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Hokitika Guardian, 20 November 1931, Page 4

When at the outset of Mr Gfeenslade’s meeting at the Theatre last evening, a loud . voice was heard to remark to the noisy disturbers of the proceedings, “You are a disgrace "to your schoolmasters!” Tire retort was well deserved. However a section of the Labour following is generally disposed to be noisy and is seldom prepared to give a candidate not of their own party a fair hearing. An incident such as last night when a stranger comes to the town prepaVed to expound his views, and the element referred to adopts a disturbing attitude with a view to marring the meeting, generally miscarries in its mission, and we make bold to say that such tactics both here and elsewhere where the disturbers obtrude, do more harm to the cause of Labour than to the object of its attack. It seems inevitable that there is noisy rabble behind Labour candidates bent on destroying the rights of free speech. It is bad for the Labour cause that this should be so, and it is unfair to their own candidate. We are sure Mr O’Brien dose not stand for such tactics, but lie lias to hear the effect of them in his candidature. Last night’s experience was no exception to former occasions when irresponsible members of the community made themselves a nuisance to those who came to hear the candidate under fair play rules. Such tactics emphasises a phase of the one man one vote policy which causes regret that it is extended so far that these disturbers of a public meeting have as much say at the ballot bdk as a- self-respecting elector who beUtvos in fair piny for oil