ANOTHER EXPOSURE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1722, 12 April 1913, Page 6

ANOTHER EXPOSURE.

While the Government has little to fear from the'rccklessly dishonest misrepresentations of that section of the anti-Reform press which is so flagrantly distorting facts and inventing_ charges .designed to injure ■Ministers, it is to be feared that some injury may be done to the standing of the press of tho Dominion by the constant oxposurc of the ignorance and , unscrupulousness of the newspapers reforred to, Hardly a morning passes for instance without the local anti-Reform journal indulging in somo wild outburst against one or another of the members of the' Government which, when inquired into, proves in most eases to be either quite groundless or else based on the paper's own gross distortion of the facts. In its issue of yesterday, to take the latest sample, appeared a bitter and virulent attack on. tho Government in connection with the publication of the Postal Department regulations. A letter, alleged to have been, contributed to the paper, was printed-in tho news columns couched in language and containing-insinuations against officers of the Postal Department which we venture to think no other daily paper in New Zealand would sully its columns with. This letter, which bears on its face the brand of a bogus contribution, 'alleged that tho Massey Government was responsible for the introduction of a certain Postal Department regulation which reads as follows: — "Postmasters and officers in charge of staffs have the grave responsibility cast •upon tliem of seeing that- the privato habits of their assistants aro beyond public reproach, and their conduct not likelv to bring them into trouble or to discredit tho Department. Should any case come under roviow wliioh a postmaster or officer in chargo might reasonably havo been expected by proper oversight to have prevented, tho circumstanco will bo seriously noticed. It need scarcely bo pointed out that nothing bordering on espionage, or action likely to injuro .tlio sell'-respect of any eiuployco is desired or necessary to enable responsible officers to keop in touch with tho outdoor habits of tho officers and other employees on their staffs." On the strongth of this regulation the writer charges the Masbey Government with' introducing "a new Massey law," which is an "outrageous insult" to tho service, and "a splendid insight into what depths Masseyism will go in depriving us of our liberty, our honour, and our character." Thcro is a great deal more in tho same strain and worse. Not content with attacking the Government, tho writer makes a vile suggestion concerning heads of Departments and women employees. Nothing, apparently, however mean and despicable, is beneath the use of some of these :inti-Ilcform writers so long as it looks as though it might be turned against the Government. And the New Zealand Times, in its editorial columns, supports this writer in his virulent attack. After condemning in strong terms the regulation quoted, it proceeds to charge the Reform party witli being "peculiarly partial to this system of underhand espionage." Now, tho attempt is being made, it. adds, lo impose tho mean, underhand and unfair system upon the postal and telegraphic officials, who, wo may soy, constitute a most exemplary branch of tho service so far as habits and character aro rimcenied. Hut wli.v, in any case, urn the ] l oat anil 'Tt'U'j,M'nphii'. officials niunled nut for invidious and undesirable treatment

It is not our purpose at the moment to defend the regulation which has provoked all this iibuso from our anti-Reform morning contemporary, although good reasons can lie put forward in its defencc. The exigencies of the Post and Telegraph Service, as most people know, require that young lads have to be stationed at out-of-the-way places away from Hie restraining influences of their homes, and the Department would lay itself open to grave _ censure if it did not take some interest in their welfare, and seek by such reasonable means as are provided in the regulation to guard them against the pitfalls begotten of bad company and drink. The regulation is emphatic in its instruction to responsible officers that they must not, in observing it, bo guilty of anything savouring of espionage. The public will no doubt see for itself that the-regula-tion is designed to serve a very useful purpose. Our object, however, in referring to the matter was merely to cxposo yet another instance of the utter unsorupulousness of a section of_ the anti-Reform press. To do this it is only necessary to point out that this allegedly "new Massey law" is not a now law at all, but has been in operation for fourteen years. All the bitter invective, the mean insinuations, and disgusting suggestions based on the allegation that the Massey Government was responsible for tho introduction of this regulation arc merely the promptings of base and malicious slander, iho regulation was introduced in 1899 by Mr. Seddon; it was continued by his successors in office, and has remained in force to this day. The stupid ans transparently dishonest methods resorted to by the local anti-Reform journal instead, of injuring the Massey Government can only have the effect of winning it sympathy and bringing further discredit on its opponents.