Not To Be Trusted.

Southland Times, Issue 9962, 10 September 1888, Page 3

Not To Be Trusted.

♦ Tbe House (sayi the Evening Presß of 28th nit.) did a good stroke of work yesterday in rescinding the resolution nf ti,e Committee of Supply voting LIO,OOO for the purchase of land for settlement. A more discreditable thing, perhaps, was never done by any Ministry than the plaoing of this vote on the Supplementary Estimates, with tbe deliberate intention of carrying it in tbe confusion of the dying hours of the session, and bo avoiding all discussion of the important principle involved. It shows that tbe Ministry are utterly without scruple, and not to be trusted for a moment. They evidently consider that nothing is wrong which can be carried, by fair means or foul ; but every trick is justifiable in order to baulk Parliament of their constitutional control over public affairs. Fortunately, their ability is not at all proportionate to tbeir unscrupuloasness ; and thus for the moat part their evil designs come to naught. On this occasion they have been exposed and brought to shame in an audacious attempt to carry a most corrupt measure by surprise ; and they have been defeated after all. Diminished in number and worn out . by fatigue as the House are, they still mustered up enough resolution and j organisation to rescind the vote of Saturday, bj wliich they virtually affirmed their opinion that the Ministry are not fit to be trusted with the preparation of the Supplementary Estimates. It was pointed cut by one or two members that the mere voting of LIO,OOO for the purchase of iand for labour settlements would not have given the Ministry power to spend any of the money during the reoesi, or, in fact to take any steps in the matter until an Act bad been passed. That is no doubt the case from the strictly legal point of view. But it is not to be believed for a moment that the Ministry would have been restrained by any considerations of legality. Tbey have shown unfortunately only too plainly that theBole consideration which weighs with them at all is the consideration of retaining office. It may be taken for certain therefore that if this vote of LIO,OOO had been confirmed and been included in tbe Appropriation Act, and if it had suited the Ministry to spend it duriDg the recess, for the purpose of gaining popularity or securing political support, they would have sped it without the least befiitatioD. Next session, if called to account for it, they would have taken exactly the game ground that Mr Ballaoce took last year. They would have said they bad bought land and formed settlements under the impression that that was what Parliament intended when they voted the money; and tbey would have thrown on Parliament the odium of turning the people off tbe land or of refusing to legalise what hid been done, Olertrly, to entrimt the Ministry with tow vote was tantamount to inveeting them with full power to do what they pleased with tbe money; and anybody who has watched thair movements this session must be very confiding indeed if he imagines that they would have shrunk for an instant from spending the last shilling of it for political purposes. The only safe plan waa to have put it out of their power to do anything of thu sort, by rescinding the vote' altogether ; and that is what the House have done We should have liked to see a larger majoriiy against the Ministry on this quf*tiorj ; but, ÜBdf-r the circumstancfs, it must bo deemed creditable to tb* House to havH b-on able to rally a majority against them at all It adds one more to the triamphs of the suasion which have consisted not in doing aoy good, but in preventing evil being done.