BRITISH POLITICS.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXII, Issue 8955, 22 October 1907, Page 2

BRITISH POLITICS.

Mr Asquith on Socialism

Press A ssjciation—Copyn ght. London - , October 21. Mr Asquith, Home. Secretary, speaking at Ladybank, emphasised the great loss counterbalancing all apparent gains resulting from the reconstruction of society on socialistic lines. Liberty ■would be slowly but surely starved to death. .Ho claimed that the Liberal party alone was capable of combating extreme socialism because it was free and unfettered by entangling alliances with, interested monopolies and class privileges, which, with a network interdependence covering the frame | of society, made progress with social j reforms seem sometimes well nigh, desperate. Ho justified Liberal finance. The Government bad sub- , stantially reduced the cost of thearmy and navy. He hoped to make progress in that direction. liedescribed the recent coal duties as an unjustifiable burden upon a greatindustry. Referring to the Stock Exchange, he remarked that the inflated supply of gilt-odged securities during the past ten years had been accompanied by the transfer, of capital to the more remunerative fields of abnormally active industries of the United Kingdom. Mr Asquith concluded by ro- | butting the charge of coquettingwith the Socialists. Ho declared that property and liberty were made more secure hy every,! stop taken tn remove the sense of injustice, and diffuse and equalise the pressure of the common burden, and keep every particular interest in subordination, to the interests of the whole. A Conservative View.

London, October 21. Lord St. Alilwyn, speaking, at Cheltenham, said the excossivejwoakuess of Government was that it was given to the wild socialism at present prominent. He agreed that it was impossible to combat socialism, by mere negation and individualism, or hy the gospel of selfishness, but much that was advocated by Socialists was pure robbery. The successof socialism would destroy the mainspring of individual enterprise and. personal interest.