Mr Reeves at New Plymouth.

Opunake Times, Volume II, Issue 77, 29 March 1895, Page 3

Mr Reeves at New Plymouth.

• The Hon. W. P. Reev.s, h Irs a \- . dregs in reference to the depression, skid he had promis d to say something al>out tlio pr. sent stale of the count y. It was not 01 the pleasantest. Trade, commerce, and industrial conditions were not as flourishing as they should be." He thought their duty, from a patriotic point, was to look at things on the bright side, and not tty to run down the credit of the colony. It was best to look on the bright side of things, and make the best of them. It was not unreasonable to ask the politicians of the colony to join and endeavour to put the finances of the country outside party altogether. They should unite in defending the colony against libel and aspersion—(applause) —as much as they should in defending the country in case of war, whether tbey agreed or not as to the cause of -the war. (Applause.) A third of the newspapers were saying that the colony was in a bad state ; that the surpluses were "cooked"; and that no one knew what the next few months would bring out. He believed in fair criticism, but they should not throw stones at the country. Then, newspaper re* marks were published in the Home papers, and anyone who read the London financial papers would see wild paragraphs purporting to show that our finances were ia a desperate and dangerous state. It Avas no advantage to him to stand there and tell his hearers a falsehood. The public finances of the colony were not in danger, but in a sound condition. (Applause.) The financial year would leave a substantial surplus—a sound and true one. Trade and industries were not in a flourishing condition, certainly, and he was not a fool—if he .: were knave enough—to stand up and say that the colony was ia a good state. It was mad and false to say that the present state of affairs was due to"the legislat on of the Government. New Zealand was the only country in the world in which a Liberal and Labour Government had in office four years, and in which Liberal aud Labour measures had been passed for four years. If the depression were due to the policy of the Government, they should be able to see the prosperity the Conservative Governments of other countries had brought about. But what did tiiey see? The reverse. He had recently visited three of the Australian colonies. "Were they better than New Zealand? Tbey were worse. Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia had more resources than New Zealand, yet they were worse off. He felt thankful that be had such a country as New Zealand to come back to. (Applause.) [The speaker then alluded to the depressed condition of America, Canada, England, and Germany. In England, the speaker said, there were one and three-quarter millions of people out of work, according to Mr Kerr-Hardie 1 It was not for him to tell the causes of this depression ; they all had their opinions on the subject. The causes were world- - wide, very deep, and not to ba found on the -surface. Until there were radical changes in the industrial and commercial state of things, the world would continue to see these terrific panics. After further remarks, the speaker referred to an extract from the Wellington Post, which ho thought the editor, had written when he was not thinking of political matters. It was a review of the year's doings, and said that the depression was world- . wide and affected all. One day the editor would write that, and the next day assert that the depression affected New Zealand alone, and that this was due to the fiscal, financial, and industrial laws of the infamous Government. Referring to Captain Russell's statement at Hastings, that capital was being driven out of the colony, he llluded to the fact that Colonel North,

" the Nitrate King," had bought up shares in Thames goldmining, and argued that if capitalists could get six, seven, or eight per cent for their money they would invest it. Money had been flowing in during the last four years, but the papers had never recorded that fact, although they alluded to the withdrawals. The people were not getting the prices they were some years ago, and a farmer who had a business ia New Plymouth said he was not now getting 60 per cent, of what he used to receive for hi 3 produce. That, he thought, was rather exaggerated, but still they were not getting the same prices. To say that the Government, or any Government, was reponsible for this state of affairs, was almost blasphemous—it was like putting them in the place of the Almighty. They could not be held responsible for droughts and the other natural factors of the depression. When the condition of the colony was better than it is now, and when the prices were higher, one could never hear a member of the Opposition give the Government the credit of it. The burden of the song was that the party was not in any way connected with it, and now that affairs were not quite in such a prosperous state, they would make believe that the Government was at the bottom of it. He thought those present would agree with him that it was hardly fair. (Applause.) What he wished was that the people should look on the acts and legislation of the Liberal Party on their merits. Take the taxation, the land laws, and labor laws, and he would ask them to consider whether they were good or bad, and then praise or condemn them accordingly.—News.