THE SOMERSAULTING SEASON

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 919, 12 September 1910, Page 6

THE SOMERSAULTING SEASON

In the House the other night the member for Hutt, defending the Government's expenditure on the Hutt railway- duplication, . gave what looked like a plausible explanation of the disparity between the estimate and the cost. Later on in the debate the Hon. T. Mackenzie felt impelled to rally to the defence, andhe declared, with that assurance and facile emphasis with which Ministers so. often impose • upon ■"_ the public, that Me. Wilford had given the reason for the over-passing ■ of the estimate. In ordinary circumstances this would have passed as a statement authoritative beyond question. The Prime Minister,' 'however, was in an irritated mood, and he promptly upset his colleague and astonished the Hquse by vigorously interjecting "Oh, no!" And Mr Mackenzie stood exposed by his chief as knowing nothing about the. subject upon which he had been talking with all the- confidence of :an expert. This little incident is recalled to us by'the comments of the Ministerialist press on'the Land Bill. It is to, the land question that the public owes' most of its 'present-day knowledge of the worthlessness of much of the approval given,by that section of the press to .the. legislation and administration .of the Government. :. When : the Government brings down a Land Bill, the, Ministerialist press does not' stop'to analyse; the Bill.' It goes into ecstasies _over a new triumph of : statesmanship. In a week or two, or in ; a day or two, it : is , not infrequently under < the painful necessity of turning right round. Last Thursday, for. example, the Christchurch organ of, the Gov-ernment-said -the Bill 1 was "a vast improvement, upon the measure "introduced last-year." It had nothing but praise for the whole Bill. :'■: The tune was changed on Saturday, ; arid here, we think; the "deadly parallel" is the best .way of contrasting our contemporary's Thursday and Saturday opinions: ■.'.'"":."' ''■:'■'•■;; .' ,' '.'

' Thursday, Sept. .8. Saturday,-Sept. 10. The Prime Minis-; ■ But/the main obter has laid down a jectdon ; to"-.; the clear,' well-defined 1 scheme is its com-, policy,, which will, placcnt disregard' answer much of of the wishes and,- . their criticism and .... interests .of..'.'■'the'-' defeat many, 'of owners of the land., their : predictions. It is .unfortunate We believe that he for the.community,, will have the cor-: of course, that cerdial assistance of a .tain people-, have large majority of acquired ..large the Liberal moni- estates that . are bers of the House standing in the way in passing 'it into of closer ' settle> law, .and that his ment,.but the-pos-propos-als will meet ■ session of ..broad;, with the general acres is not,,after approval of the all, a crime. ... . ' people. ' But what- The State; has no : ever may. bo the-right,, ..whatever , reception of the Bill power it may have, ■ in Parliament, we to / insist that; a are satisfied that; it, man.-', holding.-, an outlines a;, pro: estate worth t £40,000 -. ■ gramme with which 'shall lease it .for . the'-.. ..Government - thirtyrthree /years,;, may confidently a'p-- or for ten' years*. or .peal to the country, even 1 for one year,' -■'it a rental /equal', -to 4J percent., upon i ■ / '- Its - capital value.:, '. i -'„,'..:,■.' ~-./,.,'-; /Surely, 1 the; 1 •"■'••'■ ''■'.'-','':", ;'• most ardent larid : .-•■...'-. .1- "reformer, ' - outside, ~,'■-' the ranks of the re- ; volutionary Social-;: ■''.-■' ... i „ ' ists,: does- not: wish ,-,- ,to perpetrate an.in- .-:■'■.'■■"'.": ..•.'■'■■'■ justice of this. sort. . ..'.' .The Lands '■'■ Committee of-the - '-.-..■ ■"House■■ of. Bepresen- ;;;::' 'tatives,, would- be". ■ ; doing a•; good' ser- ' ./ "> .■'-..■, vice• to the: Govern--.. ,/'; ( ment' by, promptly ■ : .■"-,■■ i deleting the compulsory .leasing ''■•■ •■'■'. clauses: from, the' . Bill, and we should ■hope, '.that-' ■ Sir . V'". : -''' -..■-■/"Joseph Ward and;his: colleagues, would make no rit- . ■ ,-. ■■■■'••■'. tempt to reinstate ,;.- "' y , them. , '';,"' ' : We, shall await with ' interest, the volte-face of a local/ contemporary, which specially "welcomed" this pari of. the Bill, and which' was.so certain that only brutal "vested interests" would oppose it -that/ it even had a little jocular v sympathy :to spare for the victims of it.; ;■.-'.;.: