The Patea County Press, (With which is incorporated The Patea Mail.) "Be Just and Fear Not.” WEDNESDAY, 7th JUNE, 1899. VERACITY.

Patea Mail, Volume XII, Issue 56, 7 June 1899, Page 2

The Patea County Press, (With which is incorporated The Patea Mail.) "Be Just and Fear Not.” WEDNESDAY, 7th JUNE, 1899. VERACITY.

Referring to the Premier’s wonderful method of expounding facts aud using- figures in support of the honesty aud success of his administration. The Evening Lost, in referring- to his Auckland speech, says: . . . “ His speech on Wednesday night was apparently thoroughly characteristic of the Eight Honourable gentleman. It took no less than throe hours and a quarter to deliver; it included a longlegislative programme which cannot possibly bo carried out iu one session : and it .was full of the inaccuracies upon which Mr Seddon largely founds the boasted success of his Government. Among these “inaccuracies,” as wo may call them, although they really deserve a harsher name, was the astounding statement that “ for the first time iu the history of the colony the ccxccss of exports over imports had been so much us to pay the interest on the national debt.” As a corrective to the Premier’s errors avo would draAV attention to the folioAving figures : —ln 1889 the excess of exports over imports amounted to £3,203,371, aud iu 1890 to £3,640,121. This avus during the late Sir Harry Atkinson’s tenure of office. In 1897 the excess was only £1,747,021, and in 1898 only £2,238,429. This was Avhile the Eight lion. E. J. Seddon Avas head of the Government. These figures alone are cpite enough to prove the hollow-

ness of the Premier’s misleading boasts. Similar misstatements marked his attempt to prove that the public works policy of the Liberal Government had as a whole been more economical than that of Sir Harry Atkinson. Ho simply dealt with the Public Works Fund and neglected to count in the many other amounts expended by Ills Government, and it is noticeable that ho only cpioted for comparison “ Liberal ” figures up to the death of the late Mr Ballance. He seemingly feared to use his own financial operations as illustrations of “Liberal” economy.” The concluding paragraph of the above deserves specie l attention. Then proceeding, taking a portion of his speech which may be deemed to bo distinctly electioneering, the Post continues : —“ The object of the Premier’s visit to Auckland is very obvious from his treatment of the San Francisco mail question. Mr Seddon forsees that the electoral contest in the Auckland Province will be a severe one, and as the stability of his Government may depend upon tire issue, he has made all haste to secure the support of the “ Parliamentary phalanx ” formed to defend Auckland’s mail monopoly. “ Auckland,” he declared, “ would never lose the port of call of the San Francisco mail service as long as the administration existed, or he had a voice to speak for her.” This reads like an unblushing bid for Northern votes, ai d was no doubt drawn from the Premier by the halfexpressed intention to vote “solid” against any Government that favoured a transfer of the port of call. The Premier did,, it is true, express a hope that a substitute for the Vancouver service might be found to help the commercial community in this part of the colony. Put unless this “ hope ” is something more solid than mere verbiage, it is quite evident that the Premier, with good generalship but bad statesmanship, has thrown away the interests of the larger part of the colony in order to secure the support of the Auckland “phalanx.”