MR ALLEN AND OUR DREADNOUGHT.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVII, Issue 33, 7 February 1913, Page 4

MR ALLEN AND OUR DREADNOUGHT.

'• There, was. just one omission in the i- various complimentary and congratulatory speeches delivered at the 3- • olhcial inspection of the splendid war- ! ship, the New Zealand, which the Don j mmion has presented to the Empire and which we hope to see in New Zea- - land! waters—including Queen Charlotte bound—before many months are over. Everything went off admirU ! ably; but curiously.enough, only once ; is there any mention in the cablegrams of reference to the fact that it was bir Joseph Ward-who boldly initiated the system of practical aid to the Empire s naval defence system by pre- - sents of warships from the Oversea d Dominions. We are somewhat sura prised that Mr James Allen seems to d have quite forgotten or ignored that im V? Ithou Sh r it l was remembered by, IMr Thomas Mackenzie. Of course :• ■we know very well that it was New < 5 and not New Zealand's then ! and that New Zealanders will pay for ! it, to the tune, as the London Daily! i Telegraph has pointed out, of forty ! flll^ gl peJ- head- But it was un- j - doubtediy Sir Joseph Ward who con- I s ceived and was mainly responsible for ' the carrying out of the project. Of I s this particular fact Mr Allen cannot ! ,be ignorant, for at the last general a , election the party to which he belongs ] made much, much too much, of the; ins baronetcy by committing the peo- ! | Pie of New Zealand to a heavy : j pendituro on the Dreadnought In ; several electorates post-cards were • sent out showng Sir Joseph Ward in j a cocked hat and Windsor uniform." l : piesentmg the . Dreadnought, and : alongside him a labor-worn work-in-I man with his family borne down by £ , burden,..-, or. heavy taxation. Under-' ! neath ran the legend "The Man who i gave the. Dread nought and the Man « "Jo Pays for it»_or words to that ' G^- • And >'et this week, Mr Allen 1 fo S f. Inif ter fo/ Defence. is present and '+L g ffi - fV? P*rs°n««y honored at { the official "send-off" to the very ■ Dreadnought the gift of which to the ' S?"? J* S IF h Ward-in be! ,ft alt ot tno. Dominion—was one of the ;Si tt misdemeanors brought against • the ex-Prime Minister by the th-n Opposition candidates all over tfTo country at the last elections! • Sir Joseph Ward was blamed for commit- : ting the taxpayers to a large addii ,t- a' without first consulting the country; but we-are very .. much afraid that Mr Allen is goin^not only to follow what his friends and supporters a few months ago declared to be so vicious a precedent, j but to go <cono better." or "one worse, _by committing New Zealand to an increased 'exncndituw on de- * tenoe compared with which Sir S Joseph s commitments were merely '

, trivial. Previously to going to London, Mr Allen refused, in the face of many requests to disclose the defence views of himself and his colleagues, !to say anything definite. Sir Joseph j Ward was held to have sinned by his j Dreadnought offer. Mr Allen, by his presence at the function at Portsmouth, officially approves of the gift, and actually, by his language, causes New Zealanders to fear very much that his own offence is going to be ten times worse. It is a funny world, the world of New Zealand party polities'.