POLITICAL POWDER AND SHOT.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1263, 14 May 1896, Page 11

POLITICAL POWDER AND SHOT.

BY IGNOTUS.

" The small body of members who style themselves the Opposition, and who at the beginning of the session went through the form of electing Captain Russell as leader, do not deserve the name of a Parly. Ihey are united by no stronger ties than ivere the denizens of the Cave of Adullam — discontent with things as they are and antipathy to those in power. They are simply a fortuitous concourse of political atomy, without cohesion in policy or principle. Let no such men be trusted." — Wellington Evening Post.

I do not wish to copy Opposition methods and deliberately misrepresent an opponent, and so I cheerfully note a correction made by the Napier Telegraph of an error into which I fell a fortnight ago. Mr R. D. McLean is not a director, nor ever was he a director, of the Northern Investment Society. lam very glad to hear it. The Telegraph also asserts that the penal interest charged by tho company is only 9 per cent, but I should like to have Mr Tanner's (of Eiverslea) opinion on this point. Sir Eobert Stout, who appeared for Mr Tanner in the latter's case against tho company, might also oblige with a copy of his remarks inado in Court on this subject.

With respect to Mr R. D. McLean, I hear that his selection by the National Conservative Association as candidate for Napier has given great offence to some of tho local Tories, and that it is not very likely ho will stand. " Good old Swan " may be tho chosen champion, after all. # * * *

The Bulletin has been devoting a good deal of interest to New Zealand politics of late, and gives the National Conservative Association some very hard raps. Thus, in a recent issue:—"Nearly everything that hard, unmitigated lying and slander can do to overset the N.Z. democratic Ministry is being done by tho National Ass in tho present campaign. One fine specimen statement is as follows: 'The Seddon Government raise money on Treasury bills in the colony at 4 and 4£ per cent., and when they have reached the limit permitted by law, these bills are "converted" in London into permanent debt.' To which Premier Seddon replies that since the democratic Ministry came into power tho issue of Treasury bills has never reached the limit fixed by law, and none of tho Treasury bills have been converted into permanent debt. It was the old National Ass Government which did these things, and that animal now blandly charges its own acts to its opponents, and says reproachfully that theso doings are very wrong indeed." # * # *

Tho Marlborough Express, an independent paper, with a bias towards Opposition interests, warmly commends tho Premier's decision to reintroduce the Undesirable Immigrants Bill next session. The Express is of opinion that " a great deal of rubbish has been talked and written on tho subject of this measure, but the fact remains that unless wo wish to seo this fine country of ours a prey to some of tho worst evils which afflict older lands, some such measure as tho Undesirable Immigrants Bill is absolutely necessary." And again—" Taking tho Bill as it stands, or rather, wo should say, as it stood last session, it may, we admit, bo capablo of amendment and improvement. But tho main object of the Bill, that is to ensure future health of the colonists, as well as to prevent them from a further unchecked influx of Asiatic cheap labour, is an object which deserves, wo think, tho hearty support of all who wish well to the country. And for the above reason wo repeat wo are very pleased to seo that Mr Seddon does not intend to allow tho Bill to drop." * # # *

That good old Tory frump, tho editor of tho Wairarapa Daily the self - styled " righteous journalist "—can only account for Mr Seddon's success at his meetings by the hypothesis that ho hypnotises his hearers ! * # tt *

Mr James Allen has been telling his constituents that " if they had respect for law, right and truth and candour they should speak with no uncertain sound at election time. He did not care who went in at the next election (Oh, dear, no! "Ignotus"), but let an honest people bo governed by an honest Government." Just so, and that is why tho people will return the Liberals to power ! * * * "

Mr Allen also remarked that it " depended on the men .and women of the Colony to determine whether they would be led away by parrot cries—raising up class differences and feelings—or whether they would rise up and have their differences healed, and above all things determine that honest men should bo placed in power." # * * *

Just so again. One meets with truth and common sense in quite unexpected quarters at times, and I am glad to find Mr Allen furnishing such excellent reasons why the "Ass." candidates, who aro nothing but parrots, should not be returned. J am afraid, however, Mr Allen didn't exactly mean to play into tho Government hands as ho has done. * # * *

Concerning tho Choviot (from tho Bulletin):—The latest statement of accounts re the Cheviot estate, that allegedly disastrous speculation of tho Maoriland Government shows that tho amount which tho State has invested in tho property is now £274,000, and tho rents from small settlors are .£13,379 a year, eqtial to a little over M 17s per cent, per annum, As the Go-

vernment raised the money at about .£4 5s per cent., the result shows that the Seddon Ministrj has its head distinctly screwed on the right way.

