uie workers provide it. And vhat flo (-nine of tho soldiers got who fijiht to maintain pensions for i.-h<»so who had good positions:-' Mr Va.vasour takes Mr Massey as his i<iol. Well, from Mr Vitvnsonr's quotiuion Mr Massey says the GnviTTiriiwir- .ivc- conscripting wealth nil tho li:v,e. Let me quote tho ba.ukin<; returns for the first three months «>'.: this \ik\v by the same period of last year.— Free deposits increased by ... £3,133,217 Fixed deposits increased by ...£1.311,597 The Government may now show a good surplus for the year, but it is coming from the drapers, shopkewpors, and poor.or class of tlic -community. Tho Press, which is a.

strong, Mipp-iitor of Mr Maf-sey, v.nys of tho National Government: "in jieg.kc-tin»; to -leal with the question of war profits iz has, in our judgment, failed in its manifest duty."

JOHN HAY

[We lun'o boon compelled to excisethe lnsfc two sentences "of our correspondent's lotto/. Their insertion, might have, brought- trouble to him1 and to us.—Ei» J