THE PREMIER’S SPEECH.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2184, 7 May 1870, Page 2

THE PREMIER’S SPEECH.

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. {From the Oamaru Times.)

The able and exhaustive speech of the the Premier in Dunedin, in so far at least as regards Native matters, will be read with feelings of relief and satisfaction by the country at large. The alarming statements as to the enormous rate of the war expenditure which from time to time have found their M’ay to the public eye, prove we are glad to find, gross exaggerations. It had been represented that the late and present administrations were six of the one and half-a-dozen of the other ; that Mr Fox’s Govern* ment was pursuing precisely as aggressive a policy as did Mr Stafford’s ; and that the money wrung from the heavily taxed population of the Colony was being sunk with a remorseless extravagance in the bottomless pit of the Native difficulty at the rate of samething like balf-a-millim a year. Now this was to say that notwithstanding a general depression throughout New Zealand, the Colony was spending immensely beyond its means in an utterly profitless manner—was in fact on the high road to ruin. Such’a state of things, did it really exist, would justify, and woul I arouse in the public mind the most bitter feelings ; and Mr Fox and his colleagues would merit the reproach of having broken faith with the people, and forfeited the most solemn pledges, and would deserve to be turned out of their seats amid general satisfaction; and that without a moment’s delay. The very statement was in itself improbable, but brought to the test of facts and figures, proves to be thoroughly false But not only according to Mr Fox’s showing, have the Government succeeded in keeping the Defence expenditure within the limits assigned by Parliament, but they have also succeeded in achieving very important results, the rebellion if not entirely crushed, having been weakened, and being apparently nearly at an end. . . The present position is, therefore, a very hopeful one—the enemy broken down and demoralised, the Colonial forces disciplined and prepared for any emergency, there is room to hope and believe that f;he Ministry which has this year achieved so

much, will, next year, be able to provide for the protection of tbe settlers of the North, while at the same time greatly reducing the Defence expenditure, and thus allowing of the revenue of the Colony being applied to its legitimate purpose—the development of its resources. This is a highly satisfactory prospect, and differs very widely from the gloomy forebodings which were the necessary consequence of those statements to which we first referred, and which Mr Fox has so completely refuted. And here we cannot too severely reprehend the conduct of those persons, no matter how high their position, who supply,the public, through the medium of the press, with such wilfuliy distorted, not to say determinately mendacious reports as these. To say that it is done from political motives, is to offer no excuse ; for the politician who descends to the dissemination of falsehood, forfeits all claim to be considered a statesman, and deserves to be counted a political card-sharper. We are not partizans either of Mr Fox or Mr Stafford, our doctrine (always, of course, with certain limitations) being “measures, not men but whatever party be in power, we maintain that credit should be given where credit is due and reproof where reproof. Let, at least, the truth be told—the simple, plain, unvarnished truth, unexagferated and undiminished. We give Mr 'ox the credit of having done this, and consequently consider that the manner in which native affairs have been conducted is highly creditable to his administration. There is no question whatever that the present Ministry is composed of men better able to deal with the Native difficulty than any others in New Zealand, Their very names are a tower of strength among the Natives, and though we do not agree with their policy with their policy with, regard to tbe question of Centralism verms Provincialism, we should be sorry to see them turned out of office this session for two very cogent reasons one being that frequent changes of administration are always unadvisable, and the other that in the present instance we think the cessation of hostilities and the pacification of the Natives hinges upon the present Government remaining in power.