The Oamaru Mail thus denounces tho unfairness of Opposition journalistic methods, as practiced in Hawke's Bay : " Degradation has no lower deep that some of the Opposition journals cannot reach it. i The Napier evening advocate of Captain Russell, the 'National 5 Association and usury supplies a case in point. That ' paper lately headed a telegram announcing tho adoption of a sixpenny telegram system with 'Anticipated Loss to be Met by Boy Labour,' thus insinuating that telegraph operators in receipt of proper salaries were to be replaced by cheap boys. There was nothing in the message to justify such an assumption. On the contrary, what the telegram did say was that such an increase of work was anticipated as would make possible the promotion of those messengers who are 'able to operate' to the position of junior operators. The man who can so degrade the journalistic profession as to put such a headline to the message is capable of any despicable meanness, and can score points over Ananias, Tom Pepper and all tho lying fraternity,' 1

Mr Carncross, the member for theTaieri, had an excellent meeting at Mosgiel last week. He made an able defence of the Government policy, but one of the most notable features of his address was his criticism of two of Sir Robert's pet panaceas —the Elective Executive Bill and the Raferendum. With regard to tho former, Mr Carncross said the Bill was rejected by 35 votes to 27, and ho went into tho lobby against the Bill. The Bill was in tho main supported by thoso who are, or profess to be, opposed to party government, and tried to flatter themselves with the belief that the bringing into existence of an electivo Executive would abolish party. For his part, he did not think that it would. Whenever a body of men were in oflice, party appeared to be inseparable. It appeared to him that tho feeding against party government was in some quarters being nursed only for one purpose—to get the present ruling party out of office. Ho was not blind to the evils and abuses of party government; they were many, but he thought that a greater independence on tho part of members would do much to lessen the evils.

Closely allied to tho Electivo Executive Bill, said Mr Carncross, was the Referendum; in fact, many people thought the one was the natural sequence to the other, 110 was not in favour of it. It appeared to him to bo opposed altogether to representative government. In connection with this Bill thoy had heard the cant phrase " Trust tho People." Ho said trust their representatives, and if thoy could not trust them turn them out and put in men they could trust. If the Referendum really did mean trusting the people, ho might view tho matter differently. By trusting tho people, ho meant allowing them to go quietly to the ballot box to record their votes. But this was not what would happen. Whatever tho subject upon which tho appeal was made they would find a host of speakers who, instead of trusting the people, would have so little trust in them, and so poor an opinion of their intelligence, that they would take to the platform to induce them to vote the right colour, whatever it might be, on all sorts of questions. # * # #

Mr Carncross summed up tho ambitions of tho Opposition very neatly when ho declared that Captain Russell and his followers " coolly asked the people to give them office, so that they might have the administering of laws which had been framed during tho past five years, but which they had neither the originality nor pluck to introduce when in power."

Some facts and figures about New Zealand (from the Bulletin) : —"In Maoriland from 1886 to 1890, when tho Conservatives were in power, the province lost 14,000 people by emigration ; from 1891 to 1895, under a Damocratic Government, it gained over 15,000 by immigration. Yet the Conservatives of that past Ministry—those that remain of them—are stumping the constituencies to-day, and calling on the people to throw out the Government because its policy is ' driving people out of the country.' Tho country lias a short memory, but it is hardly so short as all that." # # * #

Captain Russell never led a more forlorn hope than that which he now leads, in endeavouring to storm, with a mero handful of distiaetedTollowers, the citadel of Democratic Government which is held by tho present Ministry, and backed by the masses of this Colony.— Manawatu Farmer.

Tho National Conservative Association must have been spending its money pretty liberally amongst tho "free and independent" of Glenavy, in the Waitaki district, for Major Steward, when addressing a meeting at that place, had to meet constant interruptions from some drunken rowdies, who loudly declared they " were against the present Government," and carried their opposition so far as to try and prevent the Major getting a fair hearing.

