The Socialist Party

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 97, 27 April 1938, Page 3

The Socialist Party

(To the Editor.)

air, —Your leading article on the above subject which appeared in your valuable paper on Saturday last is both interesting and instructive. Strangely enough, 1 find myself in agreement with you ou one point, and that is on the title of the party. It is known as the Labour Party. This, to my mind, is entirely erroneous. It is a Socialist party pure and simple. It stands for the socialism of exchange, production aud distribution. Lt was, in years gone by, known as the Social Democratic Party. Why the title was ever changed 1 cannot say. My own personal opinion, which I have held for years, is that the change of title to Labour Party has cost us thousands upon thousands of votes.

The title “ Labour Party” created the idea in the minds of the unthinking that we were only a party of labourers. You know the type —men who wear strings round their trousers to keep the dust out of their eyes —men who measured wages in pints of beermen without ideals of any sort—men who only went to work because it was the only way in which they could draw their wages—men who were capitalist! without capital. But what do we find to-day I That the Labour Party is not a party of labourers, but a party of intellectuals. It is true, of course, that we also have a lot of members who, intellectually speaking, should be members of the “back to Adam” movement.

Your concern for the man who has a farm or a business is pure boloney. According to you, the inference is that it won't be long before he will nave nothing. Seeing that only about teu per cent, (it may possibly be less than that) of farmers actually own their farm-, they will not stand to lose nearly so much as you imagine. In the meantime they are much more likely to lose their farms to the banks or.the mercantile firms, who for years have farmed the farmer. You can take it from me, the farmers and the businessmen have nothing to fear from the Socialist (!) Government. The farmers themselves are the greatest socialists in New Zealand to-day. There is no class of the population who receive more State aid than they do. If, by an act of God, they are rendered homeless and penniless, whom do they run to but the Government? 'They believe in Socialism when they arc sick < financially) ami in Private Enterprise When they are well! You don’t like Communism! Accord-

ing to you “a Socialist is a Communist without the courage of his convictions.” It is equally true to say that a capitalist is a Socialist without the courage of his convictions. Why do I say that? Because any thinking capitalist knows that Capitalism couldn't function without Socialism. Could the farming community, for instance, carry on entirely divorced from State aid? No, they could not. Neither could any other business. The late Mr. Massey said upon one occasion: “We are all Socialists nowadays.” He was at least honest about it, which is considerably more than the average Tory is. Up to date, the farmers of this country have had two million pounds written off their mortgages as h result of State interference! (Personally, I wouldn't have written off sixpence. A bargain is a bargain, and they should havo stuck to it; it is only a matter of robbing Peter to pay Paul.) More of this later. If you arc so opposed to Communism, am I right in assuming that you are an apostle of Czarism? By the by, how are the salt mines of Siberia getting on I All your feajrs about what is likely to happen in the future under State Socialism aro quite groundless. You pulled my leg once, but you will never do it again. Before the last election you told mo that if the Labour (Socialist!) Party got into power the Post Office Savings Bank would close its doors, and that the few bob I had there would be gone for ever. Well, I watched the Post Office very closely for twelve months—l was there every morning at nine o'clock sharp, and nothing has happened so far. My two and threepence is still there! Then you said my bathroom would be covered with pound notes. I set up the same vigilant watch there, and so far uothing has happened, so I am not trusting you again. Do you know any more funny stories?—l am, etc.,

SOCIALIST.

April 26, 1938.