The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1931. THE NEW ZEALAND APPEAL.

Hokitika Guardian, 30 October 1931, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1931. THE NEW ZEALAND APPEAL.

Tun New Zealand appeal to the elec-

Ibis is very much on all foms with that of tlie genet a I appeal to the eketui's at Home. 1 he.ro, as here, it was i ;l Blatter of safety and .security in regard fo the national finances. 'The case of the Dominion is well known to the people at large. Now doubt the extra taxation, present and piospective, nas brought home to the adult population tlie needs ol the occasion, and the Coalition Government has set nsdf to tlie task it found requiring attention. 'I lie appeal to the country seemed to grow out of the changing conditions and the drastic remedies necessary. No longer for the time being at least, ■ may any Government believe Itself to be in easy street, It may not borrow at all readily as a palliative to the internal stringency. The House ha s to be set in order, and the ways and moans to that end are very generally known and must be fully realised, A [policy of drift and scatter cash would now bring immediate disaster, so that in the public interests the policy of the Government is the only safe course for the electors to sanction. No doubt in the few weeks before the election, much will he heard from the Labour candidates as to proposals from that quarter. It will require to be discounted from tne outset for there is an empty Treasury, and any pi onuses to be made in regard to finance and employment will require to be written down accordingly. New Zealand must go slow in the, matter of public administration and works expenditure. The stoppage of the railway works marked a definite stage in tlie country’s financial difficulties. So drastic a step indicaited to the fullest conviction the fact that money was short, and what there was had to be husbanded to the best advantage. Any other policy at this juncture must court disaster, fu listening to tlie promises Labour will hold out to the public, the electors must keep in mind the true state of the finances—which are still inadequate, despite the extra taxation. It is not desirable to place extra burdens on the people. The producer is. not, in,a position to pay more, because of the low level of prices of the staple commodities. The business man is jn the same predicament, because though falling trade resultant of the depressed times, his earning power is very precarious. Week by week there is a record of bankruptcies and compositions which suggests very pointedly the true state of the conditions in business and commerce. Because of this stringent state of affairs up and down the Dominion, taxation an pears to have reached the limit. Any policy of any Government must be governed by the internal state or the country, if we are to. have good government. It is possible •of course for a country in a bad way to have bad government. There are examples of that in Australia where Labour has sought to pursue a policy of class government, and ignored the fact that there was a limit td'tlie taxation. New Zealand is not in the position and wo believe .not in tint humour, to experiment with a Labour Government at this juncture. At all events those enjoying the franchise jn their own personal interests should weigh the position of New Zealand in Hie light of its own affairs and in respect to world conditions, and vote for safety and security when polling day arrives.