Some clippings from a report of one of Major Steward's recent speeches : —"A lot of stories are in circulation about tho Bank Bill, but members recognised tho necessity for passing the Bank Bills in 1894, and for sinking party politics—otherwise the Bank of New Zealand would have closed its doors the next morning." " I do not beliavo that members of Parliament have personally benefited by having their accounts placed on the'C list.'" "In the old days settlers could' hardly get land, because tho squatters had the pick of it.

When a small settler did seo a suitable selection, the squatter somehow got word and managed to purchase it before him." " I was chairmm of the Tariff Commission, and, by the way, people said that I made a? much as from .£3 to £(> per day for the three months that the Commission sat. It is false. The law allowed a member only £1 per day, and ho had to pay his own expenses."

Writing to the Southland Daily News, " An Elector" remarks :—lf it becomes necessary to raise money to complete the railways, who is better entitled and more competent to carry out the work than the presont Government, who have done so well with so little means at their disposal, add until we find something wrong with tho present administration, or that their measures weie not working out right, I for one fail to see what claims the Opposition can justly put forward to entitle them to office. It would lie a dastardly act to vote any Government out on the mere abuse and prophesy of their enemies. The Hon Captain Russell lias been in Parliament as long as Mr Seddon, and opposed that gentleman and his] party all along, and now forsooth, ho generously offers to go a stop further to Mr Seddon's measures. There would certainly be no affection for the offspring, and Captain Russell and his party would not bo likely to carry them on in the way they should go. However, as far as present indications point, the Opposition have very little chance, and the mere fact of their attempting to abuse their way along is the surest sign of their weakness. Tho working inch are soein;, r through them every day, and will think twice bsforo they turn their backs on a Government that has done more for them than all the previous Governments put together.

Speaking to his Mataura constituents, Mr R. McNab said it was stated that Mr McKeuzie's policy had a tendency to reduce the price of land, "but," said tho speaker, "look back about 15 years, ivhen the deferred payment system was brought into operation, or to even a later date, when it was in full swing, and you will find that people would not, as a rule, touch land; in fact, tho idea of leasing land (except grazing land) was out of tho question. Now there is a tendency amongst those who go in for Crown lands to take up the leasehold tenure, as opposed to the freehold tenure. Settlement is increasing faster than the settlers can bo produced locally. People give up other employments to go the land for a means of livelihood. Many settlers who came out in tho old days had exaggerated ideas of the importance of owning the land upon which they lived ; they saw tho evils of the tenant system in the Old Country, and they rushed to the other extreme in order to say that thoy were tenants of no man. But the younger generation looked at it in a more matter-of-fact light. If tho land were leased, smaller capita] was required to start with, and there was no necessity to go to the mortgagee for borrowed capital. People would not now go tho cost of purchasing land; they preferred to lease it. And honco the price of land had fallen.

Tho Australian Star, a Sydney paper, recently tried to prove, in the interest of the lawyers and financial agents who act as private trustees, that a Public Trust Office, such as we have in New Zealand, is a failure. Just notice how it flounders : " The N.Z. Government boast that if they possess ono department more than any other calculated to soothe a man's path to the tomb, and keep him jocose when the spring flowers wave above him, that department is tho—Public Trust. All a person has to do in New r Zealand is to die —the Public Trust does the rest. You just put a penny into Death's slot, and there you are ! The Trust winds up your estate and invests the money. And you chuckle as you lie down below fondly imagining you have the security of the State. The Kaitangata fund is in the hands of the Public Trustee. It was thought somo of that fund might be available for relief of the widows and orphans made by tho Brunner tragedy. But the Kaitangata fund is sick. It now amounts to .£7725 and a building let at .£IOO a year. But on one of tho mortgages, amounting to .£4375, tho department expect a loss of £2OOO. So much for the security of the State and the State's investments !"

But upon the above dreary farrago of would-be jocularity, colossal ignorance of fact and deliberate misrepresentation the common sense comment of the IM.li.tin drops like a sledge-hammer:—" The real fact which the Star ignores is that the Kaitangata fund was for some time under private arrangement before it was handed over to the Public Trust Office, and that it was the private trustees who put the money of the widows and orphans into that ruinous investment. Since the fund was in the hands of the Public Trustee there have been no losses, and if there were the public revenue would h.avc made Hum good ' If the Star didn't know these facts, then its remarks are only ignorance and incompetence; if it did know them, then they are something elso which need not bo specified.