THE POLITICAL OUTLOOK.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1043, 4 February 1911, Page 3

THE POLITICAL OUTLOOK.

IS IT SATISFACTORY? THE WANING POWER OF THE DEMOCRACY. [By Democrat.] To sneak of "the waning power of the people" in a country such as this may savour of tho ridiculous. But tjcie is fa*.* more in thn idea than atfirst meets the eye. While democratic rule is .supposed to prevail in all it* fulness in New Zealand, there is more than a suspicion that autocracy is gradually, but none the loss surely, supplanting it. For twenty years we have had the experience (unique amongst British Stales) of being governed by so-called Liberals. Yet the moro thoughtful amongst us have repeatecuy asked ourselves the question hoiv much are wo the better for the experience. Since January Sil, 1391, our affairs have been administered by the Ballance, Seddon, Hall-Jones, and Ward Governments, ail claiming to he in the direct line of succession to Sir George trey, and the members of the greatLiberal party championed by.that fine old democrat and statesman. If there is anything in the claims advanced by Liberals that theirs is tho best policy, then, surely, twenty years of uninterrupted Liberal rule should have brought nothing but prosperity, contentment ana happiness to the country. But has H. It is not denied that the country lias progressed, and that its development, during tli.; last decade, is little short of marvellous. But how much of that is really due to the Government, and how much to the energy of the producing and mercantile ' classes ,J I hero are many who claim that both ol these classes have had to work out their own salvation, altogether aiwt irom the Government, and that if they had trusted to the latter they must hay* gone to tho wall. Combination and co-operation, have, they say, done rcoie for them in ono year than the Government has accomplished in twenty, and there is a gcod deal to be said m support of such a contention, ■the Liberal Governments have given us many laws—good, bad, and indifferent. How. far have those laws added to our happiness and contentment?, iinat lias been their cfl'ect upon the morals aiul social condition of the people To what extent have thev aroused class enmities and discontent? Are the conditions of settlement anv easier than they were twenty years ago. Or, is it not the fact that the handicaps imposed are driving many of our best settlers from A T ew Zealand'? Again, have wo 'improved the relationshin between the employing class and their employees i Have we not rather strained the law to benefit the ono class at the expense of the other, and in doing so, engendered mutual suspicion and distrust? Are wo bettor governed in the sense that taxation is lighter and the administration less cortlvv Questions such as these suggest a good deal In t ], eir ans , vcrs lve sha] | finJ much to enlighten us upon the benefits supposed to have been conferred bv the Liberal rule of the last twenty years.

Osmocracy Dethroned. The times and the manners alike iw ve chan k red with us. h' X s -"''at wero once regarded as naH-in«.i Ivs of Liberalism no longer find application amongst us. Rather are they despised and set at naught. The Liberal rule that should have made /or good government, and ■ sound administration, has largely failed to cfndn C TI M h °- PBol,l ° 110 lon S° r nue. lheir authority, and tlnf at 1 -liament that is supposed t j.ent them !s effectually held in check J tin. autocrats and bureaucrats who J. "SMrped that authority. Democ" >acy, indeed, stands dethroned. In a betraVd Tl ? g3 f gcd ' bound ' aud betrayed. Ilie day has long passed It +! c i ould ho truthfully said that the pooplo of this country determine its destinies and tho policy of its H Tl ! 0 Uo Irani, Mi. Seddon's day until now, have ft™"?, u !led thc Trcasm '- V Bellches > have brought, us. to such a pitch'that it is next L 0 impossible for tho electors • to t T' °1' t0 rele e ato them to the cool shades of opposition. That , ls , a " , evil - Tl,e Public con. f" c °, deadened by prosperity, and long years of indifference to the'higher interests of the nation, needs to be awakened to a sense of tho true position. l'or years past tho polic? of those in office has been tho consolidation of party interests, and the strengthening ot the -Ministerial position. Le°itiman° i n s in , this "ircction might well be allowed to pass unchallenged It is otherwise with thoso continual abuses of Ministerial authority and privilege, that have resulted j'n theestablishment, in this so-called democracy, of an autocratic Government that alternately cajoles and coerces the constituencies, and thus withholds from t leni that full liberty of action that is their undoubted right. It is time the voice, of protest was raised, and that the position was recognised—time that we fairly and squarely faced the issues involved, and set ourselves to correct the abuses that have crept 'into the body politic, as the result of our own apathy and neglect. A Case fo? Inquiry. A formidable indictment this, to brin" against any party or people! Yet, hap° July (or unhappily) its truthfulness can be demonstrated to a nicety, and, in the series of articles dealing with the political outlook, of which this is the first, it is proposed to discuss, fully, frankly, dispassionately, and impersonally, the causes that havo led up to the' political "dry rot" that is seen to bo affecting tho nation, and to further lay before readers of th'is journal suggested remedies, that may advantageously bo applied in the interests of the public good. In stating the case, there is no intention to go outside tho realm of facts that are either established, or arc coming to be rccognised, by an "increasing majority of thoughtful New Zealanders. Nor is. there any intention to reflect upon individuals concerned in the government of the country. For the purpose of this, and tho succeeding articles, iiidecd, it matters little whether tho Governments that have held office wero Liberal or Conservative. Tho primary test of their success or failuro is to be found in their adhesion to, or departure from, the principles they profess. In speaking of tho Government of the country, moreover, the term is not so much applied to tlio rule or administration of any one or more individuals, as to thc methods and machinery adopted for the comfort and good order of society, and for the development of the national resources, and the betterment of the; nation, as also in tho economic administration of our national affairs. Tho faults that are known to exist'ought to be remedied, and, until they, are remedied, we cannot be said to bo really well governed. Good government can only havo as its basis sound laws, wise and prudent administration, and a keen regard for the welfaro of thc peoplo on the part of thoso in authority. How far we have enjoyed this sort of thing during tho last twenty years is not a matter of speculation, but rather of practical acquaintance with the happenings of that period. Democratic Ideals Wanting. Professedly New Zealand is a democratic country and ono therefore in which "government of the people, by the people and for the people," should

