The Dominion. FRIDAY, JUNE 11, 1909. THE GOVERNOR'S SPEECH.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 531, 11 June 1909, Page 6

The Dominion. FRIDAY, JUNE 11, 1909. THE GOVERNOR'S SPEECH.

'.■•: As wagi generally expected, the .Speechl with whieh the Parliamentary eeßfliea waB 1 inaugurated yesterday contains nothing i of a positive character beyond ' an . an-' nouncement that the Peime.Minister in-; 1 tended to go to,' London and to ask for the prorogation of Parliament. The' pompoug paragraphs, up.on Imperial defence are merely formal repetitions of the professions of loyalty which have filled the speeches of' Ministers for many weeks past," and which jjow might very well be taken for granted.. No one questions tlie loyally pf. fcjio' Jlpminipn to .the. Mother one doubts'that it will do its duty to the' uttermost limit of its means. Time would have been saved, and honesty better served, if his Excellency, had been asked to say no more than this: "Gentlemen, my advisers deem it expedient that I the Piuve Minister, in the interests,!of the pmpire nq.lcss than of himself and ■ his political fortunes, should proceed to Loncldn. "My"advisers'are, further,j of opinion that in'thc Prime Minister's'absence they may be embarrassed by tiie criti- ■ cism of their opponents, and that/ the 1 Government's purposes will be best siiitcd by the postponement of all business (ihtil a date later in the year. You will therefore be asked, in order that these im : pqrtant ends, shall be served, to agree to b aji earjy prorogation of Parliament," ' I'he Speech is not quite barren of nncont solioui 'humour." l or B^imrjle,

is "entitled to assuine" that the ailonl gentlemen who voted with the Pbimi Minister on Monday night have "foi lowed with close and deep interest" th< lato discussions, upon'the Navy, but wi should riot caw to stake too much on ths assumption that thoir votes were cast ai the result of their investigations. . ' IJot much need be said upon the man ne"r in which the prorogation o£ Parliament is presented as essential to the re presentation of New Zealand at the De fence Conference by Sir Joseph Ward Of course the. prpfogation of'the sessioi iVijPt essential to any such thing.' No thing i$ essential ,to it, or ever has beer essep.ti'al to it, excepting the Prime Min ifhsn's own willingness'to go.- The coun try is fully, alive to thp real position. Ii is" unnecessary to say more on the poinl than' that "If,' *as the Govern merit's ailent majority affirmed 01 Monday, the • business before Par lajment .js too important to bi transacted in'the Prime Minister's ab sefi'ce, it Is a fprlwH'tbS important to bs postponed! : It'is to be'hoped-that an'at teinpt will bV made .to induce the sup potters of the Government to Justify theii action in the face of that little piece oi simple "deduction. Are' we, to quote th( Spe'ecji, "Entitled ip assume" that the} will speak up f There is ono point npor which the Speech departs from platitudt and sophistry. "A statement," it is said, '•'showing . approximately the financial position of the Dominion will be placed before "you, and : legislative authoritj askqd to raise "a, Supf of iponey required to carry pn certain public works." Fron this, it .must fej assumed that the Budgel will be left over until some time in Oc fcflber, pr''even in froyfember. Even ths Government's pwn supporters will hav« reason to be discontented with -a men statement of the fact that the revenue ir the p'ast financial yeai' showed a falling off of over £50,00(0, while the expenditure increased by well over half a million ster ling, i In any other country such a state oi affairs be considered a subject foi the earliest and most serious attention, jPhpse members who have the true interests of thq country at heart should'insist upor the fullest information upon the subject! generally dealt with in the Budget, anc they can reasonably claim that in view of the fact that the .Government has foi some time teen contemplating an adjourn ment of the session it should without de lay present the return Bl to Parliament. The fact that the House is to meet to morrow-morning'indicates that the Gov ernment intends to drive ahead with al! possible haste. Mr. Massey entered.a pro test, yesterday against late sittings, bui the' declared that ht would ask: tiie House' to sit till midnight, It seems jfu'ttje clear'tKat the object of tht [soy.ernme.nt j§ to adopt just such means as" w)lfb"esf favo'u/tfie stoppage of careful criticism?" tHe 'llonsc will probablj beaked to pass the Loan Bill without ob [ainipg full information "upon the objects 'for'which" the" money is raised. The Government will surely be made to understand that it'wilj be.asking too raucr. of members to expect them to let a Loan JJill, at this stagp in the country's ni}an.c,ea gp by without full information foing sjippjipd $n'd fuj}'discussion simplj because t]ip Prime Minister is anxious tc hurry away to London apd cannot trusl )iis colipajgjie.s ty act in his absence. We may take it for granted that the Govern-ment-'s friends will denounce every kind of criticism'as obstruction, or, as they take pleasure in calling jt, "factious op'position." That is a consideration thai will not deter members of the House wh< havo the courage of their convictions from remembering that they We a dutj to the country even if "the Prime Mhjis ter does wish to hasten to London.-