A STRIKING CONTRAST.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 937, 3 October 1910, Page 4

A STRIKING CONTRAST.

A discussion that has a special interest for New Zealand took place in the Federal House of Eepresentatives on Friday last. Dn. Salmon,. a member of the Opposition, called attention to the fact that the Government had begun to give advertisements to tho Labour Gall, a weekly journal that had not received such advertisements before.. The ensuing discussion was very instructive for the light in which it places the attitude of the Government of this country—an', attitude, that would be called unprecedented were it not that precedents. were! supplied for it by. the late President Kruger and the notoriously corrupt Taotai of.'Shanghai. Me. Bruce Smith, a very vigorous opponent of the Fisher .Government, made no com-' plaint against the giving of advertisements to the Labour weekly, but asked'.whether the Minister would not also ~see_ that the large and wellcirculated! journals were not neglected. ',• Me. , Mahon, a leading Ministerialist, propounded the idea, for. which there is much to be said as a general principle,' that' large expenditure by the Government on advertisements is undesirable. If the Oall. received Government ad-, vortisements, he urged, .then those advertisements should also be given to Liberty and Frof/ress, the able and vigorous, journal published' in Melbourne by the Employers' Federation. "If the Government had a large majority," Mr. Mahon continued,' "they must .remember that they, must, give everyone fair jplay." It; ; was'.well to have;'a giant's strength, l but not to use it! as 'a giant.".. This elementary principle of: honesty was endorsed : from the other side by Mr. Joseph Gook, for-: merly 'Mr. DeakinY, senior; colleague,; who thought, moreover, that; the Labour Call, a, tagonistic to his own political views; was entitled,to consideration in the matter'of ; advertisements.'. It' would bo interesting to Federal; members on both sides of politics, we should think, : to have an opinion upon their pusillanimity ; ; from : Sir 'Joseph Ward and the majority that assisted him-to add to the lustre of the New Zealand . 'Parliament .by; solemnly affirming that Government advertisements should; ;'•• not ';■' 'be.. supplied •■'.'to nowspapers:regardless of .their.' political . convictions and ;■ with; ! ;a;::view only.:: to /securing .the .best return.' to the taxpayers for. the .money- so :.ex-<j pended/', ~ 'V, 7- • '■'.'; fV^>'.':,;;