Hokitika Guardian & Evening Star SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6th., 1920. THE WEEK.

Hokitika Guardian, 6 November 1920, Page 2

Hokitika Guardian & Evening Star SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6th., 1920. THE WEEK.

The Presidential election in the United States stands out prominently in the week’s mews., Much pr ( ess matter has been cabled abroad,,* and the forecasta have been verified \|ith marked accuracy. Mr Harding, the Republican lias had a smashing victory, the, defeat of the Democrats being pronounced all along the line. Mr Woodrow Wilson the retiring President, is a Democrat, and has been in office since 1913, having filled two consecutive terms. Prior to 1913, Republicans held the Presidency since 1897. First there was William McKinley 1897-1901; Theodore Roosevelt 1901- 1909; and William Taft 1909-1913. Grover Cleveland was the previous Democratic President. Of the long line of Presidents, Mr Taft and Mr Wilson alone are living, and the last named is a very sick man. The present election is a very complete vote of no confidence .'.n the | Democratic party, and Mr Wilson will j realise his mama has departed complej tejy. During the campaign now clos- ’ ing so disastrously Mr Wilson has been , able to take part in the fray by the issue of Notes, all of which were pitched in an optimistic key, but they struck j a very discordant note—evidently, Of the two candidates in the contest neither are described ns men of great calibre. They owed their choico as the selected candidates to a/good deal of , party intrigue. One commentator rej gjirdcd both candidates as “very commonplace men.” Of the two Mr Harding was described as the “bigger’’ man, 1 Mr Cox being considieqed “a merely shifty small politician”. Although he is of the late President Roosevelt’s party Mr iHarding was said to be not an ardent Republican of that brand. It would appear that the party made the best choice by taking kindly to Mr Harding, and accepting him in place of soneone who stood for a condition of which “the people are terribly weary—these years of democratic bungling and ineptitude.” It is made plain in some quarters that the vote would be largely cast against Mr Wilson, than for Mr Harding. Yet, to outsiders it appeared that Mr Wilson put the issues of the election to the people in their true national bearing, and as they are viewed in the aggregate bv the world at large. It was a call to the spirit of the nation to: keep to the spirit of the treaty seriously altered into on their behalf by their accredited spokesmen.

Having jettisoned Mr Wilson and liis policy so completely, what will be the political attitude of the United States now.* so far as the aftermath of the war is concerned. According to those who know, platform polit’cs in the States are supplied purely for home consumption. A great national contest such as the presidency seems to shake the country to its foundation, and the people get plenty of thrills as the campaign progresses. But the time is at hand when the responsible leaders must face the issue, and decide in what way the country is to end its part in the Great War. It is open to the United States now apparently to

