LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1862, 23 September 1913, Page 4

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

OPPOSITION TACTICS & POLITICAL ,MORALITY.

Sir,—Tho recent "stonewall" in the House 'of Representatives, following so closely,'upon Sir Joseph AVard's acceptanco of, tho Leadership of tho Opposition, should set people thinking seriously. "Most of us wero hoping that, ■under an accredited loader, tho "Liberal" party (so-called) would amend both its manners and its morals. Nothing could better have illustrated the desperate straits into which tho Opposition piarty lias fallen than tho events of tho past week or ten days. Engaged as it has been, for so long, in tho con-" genial tasks of mare's-nesting and scan-dal-mon'gering, the Liberal Opposition is apparently as much infatuated as ever with the policy it has elected to follow. Badly advised and badly led, it lias failed, under its new leadership, to recognise that tho party bickerings and strife it has sought to perpetuate are directly,, at variance with the 1 interests of tho country at largo. It is blundering badly under Sir Joseph Ward, and, for that, your nioming : contemporary is largely to blame. How else can wo account for the repeated aberrations of political intellect displayed by _ those shilling lights of the OppositionMessrs. G. W. Russell, T. M. Wilford, L. M. Isitt, and G. Laurenson, to say nothing of tho member for Invercargill? A course of reading which entails a daily study of political happenings, as presented through the leading columns of . the "New Zealand Times," is enough to destroy any man's mental balance. Surely,', never before, in the history of colonial journalism, have the public been presented with more of thoso halftruths : that are over the greatest of lies," misrepresentations, and perversions of fact, than your morning contemporary has accustomed us to during the last eight months or so. Tho New Zealand Times" is known to largely dei tbrmino the policy of tlio party it supports. 'Six weeks ago, it , urged the Opposition to "block Supply," with a view to forcing the Government to go to the country.' Ever, and anon it hinted darkly at diro happenings that were to attend the downfall :0f..; "Maaseyism. , ' jbere were dissensions'.in the Refonn Cabinet;: amongst its, members; members of ; tho Reform party had quarrelled yith one anothor in tho I lobbies, v ';'4hd .on ■committees of-which they wer6 ,'mfimbers—and ,sq ; gn. Of coursoj'there was not a,word of.truth in these stories,- but it-pleased your maro'snesting'\corit6mporary,' which must have' .established' an Australasian record in this respect, as uniquo as it is unenviable, to ; vouch for theni •as "fact,"

and so?, tlio'.Sorr'x gamov v proceeded. It was: absolutely. necessary something, i should bbidorio. to reVivp the'drooping spirits .of tho-faitiiful on the Opposition benches. So the Reform movement was pictured as on the vergo of col-lapse,-and its adherents as liopelesslydisunited. Maro's nest aftor mare's nest wtfs'brought to light and paraded" as a grave scandal reflecting upon tho : i Government/ and, when one charge failed, it was quioldy replaced by another. 'Then/ came the "stonewall," which . the "New . Zealand Times" had directly;, counselled, somewhat belated, but none tho less determined.' - A more . 6illy, senseless proceeding"' lias never previously been recorded in 'tho history ■of the New 'Zealand Parliament. It ; began with a deliberate attempt to block the businoss of the' House, and was continued,: ostensibly because the . Government had failed, or was said to ' have failed; to supply certain informa- : tion toVthe House. You, , sir, have shown; '1 in the clearest pogsiblo way, that .tho.'Joxcuso..thus given was the wanton and tliebusiness of and thit, time • and moriejf,itho 1 ■ Opposition 'is'alone" re- ■ 'flponsible>f;Tte poyorntnent v ?is, to be congratulated'upon'its determination to ; resist"such;bbstpicti6n,",flnd-tlie electors • would;; do ;well to" note? by; whom, and why, ■sVKrfobatfuotive .tactics were resorted to. There was absolutely .no principle' at stako; thero could be no questiofling,:the|:;'Estimates upon which Supplyjwas asked,'forthey were largely based ;uppn' ' ihe Mackenzie Govern- ■ merit's' Estimates, and no valid reason could be .assigned for "blocking Supply," other, than ..that the Opposition was following'the advice of the , Now Zealand Times," and acting in what it conceived to bo the interests of the "Liberal" party. And.that fact should prompt an inquiry into tho, motive, or . motives, the "Times" in ten-, dering; that advice. Your morning contemporary knows (ns jou pointed out some -weeks ago) that if the Government'could be forced to go to the country this year, the Opposition polls deciding; the liquor question would not , bo taken, and that tho licensod trade, which ,it has so consistently supported,' ■ and which has as consistently supported it, would thus gain an additional . respite 1 of at least two years. Bearing that fact in mind, wo have presumptive qvidence of tho existence of a dual conspiracy, intended not merely to injure the Ministry, which has done, and is doing, better work for tho country than any llinistry has accomplished, certainly during the last decade, but to cheat tho elector's out of their undoubted prerogative to deal with tlioso vested interests in which so many shareholders of the "Now Zealand ' Times" aro concerned,-and with which more than one prominent member of "the great Liberal party" is actively identified. The conspiracy js defeated for tho time being, but it is quite on tho cards that another attempt will be mado to gain the end in viow. Let the members of the Reform party/ both in the; House and out of it, be on tho nlert, therefore, to checkmate tho noxt move in that direction. —I am, etc., A TEX YEARS' REFORM SUPPORTER. Wellington, September 20, 1913.