UNDER THE ROSE.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 2858, 14 March 1925, Page 4

UNDER THE ROSE.

TRICK OF THE SOCIALIST LABOUR PARTY. The Al.’sP. of the “N.Z. Labour Party” (which ought to call itself by the right name “Socialist Party”) are now seeking to c-onvinee the people'that theirs is really a moderate party. They are posing as Liberals or Reformers or anything but what they really are—Revolutionary Socialists. We have before us the Official Platform of their party. It starts with their objective which is:—

“The Socialisation of the means of production, distribution and exchange. That is definitely Socialism - but at present they are keeping it in the background and makingspecious promises of the most plausible kind they can think of. “Socialisation,” the Socialists, Communists and Bolsheviks all a firm. If it means anything it is to abolish private property and make land, capital and all means of production common property. Your homestead, business find economic means arc to be no longer yours but belong to everybody under a fancy scheme of class political control. APPLIED TO THE LAND. Here are the vital planks of the platform relating to land: —(1) A land tenure based on occupancy and use, which will secure to the working farmer the full fruits of his labour and exertions; (2) a slate valuation of all privately-owned land, such valuation to remain on record as the measure of the landholder’s interest in land; (3) that privatelyowned land shall not be sold or transferred except to the State; (4) the owner shall have the right to surrender his land on the valuation set out in clause 2. Note clause (1). The farmer or other owner of land is to be allowed to “occupy and use” the holding but have no other interest in it. If the owner lias to sell or transfer ho could only do so to the State (see clause 3) and by the provision of clause 2 and 4 the State, as sole buyer will fix its own price. That is the real land policy of this so-call-ed Labour Party. Were it applied it would rob the men on the land of lhe fruits of their labour and osinhlish conditions of Stale serfdom foi the. agricultural and pastoral producers of the country. 'l'lie Moujiks (peasants) of Russia. to-day have a tenure of “Occupancy and use” alone. All haul there is State property. 'Results are —the people have been starving and the Soviet Government lias had to import largely to slave oil greater famine. These facts arc well known. STATE OWNERSHIP. Here shortly are the proposals of this very moderate party: —(1) State Bank to ultimately exclude all private banking. (2) State farms to produce the peoples’ foodstuffs. (Private farms not wanted). (3) State shipping, insurance, coal mines, factories, farms and industries. The cream of this general State ownership policy is in the method of control proposed —here it is:— “Where national ownership of an industry is effected, all labour for such industry and at least half the Board of Control in each case shall he appointed by the Union or Unions affected.” lias any one asked Air Bartram, ALP. what all this means? If not they ought to. The control there proposed is clearly Sovietism in disguise. There is need to expose the utter sham of this party of pretence. (Contributed by the N.Z. Welfare League.)