NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT AND SALISBURY MINISTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 10036, 24 January 1896, Page 4

NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT AND SALISBURY MINISTRY.

No explanation lias yet been given of why ib was that New Zealand stood aside from the message sent by Mr. Reid, the Premier of New South Wales, to Lord Salisbury in behalf of the Governments of Australia and Tasmania, stating that they viewed with satisfaction the prompt and fearless measures adopted by the Imperial Government for the defence and integrity of the Empire, and conveying "the united assurance of the loyal support of the people of Australia, and their full sympathy in the determination of the mother country to resent foreign interference in matters of British and colonial concern," This message has been greatly appreciated In England, as evidenced by the reply sent by Lord Salisbury and the reference made to it by Mr. Chamberlain in his speech at the banquet to Lord Lamington. We desire at the present time Specially to refer to the peculiar attitude assumed by, our present Ministry towards Home affairs, which has placed them and us in a false position. When the general election before last resulted in the return of a small Liberal majority, and the accession of Mr. Gladstone to office with his Home Rule programme, our Ministers' Mr. Ballance (being then Premier, and' Mr. Seddon his lieutenant, sent a cable message congratulating Mr. Gladstone and Ins colleagues on their accession to office, and expressing a confident hope that they would be able to carry out the objects of their party. We protested at the timestrongly against such a message. We pointed out that the Ministers of New' Zealand had no authority to express an official approval of the programme of any political party in England, and that they were likely to. injure the interests of the colony by doing so. The colony had to deal with Ministers of both the great English parties, and ought not to express an adherence and good-will to one party, which involved the opposite feelings towards; the other. These arguments were insisted upon, indeed, all over the colony, and were not oven answered by Ministers. They .simply, stated that they had come to a determination that they had a right to send a message, and had done it. Well,-' time passed on, 1 and brought another election ' in Eng-land,-and on this: occasion Lord Salis' , bury and the Conservatives "wore placed in office .backed:- by a larger, majority i than has supported a: Ministry for

many -years. But no sent officially by the New tiJ* Ministry to- congratulate UtiV bury. No sympathy was exnS with the objects of his QoverSffl And the consequence is, that a Government of New Zealand i» marked itself out from the oil Colonial Governments as having !n» fettd between political partial • England. Our Ministers have n" claimed that they are opposed to th" principles or the present Governing! 1 and heartily, sympathise with th Opposition. That is not likely to mat the relations between them and Lo Salisbury's Ministry agreeable a »3 pleasant. Mr. Seddon and Ms J leagues addressed tire English Mini% on a mere party matter in which N» Zealand, in Whose name they assumed to speak, had lib right to interfere, and which certainly ought to have been u 0 official concern of our Ministers. They addressed thorn oil a subject on which opinions differed widely here, an which had ho part in the selection 0 | our Ministers. Mr. Seddon and hi? colleagdes decline to send a message on a subject in which we are all vitally interested, on which it is of importance that England should have our support and on which there is here only opinion. A Very grave error was com. mitted by Mr. Seddon and his colleagues in congratulating Mr. Gladstone. Tint act has been brought into relief hj their abstaining from the same course when Lord Salisbury was elected, and it has been further emphasized by theit standing aloof from the message which has united the public sympathies of the colony as very few events- have done before.