The Star. MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1919. MR MASSEY IN THE SOUTH.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19811, 1 December 1919, Page 6

The Star. MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1919. MR MASSEY IN THE SOUTH.

The Prime Minister is paying an electioneering visit to the South Island, and towards the close of last week was in Southland. On Saturday night, whon lie spoke in Ilivertou, ho fairly "lot himself go." Kiverton, we may remiEvij our readers., is the chief town in tlw Wallace constituency, which has for a number of years returned a Liberal member. Mr Massey, according to a report in one of his party journals, devoted quite a lot of attention to "a new party'that had come into existence lately—the Parliamentary Labour Party, which did not represent Labour." Mr Massey was good enough to inform his audience that he did not imagine the Labour Party would secure a majority in the country: the danger was that it might link up with the Liberal Party provided that it received a promise of legislation that would suit it. Jlr Massey drew a lurid, almost terrifying, picture of what would happen if by any chanco or design Liberals and Labourites combined to defeat the Government. "If you want to prevent anything of that sort happening," ho said, "you must givo tho present Government a working majority, sufficient to carry on without depending on the Bolshevists, and it is in your interests that that should bo done." It does not seem to occur to Mr Massey that the country would bo perfectly snfo in giving the Liberals a majority sufficient to enable them to carry on without the aid of the Labour Party, who are so picturesquely described as " Bolshevists." Time was when Mr Massey was not at all averse to joining his forces to those of the now despised Labour Party. Having achieved office himself largely through the instrumentality of Labour malcontents, he is able to speak with fooling when he contemplates the implacable hostility with which his party Is now regarded by Labour. It was quite tlio proper thing for the Reformers to use Labour for their own ends and to. gain office, says Mr Massey, in effect, but it would be highly Improper if Liberals and Labourites voted together and brought about the downfall of the Government. Mr Massey talked a good deal of balderdash about the price which would have to be paid for' Labour support, and piously thanked Heaven that an alleged conspiracy against the Reformers had come to naught. We do not think that the electors will be misled by the kind of stuff which the Reform leader is handing out. Labour hostility towards the Reform Government is based on deeper foundations than any liking that exists for a return of Liberalism. The failure of Reform to deal strongly and effectively with the -problems of the day, the hopelessness of the future disclosed by the lack of vision in the Reform policy, are sufficient to account for the antagonism. We contend that intelligent Labour is represented by Liberalism, and we expect to find the workers voting for Liberals rather than for the extremists who bear the imprimatur of the JCew Zealand Labour Partv.