Nelson Evening Mail TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1923 TO-MORROW'S POLL

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 13 November 1928, Page 6

Nelson Evening Mail TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1923 TO-MORROW'S POLL

ON the ove of the General Election of 1023. all three leaders of the chief contending political parties profess to be onfident of the result. With two of them, we feel assured, the chief doubt in their minds is: Which one of us will be leader of the Opposition in the next Parl:iimcnt? We refer to Sir Joseph Ward, •he last of the old Liberal Party, who refused to abandon the respected Party label until he was asked, almost at the eleventh hour, to become leader of the new United Party, and to Mr IT. E. Holland, the Socialist-Labour Party's leader. No doubt they both have more ambitious hopes, but while they may be

fervent t hoy cannot be genuinely optimistie. Mr Coates has greater reason for optimism. So many of Lho candidates who are supporting him were members i'| last I'arliainont. That is one advantage. Moreover, they belong to a Partv of sound, if not .spectacular performance. A supreme test of a country's position is its financial .stability. New Zealand to-day stands unsurpassed in the Umpire, if not in the world, with the highest reputation for financial soundness. It would be upon that sound position, for which the Government must be given credit, that. Sir Joseph Ward, in the unlikely event of his being given the opportunity to do so, would launch his big loan flotation. That loan, or series of loans, would of necessity have to be lollovved by more borrowing for essential commitments, redemptions and purposes other than the specific objects named by Sir Joseph. The money, in view of our present splendid position, might be available, but it could not be raised without adding considerably to our already heavy burden of taxation. That would not worry tho lender. There are other objectionable features to this. the only outstanding item in the United Party's platform, and they have received the adverse criticism they warrant. In the elections in this district we have no Socialist Labour Party candidates. That Party has recognised that the great body of electors in Nelson and Motueka realise that the Socialist's policy is not a policy —it is a fallacy. Dealing with the purely local position, we have no hesitation whatever in repeating that the electors of Motueka should have little difficulty in deciding that of the two candidates in tho field Mr Hudson is by far the better equipped to represent them. It would savour or base ingratitude to ignore the valuable service he has given as member of the sound Party in power, in the past fourteen years. That Party appears destined to again occupy the Treasury benches for another term. In Nelson, Mr Atmore still retains his role as an Independent. As we summed up his Theatre Royal meeting, he is anti-Coates, pro-Ward. We have given due tribute to his work ir. local matters. It is to his credit that ho has taken a very active interest in the affairs of his constituents. In this respect he has an advantage over Mr Smith, the Reform candidate, whose public service, valuable and extending over a long period, has been confined to local bodies. Staunch supporters of the Coatcs Government as well as personal admirers of Mr Smith himself, will vote for that gentleman. There are, again, electors who intend to support Mr Atmore because of their admiration for Sir Joseph Ward and of what he did in bygone years and promises to do to-day. Mr Atmore has been supported before by electors who' believed him to be proMassey, pro-Coates, or pro-Forbes. While Mr Atmore claims to put the interests of Nelson before those of Party, and many have given him his freedom so far as Party is concerned, others contend that his policy is really pro-Atmore even before pro-Nel-son and pro-Ward. Mr Atmore considers that certain Reform supporters are more concerned with "the advancement of Coates" than with "the advancement of Nelson." Such a proposition is unworthy of a man of Mr Atmore's. political experience. It is on a par with the remark of Sir Joseph Ward at Christchurch when he referred to the "consummate audacity"' of the critics of his new schemes. We were surprised at this intolerant outburst of the ex-Prime Minister, which was perhaps due to his recent ill-health. Mr Atmore has no such excuse for his preposterous assertion that those who oppose him for legitimate reasons—including their belief that Sir Joseph Ward will never be in a position to put his superficially-alluring scheme into operation, and that it is better for New- Zealand that he should not be—are, therefore, opposed to the advancement of Nelson. It is surprising that a candidate in his strong position should resort to such tactics. They cannot help him with his friends and will certainly be resented by those of Reform leanings who might otherwise have been prepared to vote for him because of his services to the district. In his election addresses Mr Atmore has frequently quoted an editorial in "The Mail" in which we criticised the Government for not reducing taxation. We do not wish to withdraw one word of that criticism. We have always been a frank critic of the Government and its administration. In our opinion the Government has derived benefit from the criticism of the Press and from the activities of "tho 1928 Committee," and the experience gained will in turn be to the country's advantage. It was in the Parliament just ended that Mr Coates led for the first -time by virtue of the direct vote of the people. That mistakes were made is not denied even by his own followers. But those mistakes, wo believe, are far outweighed by the sound record of achievement and progress during a period of world-wide economic trouble. They were mistakes that arc not likely to be repeated. New Zealand had its share of adverse conditions, but it fared much better than most countries. Unemployment, acute, as it was here, was worse elsewhere—even in the prosperous United States. It is customary to place tho blame on the Government when things go wrong, regardless of the fact, that one nation cannot control conditions which are comlrijii the world-over. Those conditions on this occasion have been part of the aftermath of the Great. War. That New Zealand lias suffered to a less degree than other countries is surely to the credit of the Government, although, as we, have emphasised before, we have the privilege of living in a country of great recuperative powers. Of the. policies now before the electors, we are confident that nothing better or saner is offered than that of Mr Coates. It makes no extravagant promises. It undertakes a continuance of the sound administration we have witnessed—sound as a whole despite some mistakes. As a lady candidate in Auckland remarked recently, and as others no doubt have said truly, "We cease to make mistakes when wo cease our earthly existence." No ! one, is infallible. Certainly, no Government is. Oin- nrcsent Government has!

conio through a very difficult period with an exceptionally good record. Possession of the franchise is a privilege not to bo lightly regarded, and a duty devolves upon every elector to vole tomorrow. If the elector thinks the candidate he (or she) favours either "hasn't, a hope," or else "is certain to win," the duty to vote should still be performed.