prevail. But does it? To begin with wo Have a Governor, an Executive Council, in wliicli mf|i) liUimsters. oi the Crown, ana t.vo libuscs ot l'arliaiuent. 'i'ite Governor is nominally appointed by t.llO King and only exercises nis autlioiity, apart lrcin Ins Aiuiisierlal advisers, on tile rarest ot occasions, '.theoretically, lie is tlie embodiment of power and aucnoritv. Practically, lio almost invanauly acts upon tne advico ot the Executive Council over which lie presides, lie seldom, ii' ever, tabus tne initiative in Governmental concerns. 'Iho Cabinet, which is composed or iunir isters of the Crown, is responsible to Parliament, or should be. Generally speaking it leads the way in all legislation, introducing such measures as its members feel aro necessary in the interests of the nation, 1/or twenty years that Cabinet lias been representative of Liberal Governments, comprising Ministers who are supposed to have been inoculated through and through with democratic principles. Surely then, if such rule is possible anywhere 'in' the world, democratic government in its fullest and freest sense should be found in this country. But most assuredly it is not. In the earlier days of constitutional government in Xcw Zealand, the Legislative Council was made a nominative Chamber, Councillors summoned by the Governor holding their appointments for life. In IS9I, however, legislation was introduced by tlio Hon. John Ballance, the then Premier and the first of tlio leaders of the Continuous Liberal Administration,, making all future appointments tenable for seven years only. The change was understood to be tlio first step in the way of reforming tho constitution of the Upper House. It proved to bo both tho first and last. For twenty years the Liberal Governments that have herd offico have been content to let matters rest at that. The nominative Chamber still exists; tho people have absolutely no say- in the appointments; men for whom they, liavo 110 use, politically or otherwise, aro "called" to the Upper' House, and men whom they would prefer, to see there, are left out in tlio cold. It is evident, therefore, that in this respect our representative institutions fall short of democratic ideals.

Representation ant! Patronage. A democratic Parliament outfit certainly to be a reflex of tie opinions and wishes of the people who are governed. The New Zealand Parliament can hardly claim to .fill the bill in that respect. Tho people simply elect representatives to one branch of the Legislature and allow eight or nine men at the most, to.say who shall represent them in the other. What is the consequence? Men who have been rejected by the constituencies, again and again, find thoir way into the "Upper Branch of the Legislature, and- that too in defiance of the dearly expressed will of the people whoso suffrages they' had previously sought. And, to make matters worse, these men aro partisans; they sit' and vote, generally speaking, on all questions from the party standpoint. That, they know, is expectcd of them. They know, moreover, that their • reappointment at the end of their term of office is dependent upon the supp6rt they give to. the men who have either given them political being, or who have renewed their political existence. The valuo of tho reform introduced in 1801 is, therefore, at best a negligible quantity. Under the old system of nominative life members, .a man could, and'did, retain his independence of thought and action; under the new, ho becomes practically the servant of the Ministry appointing him, and seldom, if over, asserts himself in opposition to the Government. He has ni) principles .of his own, where political (patters arc concerncd. and. accepts without question the dictum of tho Ministry on all policy matters, whether his own views coineido with them or not. The Ballnnco. method of ing members introduced political'patronage in its ..-worst form, and as we all know, that political patronage (whic-h under a democratic Government should be not only impossible '>ut unthinkable) prc-vails tn this rlav. Tor twenty years successive Liberal Governments have, by the exercise of that patronage', deprived the electors of the right of saying who shall assist in .making .tlio_.lws.in Ihe Upner Branch "'of! the Legislature. Until tho evil is remedied —for it is. an evil and ono 'thnt should lie grapnled and overthrown—tho people of this countrv cannot claim to havp that 10iiresentation in Parliament to which tb"V are entitled. But, as there aro othetr asb'ects of this representative rninstion that rpriuiro to be dealt with, further consideration of the subject may well bo ieft for "the next article.