THE INCOHORENT VOICE

Hokitika Guardian, 18 December 1928, Page 7

THE INCOHORENT VOICE

By X.

Since Avrilin*£ my last contribution Sir .Joseph Wnnl has made the very reassuring announcement that between the Liberals and “Reform” there can be no fusion, and not even any working agicement, lie is evidently satis lied that the mandate of the people lne been sit flic it* 11 1 ly clear that there shall Ih> a Liberal Government and as lit has been unanimously elmsen as the loader of tliiil Government In* is determined tlmt his party shall he Liberals all Liberals, and nothin**; but Liher-

The Premier is a strong man in a strong position, and lit* knows the opposing factions- the parties with men ningoss names —must, even finally disintegrate and resolve themselves into their component elements. If the position is forced and a dissolution brought about tin’s inevitable disintegration will be only hastened. The Liberal elements in Reform and Labour wiM revert to their proper place and leave as a residue Conservatives on the one wing and Labour extremists, Socialists and Communists on the other. The position would not be altered —except in the numerical strength of parties-—from what it is at present. The only exception that can be taken to the present Parliament is that both the Conservatives and the* Holland party appear to be numb stronger than they are through dm Liberal votes filched by them through fooling the people that the Liberal Pary was dead and votes recorded for it would he only thrown away. l’mt. il may he asked, can w<* in the present state of development of Democracy rely confidently on what the verdict would hi* if then* was an appeal again to the country? il is .-,11 very well to say “trust the people’’ but has it not been proved that their fickleness, their liability to he swayed by personal feeling and outside issues, and sometimes utter ignorance, irresponsibility and indifference render their verdict dangerously incoherent. ! Well, it is only too true that these are inherent dangers, and sometimes I am inclined to question whether the old Latin tag “Vox populi vox Dei.” was not an ancient and grim scholastic joke. We find at a general election thousands of people do not vote at. all. Many thousands are influenc'd bv personal likes or dislikes. I hey rather fancy Hill Imt they don’t like .Jack. i()r they heard Bill “spouL” after they had heard Jack and as they know little about polities and care less, they are going to vote for Mill. Mby shonid’nt they? It is their \ote to do wlmt they like with their vote’s as good as anybody ole’s—is’nt it?

Then till sorts of side issues crop lip. Some have a grievance because they think more money should have been Rpent their way. A\ hat is a member for but to see that he gets public money spent in his district.? I remember once having Imicli with a very good friend of mine a man well known throughout Xcw Zealand as one of I lie highest authorities on jurisprudence and economies. A rumour had Ih-cii circulated that he had been asked to stand for a certain constituency, in the Liberal interests. I had saitl I hoped it was true, and that the country would be enabled to avail itself of bis services which would have been of special and inestimable value at that-time. T shall always remember his reply. “\o “X” 1 have no intention whatever of standing for Parliament, because I am not the man the constituents want. I have qualifications which might he ol service—• a service which I would have been only too willing to render as 1 see clearly the political-economic requirements ol Xew Zealand at the present* time. But the constituents require a man to do “lobbying” o get every possible penny spent in their district. I here are many men better qualified ilor that. 1 bo pc the constituency in question obtained a man to suit their requirements. Rut I know that New Zealand generally sustained a great loss when my friend decided that it was not. statemen hut lobbyists that the constituencies really wanted. Then there is the “religious” side issue. We all remember tlie campaign of the P.P.\. and the insidious inlllienee of file anti-Catholic movement is still a very serious factor. Only last week a.‘man in all seriousness told me that lie hoped Sir Joseph Ward was’nt going to stufl the Civil Service with Roman Catholics as he did before when he put in -1000 of them in one year! The fact that nothing of the kind over happened was quite inmaterial—somebody bad said so. I lafact that religious freedom and tolerance is one of the most cherished and strongest attributes of the Rritish constitution: the fact that Sir Joseph Ward never had and probably never wished to have a block Roman Catholic vote behind him, or his political candidates; these facts do not count wla-n political side-issues are raise i to fool the people: The liquor question the “Old man of the Sea,” politically. It seems impossible to shake it oil - and separate it out from true political issues. It ccr'ainly had a marked effect in the past election, and the Rrohihitionsts appeal to have been chiefly resnonsiblo.

'Hie questionnaire submit ted to all candidates by the X. / Al ame Hindi- it lairlv clear that the prohibition vote would go as a Ido- k vole to those candidal -; who hist satisfied the prohibitionist demands '\ h-‘.her toe country was to ho governed by forms. Liberals or Communistic-Social-ists was quite inmateriai as compared with the bare, majority and dual issue provision for the Liquor Trade

Referendum. While I hel'eve a mini lei of respo.idbie voters refused to allow this issue to over-ride their judgment there were many others who ad mittodly did not. As the liquor ques tion is one on which the people are fair ly evenly divided ft can he seen at once how confusing the* result must he and how it interferes with a clear mandate on jMilitioa! questions. These side-issues can never be eliminated. and while they exist there must always he incoherence in tic v nee of Democracy. But it must he remembered that to a certain extent they neutralise one another. Personal predelictions which may lose votes for one candidate—irrespective ol hi - - political views—treats another candidate in precisely the same way and so far as a party vote goes, may even tilings up. A Liberal loses his seat because In* could not grab enough to please his eonstitutnts, hut elesewhoro a Reformer, or a Labourite gets fired for the same reason. The religious vote* cuts both ways and so does the prohibition vote*. Therefore, while il is obviously wrong that these side-is-sues should have the effect they do, yet not withstanding them Democracy appears able to make its voice* fairly intelligible. Should it he rendered necessary that an appeal -be made again to the country in the immediate future, the indications are that the Liberal Party under Sir Joseph Ward will stand every chance of going back with a largely increased majority. Whether this should he so or not I believe Sir Joseph Ward will not for one moment allow himself or his party to he subjected to the dictation of the Hollandparty, arid lias clearly stated that—ns a party lie will have nothing to do with Reform. That the Liberals will get individual support from members on both sides is very probable. Those* who have professed to he Liberals though following Mr Holland or Mr Coates, will now have the chance to prove their sincerity. A,11 the people require is that the Liberals shall have a chance to carry through their policy and get on with tin* business of the country. The fact that intrigue to defeat the Government and place one of the other parties on the Treasury benches is utterly futile and the only alternative to carrying on is to appeal again to the country, should prove a salutary factor. There is no reason why the present Parliament should not do good work, and if it is prevented from doing so by obstructive tactics oil the part of either the Conservative or the Socialist wing parties, the voice of Democracy must again bo evoked. Probably next time it will he more emphatic and less incoherent. In <up\ ease the Premier will, like his great Liberal predecessors, he always ready to trust the people and abide by their decision.