The Timaru Herald. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 1898.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 2888, 13 December 1898, Page 2

The Timaru Herald. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 1898.

1 1 The Premier, when speaking at Thames the other night, raked up the old allegation against the Opposition that they have no defined policy. He said they had merely what might be termed a " wait till the clouds roll by" policy. We do not see why the Opposition should seriously object to have their policy so characterised. It is not for them ; as an Opposition, to formulate a policy, and announce that when they are m office they will introduce such and such measures and shape their finance on such and such lines. The chief business of the Opposition is to watch what is being done by the Ministry, either acting as the Executive m the administration of the affairs of the colony, or as the leaders of a Parliamentary majority, and m the latter capacity introducing such legislation as they deem necessary. The Opposition are the constitutional critics of the Government. They should not be factious or unjust critics, but should as far as possible expose maladministration and resist the passing of what they believe to be mischievous or illconsidered legislation. There never before was a Ministry m New Zealand that could stand the ordeal of such criticism so badly as the Seddon Ministry stands it. A good deal of their legislation has been mischievous, and almost the whole of it has been badly framed, so that Parliament is constantly patching and tinkering to correct the blunders of last year or the year before. But let us confine our attention to the Seddonian administration. It is rotten to the core, and has been so from the commencement. The Opposition have rendered the colony most important services by dragging into the light of day a multitude of scandals m connection with the administration. It is not their fault that they have been unable to effect much reformation, though no doubt things would have been a good deal worse if the Ministry had not had the fear of Opposition criticism ever present m their minds. We shall not trouble our readers with a repetition of all the jobs and scandals of the last two or three years. Most of them have from time to time been mentioned m our columns, and we never yet saw a good defence of any one of them. The Premier has been by far the greatest sinner ; m fact, the entire responsibility for the introduction and maintenance of the present abominable system rests with him. The main if not the sole object of the administration has been to favour men of " the right colour." All other considerations have been regarded as of no account m comparison with that. The Seddonian system has (if we may be permitted to use a slang expression) been " worked for all it is worth," and so far it has undoubtedly been worth a great deal to the Premier. The Opposition have all along hoped that the time would arrive when the eyes of the people would be opened to the fact that he has degraded the colony by his administration, and that they, the people, are the sufferers. The Opposition long for the return of honest, truthful, and intelligent administration m the interests of all classes of the community. They have done and are still doing their best to ensure a return to an administration fairly entitled to a character such as that. They rightly picture New Zealand as enveloped m the noxious and blinding clouds of Seddonism, and they are content to " wait till the clouds roll by." By all appearances they will not have to wait very long, for the system under which New Zealand groans is becoming more and more discredited every day as its iniquities force themselves under the notice of the constituencies. The Premier bragged very loudly m his Thames speech. He even went the length of making the ridiculous assertion that his Government were stronger now than they had ever been before " because the people saw around them the beneficial effect of the Government's legislation." Yet it is an open secret that the Cabinet is thoroughly disorganised, and that the Premier is casting about for means to get rid of Mr Thompson and Mr Hall-Jones, m order that he may strengthen a Ministry already according to him enjoying a phenomenal degree of strength. We do not say that he is going to get rid of the two gentlemen whom we have named, but he would do so at once if certain difficulties were removed from his path, and possibly they may be. But besides the two members of the Ministry whom the Premier would like to dismiss, there are two others who are almost certain to go out of their own accord before the lapse of many months. Can a Government be called strong when the position of so many of the individual Ministers is insecure ?