PATRIOTISM, REAL AND SHAM

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8339, 27 January 1913, Page 6

PATRIOTISM, REAL AND SHAM

Sir Joseph Ward, for many years Premier of this Dominion and for a still longer period in charge of the Ministry of Finance, is now in London. Mr James Allen, his successor at the Treasury, is due to arrive in London very shortly. The former's visit is unofficial; the latter’s mission is principally to raise a substantial loan on behalf of this country. .Now, these gentlemen have opposed each other in politics for a generation past. Both “front benchers,” they have, so to speak, drawn swords on innumerable occasions, very often concerning public questions of the greatest possible interest, and it may fairly be said that neither has spared the other. If Sir Joseph Ward scored most often, if he invariably demolished Mr Allen’s arguments by the prompt production of facts and figures, the financial hop© of the self-styled Reformers made up as far as possible for the shallowness of his case by a blusterous profusion of noise seldom falling short of invective. This style of political warfare, in which the majority of adherents of Masseyism eagerly joined, led participants into a most unfortunate habit. They endeavoured to get at Sir Joseph Ward in particular and at Liberalism generally by attacking the credit of the country- The familiar burden of their song was that our finances were in a really deplorable condition, which nothing but a Massey-Alien regime could rectify. Every shilling of public expenditure was described as “waste,” every transaction as a “job.” For years and years the Liberal Governments were charged with having no policy but to “borrow and squander,” reckless of any but party interests, and it was urged again and again with the utmost vehemence by the principal exponents of self-styled Reform that the Seddon and Ward policies and administration wore destructive of the credit of the country in the eyes of the financial world. In this way the Conservatives actually tried to establish the situation they incorrectly stated to exist. For the most contemptible of partipurposes, to try to embarrass tb© Liberal Ministers, they asked the high financial authorities abroad to believe the Dominion Governor’s advisers incapable and corrupt in the hope that through financial men putting tho worst construction on that sort of “criticism,” the public credit would suffer and tho mana of Liberalism be correspondingly injured. _ We desire now to contrast the attitude of the Tories in days gone by with that of Sir Josepii Ward to-day. On the eve of his life-long financial opponent’s arrival in London to seek a loan. Sir Joseph Ward is interviewed on behalf of the “Financial News.” Does he descend to the tactics of the Masseyites and say or infer that Ministers are untrustworthy? Not at all. The essence of the interview appeared in our caolc news last Saturday. Let us

reproduce it hero; —“The Dominion ; financial position is thoroughly sound The overwhelming bulk of the public debt is invested in reproductive New Zealand offers the surest grounc in the world for the investment T capital.” Thus docs true patriotism triumph over the petty considerations ■:f party. Thus docs Sir Joseph Ward return good for evil in endeavouring to smooth tlie way for Mr Allen in his important public mission.