MONDAY, JULY 15.

Otago Witness, Issue 2471, 24 July 1901, Page 30

MONDAY, JULY 15.

NEW ZEALAND RAILWAYS. Speaking at a social gathering at Petore on Saturday night, Sir Joseph Ward mid that tlie railways of New Zealand were dt'sdiied to play a more important pare m the history of the colony than a navy both foi commercial and strategic piirpcse*. In the latter particular they would prove of in.meu.se advantage to the colony should ccca="cn unhappily arise. The system was yet in its infancy, and had now but 7800 em])<oy«»s. but he might safely predict that iv 15 or 20 j-esia there would bp 50.000 men employed. He felt it was hfs duty to secure for the employees fair treatment and fair wage-. A proposal would shoitly )>e fcirii-mitt-ed for a superannuation" fund for the wiiole of the employees of the colony. Propetals were to be submitted to Parliament which would, if .agrse*! to. enable them to enlarge the she/ps so that the utmost amouuc of work in the way of building locomotive.-, carriages, and waggons could be undertaken. A COUNTER BLAST. Whether the Government rou-ci"nce ovickr tli cm for I lie alleged neglect of the terming community, or whether li:ey have been actuated by a desire to train up the couiitry settler in the waj' he should go. or whether they fear the growing body called the Fariß'Prft' Ukioi:, it is hard io cay, bnt the Government lias '' gone to the country '' nnd formed tho neurfeus of another union, which shall be of the rirht colour — or, rather, absoiutelv colourless a* far a= politics is> conoeiuied. The idea of 3- body, with the Premier somewhere handy to the steering gear, is distinctly good, but t>o it " is ghen forth. The Government are firmly convi. need that the Farmers' Union is the Phoenix of the National Association, and anything from such a could not, of course, be -good for a democrat. c peonla under an autocratic Premier : her -re the Produce-rs' Union, th? fornc'atiou istone of which was laid at Pahia-ua under tke ei^pices of one oi Mr Seddon's ppecche* Tire Premier said thai Mr Houston h?d stated i-i the House that the formers' Union waoriginated iv lv's district for the purnopp rf oubting him from hip S'Sut in Parliament, and it had bee'i further Mated that Mr Monk was its father and other Opnovjt : on members it« sponsors. This caused th° Government to make -inquiries, and to nnd that, th-f platform demanded, und^r a cloak, tli" repeal of the Land for Settlfmentp Act am l other measures of pppro^ed (Jovmia 0 ! 1 ' policy. The Producer-.' Union h:»d mi* f.'i.w?rc! a nlTtform s-^uiid sr><\ m ;>c r r rr ' ir><-e with the l'(=->L in t promts of farn-fr 11 . v. l.icb u-ith a -! ; <jhl .""Ircrrf^i^p. v/orld cmrniii' l '! Miristerc' support. Hp houcl the ur.iorwould pftfiP* 1 p3- v tA" politics, and hand to-"p-tlver fv th" eonrnion <rood of all the i>rndvopr« in t\\* fo'on^ But r. clance pt <"ie mi'=O'ttnfl nf 'ho-e wlto n3\cpi nr l nt tho fhristfv.in; ("'"'i-o'v af il>p l.ttl a &!raure~ dnp? >iot .>i:f?T- we; 1 fo • fie a ta ; ' inert ci fUcll iljl • l i'\p l . THE POLTTJCAL TTPE Under any e>ti)cr circumstance- t' % c i ccent action of the Opposition in no^ uamipi? o leader and ce'sina: to exist as ,ir> orzani°cd party would havp onened i:r> a 'ong vist* 1 of possibilities, but <=o far there lias rotbeen tho slightest indication of :i"7" chsigp nr any latent moveme'iit aincn" nsrti" 0 . The Preraipr 1 * lai's;* 1 <e°T>i is Rt'll w«-ll in hard, and division^ r"-~a'i) 3 r-cre lrc't^r rrf form. Of covroe th" luc-t erf lhei» befne ■<. OppT-ition e-s «*■> ('^n^otjti'rn iiiiturallr ii'duoi-s a fr?=dom of criticism on the oart e,f Gov-ernment puppor ere. and th-ere is no tilling where tliife might 3eod. as it is, in liolitics as in certain other thing.- that the mjpxpected always happens. What d< c-, glnlre oLe. thoutrh, is a feelinsc of waitmo in the political fltmospherp — a feeling ns of v.-ait'n3 to «"p what t'i° Premier jniends t-> do. II is taktu for gr<tut«d irLat ho Is £oi^.i£

io make a move within an appreciable time, and this feeling may keep matter.- u^ thing -< aie for the present.