The Wanganui Herald [PUBLISHED DAILY.] SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1905.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11729, 2 December 1905, Page 4

The Wanganui Herald [PUBLISHED DAILY.] SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1905.

IS HE A NEW LIBERALP

Mb "W. G. Bassexx, beforo-a- thin aiietience

in the Opera House last evening,-, essayed to walk along "the top of the political fence, but only succeeded in sitting on the top rail; with his Tight- leg on a different side to that on which his left l«g appeared. Mr Bassett would probably liavo performed better had he been equipped with a better balancing pole. He was greatly handicapped by using a pole that was too heavy at one end, being weighted with approval of the Government's legislation at one extremity, and pledges to turn them out of office at the other. Several times during, the evening Mr Bassett attempted to recover himself, but wobbled badly. For instance, when dealing with education, he declared emphatically that he would be no, ..party to any attempt to break jup our present system, which he described as a magnificent one. Yet almost in the same, breath he strenuously . advocated, nay, ..insisted on the advisability of introducing the Bible into our schools. Seeing the controversy that lias raged round ,this : vexed question for so many years, it is difficult to see how Mr Bassett's pacific policy of non-interference on the one hand squares with his avowal to introduce on the other what has unhappily proved a frequent cause of strife. Of course, he said that tho latter should be submitted to a referendum, but not content that, he proceeded to give his personal which was that the- Bible ought to be, jnot^ read; 1 but taught in all State. teckooX^o o".®0 ".® amusing feature .of the address _ was. Mr : ' Bassett's excessive caution-, on ".the score of expense in the introduction of reforms. Everyone knows .the dissatisfaction so often expressed at .the present method of electing such bodies .as- Education Boards, yet Mr Bassett, dealing with the reform proposed by the. Premier, thought it would cost too much. - He strongly favoured an elective JUpper. House, but, such a thing as an election of that'^body by the people found no favour in., Mr.-Bas-sett's eyes ; it would cost too , much, and he graciously explained that the people ■ should delegate their rights in .such a matter to the Lower Chamber. : He took just the same view- with regard to securing majority representation, approving of the principle, but. rejecting all proposals put forward as ■ unsatisfactory, .except his own, which he immediately afterwards admitted would cost ,too-much,. Judging by Mr Basaet^'s frequently-expressed ap-

proval of the principles actuating the (Jpvernment in so much of its legislation, . me are' quite satisfied that he has made % mistake in ranging himself under the Conservative banner. He really should have called himself a Liberal. And judging'by' his frequently expressed intention to vote against the Government and turn them out of office, we incline to the opinion that he must be a 4nember of that nondescript body known as the New Liberals. In fact, the familiar reference he made> to the leader of that small- and heterogenous party, whom he affectionately styled "Tommy" Taylor, strengthens us in this belief. And if anything was wanted to absolutely convince us this point, it was Mr Bassett's continued sneers at Mr Seddon, a feature of his speech which coincided exactly with ' the terms in which Messrs "Tommy" Taylor and' Co. so frequently alined to the Premier. In fact, some of his sarcasms — empty as they were of anything in the nature of argument — iwere nothing but an insult to the intelligence of those whose support Mr Bassett is seeking. What, for instance, are we to think of a candidate who seriously says that it is the in.tention of the Premier to carve "Richard Rex" over the door of every dwelling to. be erected under the Workers' Homes scheme? Such a childish sarcasm as that does but little credit to any candidate, -. though we- admit i€ is characteristic of the eloquence with which the New Liberal Party, with whose opinions Mr Bassett's own so exactly coincide, so frequently and gracefully adorn the proceedings of the House of Representatives. , Mr Bassett indulged in a little fling at ourselves in regard to our advice to women electors noij to allow themselves to be misled into voting- .for him. just because he was a Prohibition candidate. He admitted, however, that tho "Herald" was right if this were so, but. contended" that it was not, conveniently overlooking the fact that the No-license Party everywhere throughout the colony is working. this same point for all it is worth. Then, as an admission of the weakness of his contention that no women electors would be led away by plausible No-license arguments, he followed this up by a strong plea to put Nolicense supporters into the House to . help "Tommy" Taylor. The Premier's jocular reference at Aramoho to giving • Mr Massey "another turn" found much disfavour in Mr Bassett's eyes, who evidently looks on it as a crime to make a joke. Mr Bassett was not present at the 1 Premier's Aramoho meeting, therefore is in no position to judge, and is certainly not justified in referring to Mr Seddon's little joke as ungentlemanly and unehivalrous. We' venture- to" say that Conservatives who were present- at that meeting laughed at the joke as much as the Liberals did, and were certainly not so fcolish as to see in it the evidence of malice which Mr Bassett's splenetic imaginings enable him to see. Mr Bassett trotted " out the same old arguments and the same old bogeys with" which we are so familiar aa being tie weakness of an Opposition, thai in vainly trying to eaptur* the confidence of the people, has had the mortification, election after election, of seeing the latter return the Party that has had • tiheir real interests at heart. These visionary and intangible Opposition arguments have been again and again refuted, therefore it would be. waste of time to -'■further refefNo them. The meeting last night was, 'in every sense of the word, stale, flat, and unprofitable; stale by reason of the same old useless wordiness and tho same old abuse of the Government which possesses the people's confidence; flat by reason of the small attendance and the utter absence of anything approaching enthusiasm; and unprofitable, to Mr Bassett at least, by reason- of his convincing the electors that a candidate who approves of Government principles, says he will vote with the Opposition, and expresses a wish to help "Tommy" Taylor, is not exactly the kind- of representative they need.