“THE WRITING ON THE WALL.”

Putaruru Press, Volume VII, Issue 311, 24 October 1929, Page 4

“THE WRITING ON THE WALL.”

IN a few months the Baldwin, the Bruce and the Coates Governments have been defeated at the polls. What is the reason? Is it that three Conservative Administrations should have lost their hold on the electors the result of a cause, or mere coincidence ? It can hardly be accounted for by coincidence, and the political student must look past a “ mere accident.” Nor has he far to search. “ Measures, not men,” has been the slogan which has gained the official benches for many a party. With the holding of office the party becomes “ politically blase,” and measures are forgotten for men. The personality of the leaders is looked to for the retention of public support. And sooner or later the day comes when the party is without measures, or men. The electors are not caught with the slogan of “ safety only.” They favour a vigorous policy. They prefer a meat diet to a treatment of milk foods.

Under the heading of “ The Writing on the Wall ” the Wellington Evening Post, in a most capable article, analyses the position. “ The elector is fed with many promises. Most of them seem to him to be nebulous and illusory, but some seem to be definite and worth while. Few, however, are seen to materialise, either for good or for ill. From this unproductivity of the nonLabour forces the elector turns to the Socialistic programme of Labour. If he is an elector with commonsense and with experience of human nature, he does not believe in the soundness of that programme. He does, however, note that its exponents believe in it to the extent of carrying it out. They are not a crowd of spell-binders with no policy or with a pretended policy. They have a creed, however crude. " And that fact impresses the elector very

much. A man of no religion will generally think less unfavourably of that religion whose followers, however unconvincing, believe in themselves and in their faith. For that reason a gro wing number of political agnostics vote for Labour. They at least feel bold enough to hope that under a Labour Government something will happen—something different from the weary tedium of endless and transparent political evasion, different from the policy that is due in six weeks and has not arrived in six months, and from these palliative precusors of a radical cure that disappears farther and farther into the dim distance.

“ With the experience of the present and recent sessions before them, there is a danger of more and more electors coming to the conclusion that non-Labour policies constitute more noise than action. On the other hand, though Labour policies may be false, they are at any rate not a false alarm. . . . Here in New Zealand,

however, under non-Labour Governments, unemployment insurance has been considered for goodness knows how many years without impelling the politicians into any action, save the inadequate and temporary pensions for children in excess of two (which has no direct reference to unemployment) and the promise of investigation in the recess. Electors who would like to see unemployment insurance tackled in an economic manner, on a contributory basis, grow weary of a political system that takes so long in reaching the point of action. Thinking people become tired of being humbugged, yet, because cool thinking is not the electors’ strong point, humbug seems to be one of the main resources of party politics as practised to-day. Even where some sort of a policy may exist, the dose is measured out. .Not too much may be done in a first session. Then, when the second sessiofi reveals difficulties, much of its work stands over. Finally there is in the third session legislation-by-exhaus-tion to provide propaganda for a new election, and the same triennial game starts over again.

“If this year’s elections prove anything, they prove the revolt of the electors against static politics, particularly against static politics with an imposing paper facade. And the same thing is true of last year’s General Election in New Zealand. The vote for United was a vote to break up the static. But as .soon as the electoral mind has finally determined that the transfer of last year .was from Tweedledum to Tweedledee there will be little doubt as to the next step. A 40 per cent Labour win in Britain, and a 60 per cent Labour win in Australia despite depression, and “ safety first,” are facts too obvious to be overlooked.”