THE New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). FRIDAY, JULY 22, 1892.

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 9662, 22 July 1892, Page 2

THE New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY).

FRIDAY, JULY 22, 1892.

With vjhir.h are incorporated the Wellington Independent , established 1845, and the New Zealander.

The honours of the debate last night fell to the Minister of Education. In fact, the Minister, by common consent, made the best speech of the debate, and in the opinion of many the best speech he has ever made in the House. Like the member for Clutha on Wednesday night, he indulged in banter, but his banter was quite the subordinate part of his speech. It was very good banter, rich in illustration, broadly humorous, racy, genial and ready. It carried the House away in a manner not witnessed for years. Mr Scobie Mackenzie felt most of the weight of it, Dr Newman had a good share, and so had the newly-elected member for Bruce, and the member for Waitotara. The peals of laughter which the House gave at their expense will perhaps not soon bo forgotton by those gentlemen. But the humour was subordinate to the main business of the speech. It was the speech of an effective debater who misses no single point touched on the other side, who has a complete grasp of all the subjects he handles, and has command of polished, concise, scholarly English. It was unflagging from first to last, agreeable to the House, and it hit uncommonly hard without the use of a single hard word. The peroration was particularly striking. It has been the habit of the other side to represent this Minister as rashly given over to the wildest communistic theories. His peroration, which was devoted to Communism and Socialism, greatly impressed the House. His friends were not surprised to find that his profession of State Socialism, if his political faith can be called by that much-abused, muchmisunderstood term, is founded on reason, caution, practical expediency and patriotism. His opponents, on the other hand, were agreeably astonished, as Mr Rhodes took occasion gracefully to say afterwards. That acknowledgment, so creditable in a political opponent, is one of the most graceful tilings that has been said in a debate in the House for years. Mr Rhodes and his friends who were impressed with him will, we feel sure, forgive us if we say that to the student of human nature their astonishment is amusing. It reminds one that many worthy, earnest, well meaning people in the world are panic stricken by the mere shadow of a name. You have only-to hint that a man has a tendency to Socialism, and they at once regard him much as they would regard a dangerous wild animal let loose among them. They never stop to enquire what the name really implies. A terrifying vista of wild possibilities opens before their fearful eyes, leading to a gulf of destruction in which all property, all law, all order, all rights are destined to bo swiftly involved. If the suspected creature have any sort of public influence, he is summoning the ignorant masses to use their brute strength to hurl everything sacred into that dreadful gulf. Every word he says, every word ho writes or is suspected of writing —there are clever people who insist on seeing familiar “ Roman hands” everywhere—is twisted into a sign of this fell purpose. It is the very panic of unreason. A number of men in the House have been touched with that feeling for years past, and directly they hear the object of their curious suspicion speak common sense for five minutes about his views, they are impressed, reassured, and freed from the nightmare of coming evil. For finding this kind of thing amusing we trust the Opposition will forgive us. To help them to do so, they ought to remember that the Minister has been the object of their unjust but outspoken criticism for a long time. The speech in which he has convinced them of their error has, as we have said, carried off the honours of the debate, so far as it has gone. Had it not been delivered Mr Scobie Mackenzie’s speech would have been remembered as a sensation. It will be remembered now as an able speech, to which very effective reply Ins been made, and the contrast of its coarse adjectives will not be forgotton, nor will the punishment they received. Another thing will bo remembered too, viz., that of all the budding Treasurers who took the field after the debate opened so gaily not one was left with any pretensions to competency when the Minister of Education sat down. The member for Clutha was facetious the other day about the famous motto, “ Wanted a policy.” He will have to exercise his wit in future on “ Wanted a Treasurer.”