The Waipawa Mail. Published Tuesdays, Thursdays, & Saturdays. Saturday, January 23, 1892.

Waipawa Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 2712, 23 January 1892, Page 2

The Waipawa Mail. Published Tuesdays, Thursdays, & Saturdays. Saturday, January 23, 1892.

It is clear, from Mr Buick’s late address, that the Liberal Party have completely disowned the Stout-Vogel Ministry and all their works. Mr Buick; said we have now the first Liberal policy since the days of Sir

George Grey. Yefe Mr Buick’s leader, Mr Ballance, held office under Stout and Vogel, and there is therefore no escape from the conclusion that he then put his principles in his pocket for the sake of remaining in office. What assurance can be given that Mr Ballance may not again sacrifice principle to expediency? We are told to disregard the threatened withdrawal of taxation, because New Zealand, despite its fiscal policy, still offers a preferable field for investment. But if there is no more profitable field for employment of capital elsewhere, it may be locked up. The locking up of a small portion of circulating capital would cause wide-spread distress. Whilst confidence prevailed amongst capitalists regarding colonial investments, there was always a considerable though gradually diminishing margin between English and colouial rates of interest. This margin enabled the various loan companies to make a profit by the introduction of English capital, bor-

rowing it on debentures in England, and lending it on mortgage in the colonies. We are told that the new taxation will still leave a small margin. The loan companies, however, declare that even their economical machinery will not enable them to profitably carry on the business. How are the colonists to obtain capital from other sources at as low a -rate ? Through whatever channel English capital may be obtained, there must be some procuration fee. Borrowers and lenders living at the extreme end of the earth will require some agency to bring them together. The flow of capital and the rate of interest will not be regulated by the views of Liberal politicians, but by the tone of the English money market and the utterances of financial organs. Mr Buick also said that the necessity for organisation was forced on his party by the action of their opponents ; but, as a matter of fact, large sections of the Liberal Party were thoroughly organised before their opponents took any action. As a result of the strike andjits failure, nearly all the trade unions were suddenly converted into political organisations ; then they had the Kaights of Labor, whose strength, as it is a secret society, cannot be measured. There was also the Single Tax" Society, with the renowned Mr Walter Hill at its head. Mr Buick wishes it to be taken for granted that the policy of the present Government is approved of ; and yet he proposes that every member of the Federation shall consider and vote on every measure, and “ so mould the policy of the Liberal party that, when the pulse of the colony beats, it throbs would be felt by those in power.” There is surely a wide inconsistency here. Mr Buick at first leads us to believe that the Federation is to be a mere electoral machine of the Government, approving their policy and therefore only favoring the election of candidates whose views ware in accord with that policy. Then he says, in effect, that every transient exhibition of popular sentiment should directly mould the policy of the Government. Many of the most advanced political thinkers are of opinion that some restraint should be imposed on the voice of the people. Although there are many clogs on our legislative machinery, in England and the colonies, it is always possible to force through a measure quickly under the pressure of public opinion. An instance was afforded in the House of Commons a few years ago, when the Criminal Law Amendment Bill passed all its stages in a day during the excitement consequent on revelations of humau slavery. The danger is always that legislation may be forced on too quickly, and is dangerous to take off the brakes from the State coach. There is only another point remaining to be noticed in Mr Buick’s lecture. He thought it was not the business of Ministers to consider a sentiment of such a grasping, avaricious nature as the love of a freehold, said to be implanted in the breast of every Anglo-Saxon. We trace here evidence of a disposition prevalent amongst Liberals, who are often only theorists, to legislate for human nature as it should be, and not as it is. If we could render human nature, in other respects, what it should be, we admit it would be desirable to abolish freehold tenure ; but when we find a Government making concessions to one class of Crown tenants who are Liberals, and refusing them to their opponents, then independent electors will continue to prefer the freehold tenure. We can assure Mr Buick that he acts unwisely in attacking freehold title when he is addressing country audiences.