WORDS AND DEEDS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1633, 11 August 1887, Page 3

WORDS AND DEEDS.

-The Hod. Major Atkinson on Monday evening addressed a public meeting m Wellington, and there are one or two points m the telegraphic resumi of his speech which challenge criticism. Much as we admire the gallant Major's physical and moral courage, we must take exception to his posing as an advocate of retrenchment. We suppose this is one of the gallant Major's amiable weaknesses, for we do not remember his ever making a set speech during the recess, or an electioneering campaign, m which he did not assume the idle of the leading economist of the day, and when m Oqposition he invariably makes retrenchment his tramp card. But let us see bow far hit practice corresponds with his profession. On Oct 14, 1879, he said :— HI should like now, Sir, to refer to one or two questions of general expenditure, and my object m doing so is to show that we are not exercising any economy

whatever m our public service. By p; that I mean that although we have, m h this House, made a great deal of talk * about retrenchment— although Govern- Jj .*sents have been turned out because tney were supposed to be extravagant, t ] • and others have come m pledging * themselves to effect great reductions — ti the fact Is that we have not retrenched n m any one respect that I can find out." * Indeed, now one would think from these J .apparently earnest utterances that Major j Atkinson would at the earliest possible j period give effect to the views thus fl enunciated. Did he do so ? We wilf I let subsequent events answer. Sir r John Hall recently addressed the elec- J tors of Selwyn at Lseston, and m the J course of his remarks stated that when he left office m 1882, he left a surplus „ Of Assuming the accuracy \ o\ this statement as well as that made \ by the Colonial Treasurer m his Christ- 1 . < mrch speech, that when the present ' ( overnment took office m 1884, they j 'jadtoface a deficit of j£i 50,000, we ( .aye this rather startling fact that* m the ( period between Sir John Hall's leaving 1 office and the defeat of the Atkinson- < Government — aperiodof someeighteen months — not only was there a deficiency ' of ;£i 50,000, but the sur- ' plus had also disappeared, or, m other words, that m that brief period the polony had gone to the bad to the extent of Of a verity the gallant Major has fairiy earned the •obriquet of the Apostle of extravagant expenditure. Yet this is the man who unblushingly tells a public meeting that tbc present Government cannot be trusted to carry out the necessary reductions and reforms." Had any of the various Atkinson Administration's shown half so good a record as the present Ministry it had been well for the colony. But the divergence between Major Atkinson's professions and Major Atkinson's performance is too well known to require further illustra- .... Uon. The question which we would put to the electors is this : Are you willing to allow the big land monopolists, the "gridironers," et hoc genus emne to succeed m restoring the Apostle of extravagant expenditure and his party to office ? We trow not.