MODERATES AND EXTREMISTS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 212, 2 June 1919, Page 6

MODERATES AND EXTREMISTS

MR, HOLLAND IN REPLY TO MR. VEITCH. Before commencing his address i\t the Alexandria. Hall last, evening on the subject of the conscientious objectors, Mr. H. E. Holland, M.P.. made some reference to the recent attack on himself by Mr. Veitch, M.P. Boiled doWji), he said, Mr. Veitch's main complaint was that the Labour organisations of Wanganui had decided to call for nominations for th» election of a candidate to contest the electorate in the interests of Labour. Tim method adopted by Lnlwu.r at Wanganui, lie said, was tho method of choosing Labour candidates in every electorate, and he and every other Labour member had to submit to it, Mr. Veitch wanted an exception to lie mado in his case, and because if, was not made he seemed to have concluded that he (Mr. Holland) was responsible. It had been quite open lo Mr. Veitch to qualify for and submit him. self to' the democratic method of selection bv ballot on a preferential votingbasis; but instead of doing this ho had recklessly rushed into print, denounced the action of the local Labour bodies as a challenge to himself, and with lulbertian bravado proclaimed that he was prepared to accept the challenge. Mr Holland went on to deny the accuracy of Mr. Veitch's statement that his entry into' Parliament had resulted in destroying the harmony of the Labour Partv. He pointed out that Mr. \ oitch was 'one of the men responsible for inflicting the Massey Party on New Zealand. According .to one of the Liberal papers. Mr. Veitch had since repeated of that act. But he, along with others, r,-as also responsible for inflicting the companion evil of conscription on the countrv: and when that measure, coupled with the refusal to recognise religion!, and conscientious objections to military service, had resulted in filling the ghols with prisoners and the land with lugitives. Mr. Veitch had cast his vote tor the Government Bill which disfranchised for ten ve/frs some thousands of the Government's opponents, after some hundreds of them had already sitftercd one, two, and even three, punishments tor t lie same "offence." These later votes ot Mr. Veitch had been cast in defiance of the very definite—practically unaiiimous-con-fernnce decisions ot the workers of Now Zealand. Not only was this so, but for niiite four years Mr. Veitch had not bwn a member of any political Labour organisation, and he had not scrupled to go before tho Auckland Chamber of Commerce and slander the Labour movement for the edification of Labour's opponents. These things notwithstanding, Mr. \ eitcli had been permitted to attend ]he caucus of the Parliamentary Labour larl> until l-l\" beginning of last session, when Mr. Eraser" and liejt.be speaker), pointed cut the illogicality of allowing an independent member, in no way bound, by the partv s policy, to take part in determining the party's course of action in the Housc-a course the 'Labour Party s members themselves were pledged to shape in pccordauee with the party's platform as determined at the annual conference. Ml. Veitch himself had concurred with theni in this respect, as also did every member of tho partv, with the result that an.at* rangement 'was arrived at under which tho Labour Party was to hold its; own caucus separately, afterwards meetifi„ such of the independents as might bo willing to work in with the party on general lilies. There was nd trutn m the statement made, by Mr. Veitch andJwckrf by a Liberal weekly paper that he (Mr. Holland) had been responsible for discortl in the party. The party meetings on the contrary, had been marked bj a decree of harmony that did not characterise the meetings of any other party; and, to put it in the very mi dest waj, it was peculiar that- it was only at tiw late hour, when the Liberal 1 art}, wa= essaying the impossible task of its wreckage off the political rocks, that Mr. Veitch from outside the pale ot the Labour Party discovered that lie (Mr. Holland) was "temperamentally impossible" within the party. .1 he Party itself was the best judge of that matter; and they would not lose sight of the fact that a Liberal scheme was afoot to disrupt Labour if it could foi the purpose of achieving Labour s defeat at tho polls. Labour was quite of managing its own aflnirs, and reall) did not need advice from persons in no way connected with its orgaisation nor vet in sympathy with its supreme objective The workers who formed the membership of the Labour Party, were determined thnt whoever wanted-to represent them must first be selected by themselves and bo bound by the policy laid down by the Labour organisations. It did not matter whether a'man classed himself as "moderate" or "extremist,' this was the only method by wllicii he could claim to figure as a political representative of Labour; and Mr. Veitch, if he became a member of a political Labour organisation, would have exactly thb same rights as any other memberno more and no less. Oiie thing was certain, Hie speaker declared. The day had long gone when either misstatements or untruthfulness could hope to divide the forces of Labour for Uie salvaging of that confusion .of political debris which sought to call itseif the Liberal Party.