repudiate all that Mr Wilson did at the , Peace Conference, and make its own terms with Germany irrespective of the Allies. Or it will be open for the States to adopt the treaty with such reservations for independent action as it may think fit. Probably the latter will come to pass as the simpler of two courses, but in any case the Allies will hardly appreciate the action. America has created such a tangle of political thought over the question of ratification that the world has grown rather tired of the whokKthing; but it is up to the United States to emerge from the impasse with all the national honors she can. During the week Sir Joseph Ward has eppeared on the political horizon and liis speech at Home appears to have quite galvanised his audience. This experience suggests in passing that he has been very much missed from fhe New Zealand parliamentary debates this session. His breadth of view and clearness of expression made him a | most pjseful representative and his j position ip the House of Representatives eertninljy remains unfilled. Sir j Joseph in his London speech had a tilt j at Mr Wilson, whose actions at the < Peace Conference were strongly criticised. Sir Joseph sfhows the influence Mr Wilson exercised in fram- I ing the treaty, which the countrymen ' of Mr Wilson now refuse to ratify. An ' entirely false position was thus imposed oh the Allies, and the sooner America’s final decision in the matter is d'eter- I mined, the better as the Allies may ibe ■ able to reconsider some of the treaty ] terms which had to be modelled special- j ly to suit tlie views of the American delegates. This applies in particular ; to the mandates, the nature of which . Sir Joseph Ward is able to pick serious holes in. Our ex-Premier ap- • pears to have made a breezy refreshing speech which' indicates he is still ready and capable to take his place on any political platform. The deplorable sequence of events in Ireland pursue the evil tenor of their way. Outrages and reprisals recur with ready succession, and it appears impossibyje to impose any immediate Authority to secure tho restoration of law and order. The question was discussed in the House of Lords during the week. Lord Loreburn (who was more popularly known as Mr R. T. Reid the eminent counsel) moved a resolution; which condemned; the Sinn Fein murders, denounced the policy of reprisals and urged the granting of complete self-government to Ireland, except that Imperial control was to be reserved of army, navy, and foreign affairs. Lord Ctirzon’s reply showed the inability of constituting authorty fir assert itself. “What was the good,” he asked, “of offering concessions which would satisfy only"'the moderates when the majority wanted an independent Republiei?” This sujmmary of tho case appeared to be confirmed by tho Lords who vetoed the ' motion by 44 votes; to 13. From this it seems to be that Ireland is still to welter in bloodshed in an impossible effort to achieve the Republican goal. Failing to realise this the taking of life is to go. on indiscriminately and giant disorder is to stalk the land. It is all most deplorable, but surely reason will be enthroned again. , The leasehold leanings of New Zealand had no better recognition in the Upper House this week than in the Lower House last week. The ‘"Lords” voted for giving away the freehold of the country as readily as did the members of the popular Chamber. The Hon. Michel supported the freehold, and said “tho people of Westland were suffering under the same disabilities.” This statement is news, for the folk with the capital hereabouts have been busy acquiring the freehold where they could in Westland of late. This is specially so with regard to timber - lands and Mr Michel would have been literal, ly correct if he had said the people were suffering, and would suffer in future, under freehold disabilities. Crown estate was gone for ever and its national wealth with it. That wealth was the inheritance of the people ,but it now becomes the asset of the purchaser who has taken legitimately according to the law what should be the peoples’—the country’s. There is a good deal of National Endowment in Westland—this also is to go from the grasp of tho people* The assets of the country aro being whittled away by this demand for the freehold which is possible only to the wealthy. Yet the country will go on increasing the value of this estate for the wealthy by building roads and bridges, railways and what not, to put pounds into the value . of tho freehold. Our land statesmanship leaves very ; much to be desired. Tho trend of the Government policy is to give away values which have been or will be created, by State enterprise. The lucky owners will reap the unearned increment—which by right belongs to the country, the people of whom as a whole create the value. The revenue of the Dominion would be solved very quickly if | the State were getting its true and legitimate land revenue. The giving of the freehold parts at once with the re. curring revenue from the holdings which would be derived otherwise on a rent basis. Tho sale of the land is . merely expediency to raise money, and I is neither statesmanship nor financial i genius. Let us tako a local case in j point—the Harbour Board reserves, j Those areas were converted into freehold and passed from the people at a j price which might be described now as j “for a song.” If the people bad retained the land and leased it and its pro- j duct at a royalty, what a magnificent return would have be.en received. Or, • again, if tho Borough Endowment at Koiterangi had been sold at ruling , prices when the land was leased, what a loss the Municipal Council would J have made. They leased too cheap, but ! better that than to sell too cheap. The leases will be reviewed and the mistake can be corrected. With the freehold given, tho loss is made absolute. How the country loses a mint of money by the indiscriminate sale of the freehold, shown by the readiness to sell to speculators in nqw country. The speculator buys at a nominal sum, and then begins bis agitation for a railway or other means of access to open up the country. In the course of time the irtai horse arrives j and what cost the

speculator a few shillings per acre, is now on sale at pounds per foot. There are cases such as this in New Zealand, and yet the Government will not realise the position ,and the trend of this objectionable wholesale freehold policy. ! Thq blot on "the present system has 1 been the giving away of the birthright of the people to speculators and moneyed people. ’Hie certainty for production all the world over, and especially in this country, requires no fillip to the | owner to improve his land. The basis of value for freehold or leasehold is the value of the produce, and the enterprising producer can get as good a price for his commodity off freehold as leasehold land. This is certainly so in , New Zealand, and the country has done , a great wrong to the people by giving j away in such a wholesale manner, : what is actually the public estate. j