THE VERY LATEST MARE'S NEST.

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14835, 28 November 1913, Page 6

THE VERY LATEST MARE'S NEST.

"Liberal" journalism has within the last year adopted some new methods of action such as have never been resorted to in this country before. When official figures stand in the way of such an attack xm the Reform Government as "Liberals" would like to make, some of tho •'Liberal" newspapers wilfully falsify the figures to suit. They circulate untruths as facts, and suppress facts when they cannot bo distorted. The local organ of the anti-Reformers succeeded yesterday in equalling any of its previous feats. In an article dealing with tho arrangements in connexion with the Lyttelton by-election it- charged the Government with manipulating the issue of the writ, and the closing of the rolls, with the object of securing some improper advantage over the

"Liberals" and their "fellow progressives," the Red Feds. After saying that the Reform Party started the work of canvass more quickly than the ''Liberals," and that the ''Liberals,' , when they did get to work, found that 6omo of their friends were not enrolled, our contemporary went on to

By yesterday morning a large number of* completed applications had been secured, but when the first batch of these was presented to the Registrar the canvasser was informed -that the roll had been closed on the previous evening by telegraphed instructions from "Wellington. This -morning it is announced that candidates must be nominated on Saturday next, fortyeight hours hence, and that the poll will take place on December 9th. This extraordinary proceeding was mentioned in tho House of Representatives last night and the Prime Minister professed to be greatly concerned on learning that a large number of qualified persons were not on the roll, but there can be no possible doubt that the arrangements were made under the special direction of the Government with tho deliberate purpose of placing its opponents at a disadvantage.

This "extraordinary proceeding," which is hold to convict Mr Massey of chicanery of the meanest sort, is almost precisoly the same proceeding as followed the vacancy caused by the death of Mr T. E. Taylor. The writ in that case was issued seven days after the member's death. The writ in the present case was issued six days after Mr Lanrenson's death. And in each case, of course, the rolls were closed on the day on which the writ was issued. In 1911 nobody on the Opposition side dreamed of suggesting that the Ward Government had acted improperly, but when the Massey Government follows the same course as was followed then, it is considered "cricket" by the baser kind of "Liberal" critic to make a. violent and disgraceful charge against the Prime Minister. If Mr Massey gave any "special direction" it was obviously a direction that the course adopted by the Ward Government in 1911 should be followed as exactly as possible. Between the date of the vacancy and the date of the close of nominations, eleven days elapsed in 1911 and ten days will elapse on this occasion (eleven days being rendered impossible this time by the fact that the eleventh day would be Sunday). In each case, also, the interval between the day for closing nominations and the election day was ten days. In view of those facts, comment upon the "Liberal" journal's reckless and malignant nonsense is hardly required. No attempt will bo made by onr contemporary, of course, to let its readers know the facts we have set out, but the public as a whole will be made aware of them during the election campaign. The chief interest of the slanderous outburst under notice is in its revelation that our "Liberal" friends are growing exceedingly unhappy as time goes on, and increasingly careless of facts. This must be nearly the worst blunder into which its malignancy has led official "Liberalism.'»