A Parliamentary "Steai."

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16855, 8 June 1920, Page 6

A Parliamentary "Steai."

"\Yc can recall no previous action by the Federal Parliament that aroused tho widespread and furious resentment now displayed all over Australia at tho conduct of the Government in introducing, and of members in passing, the Bill raising the salary of members from £J(!0 to £1000, with additional "douceurs" for the Leaders of the Opposition in the two Chambers. Branches of the Taxpayers' Association in all parts of Victoria, including Bendigo, tho Prime Minister's electorate, and or- j ganisations of every kind, from labour ' unions to milk producers and the "Women's National League, and including numberless local bodies, have passed resolutions condemning in vigorous anil sometimes violent language, what has become known as tho "salary grab." j Such "sabre cuts of Saxon speech" as' " theft," "robbery," "buccaneering," ! "direct action," "gross breach of "faith," and so on, are used to de-j scribo popular opinion of members' ; action. Mr TV. M. Hughes, whoso .speech in introducing the Bill was an; admirable example of the spccial plead- j ing that ignores morality and is con-! cernod only with expediency, has been; reminded that in tho election campaign five months ago—in which the proposed GG per cent, increase to members' salaries does not seem to have been whispered and was ccrtainly not placed before the electorate, he declared he would like to "shoot the profiteer." He is now invited to explain how tho: Federal Parliament, guilty as it is of flagrant and unashamed profiteering, can pretend to legislate against traders indulging, in many instances in much smaller degree, in the same practice. One newspaper correspondent, with the inconveniently long memory that some politicians have such good reason to detest in .their critics, turned to "The '"Case for Labour," written by Mr Hughes himself in his .Labourite days,, and disinteiTed a passage in which the promoter of the recent unauthorised grab said that it was tho duty of every member who discovered that his views had changed on any material subject subsequent to his election, to resign his seat at once and go to his constituents, explain his views to them, and ask for their support. "Let Mr Hughes be " taken at his word," added tho correspondent. But we do not think we see that very "slim" gentleman risking almost inevitable defeat for the purposo of putting himself right with his constituents and the country; he will probably prefer to trust to the shortness of tho public memory and the belief that •before the next election the present ware of indignation will have spent it-i self. It was mentioned in yesterday's cable news that some Labour members are offering to subscribe a quarter of the increase in their pay to the party's" funds, while other members are offering to give half of it to public charities. Public opinion will hardly regard, as condoning Parliament's offence, this method of disposing of part of tho plunder, which is plain bribery. Fur-j thermore, it proves the insincerity of! the chi.ef excuse put'forward for the in-1 crease, namely, that the existing rate; of pay was quite inadequate. It is a j sorry business altogether, not so much! because of its primary effect—in the i present condition cf Australian finances an additional' £50,000 in the expendi- j' ture is, of course, neither here nor! there—but because of tho blow it has ! struck at public confidcnce in Parliamentary Government.