The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1933. THE BULLER SEAT.

Hokitika Guardian, 31 October 1933, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1933. THE BULLER SEAT.

Ilia campaign for the Buller seat ! has opened, and it will appear the Labour party in to male© it a fulldress contest, though the visible opposition to the selected candidate is so far almost negligible. Mr P. C. Webb is the chosen Labour candidate, a not unexpected selection, as he has beon regarded aiways, as one of the stalwarts. Mr Webb opened his candidature in his old stronghold of ltunanga on Friday night, and wonderful to be said, his speech was one of personal defence ! Dame rumour has been suggesting certain things about Mr Webb’s business of coal buying, but Mr Webb sought to seize the lying jade at the very outset, and give to.his old comrades a clear and unvarnished statement of explanation and defence. How far he succeeded is not clear, for the questioners were very persistent, yet the meeting accorded the candidate a vote of thanks and confidence. Since then there have been more alarms and excursions. Members of the Union * forces have entered the. electorate and. are moving about the district, holding meetings in camera, and a public growing 'more and more interested will await particulars and developments. Oti, top of that, some of the heavy artillery of the political Labour party from Wellington is catering the arena on Mr Webb’s behalf. | Influential names in the party aie mentioned, and no doubt they will fulfill their mission with all their accustomed force add energy, However, though there are signs of a rift within the lute, we may feel sure the music will not be mute in the final effort, Mr Webb’s speech atltunanga wag quite Inciting in a policy review. Ho was concerned almost entirely in his personal vindication, and an expression of his devotion to the cause of the miner. He had a good deal to say about improving the position of the industry, but it is becoming rather late in the day for real constructive efforts as tile whole situation of power and light is changing. The Labour organisations in the past must take their blame for the decreasing coal trade. The tyranny of the ships’ firemen, qud, the striking proclivities of the unions, even in the winter period without thought for consumers, has hastened the turn over to oil fuel and electrict light and power. The use of the two elements would never have developed so quickly had organised labour not been so unthoughtful of the consequences of their penalising methods. New Zealand turned all too quickly to hydro-electric development, spurred as it was by the reckless policy of those misleading the unions. The Dominion has gone so far in the alternative power for domestic and personal protection, that it is impossible to expect any easing upi of competition from that quarter. Mr Webb will have great difficulty in helping the miners to better orders for coal with the increasing use of oil and electricity brought in in the first instance for the common protection. The candidate, we regret to notice, still glories in his personal sacrifice against enlisting. What was the gain 1 What would have been the gain if all young men had done likewise! It has been well said that young me n served in the war in the belief that the triumph of ‘ Prussian militarism was something so intolerable as to be worth risking life itself in order. to crush it. Who would say, in view of its new manifestations in Nazi Germany today, that those who. served in the war were wrong? Then, can Mr Webb have been right ?