"IF —"

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 627, 4 September 1933, Page 4

"IF —"

Mr. Forbes is tlie latest to bewail the interferenee of that potent little word "if". Speaking for and on behalf of his absent colleague, the acting-Prime Minister (Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates) has now satisfactorily explained Mr. Forbes' apparent apostasy by pointing out that the word "if" qualified all Mr Forbes enthusias tie praise o^ Mr. Roosevelt and his doctrine. It is to be hoped that this information will not ad versely affect the progress of the American recovery plan. In making this explanation, Mr. Coates recalls, with a tinge of bitterness, that examples of misreporting by American newspapers are not rare. It will be remembered that during his own visit to Ottawa and the United States, Mr Coates had cause to complain that he had been mis- | reported by the American press I so that he is particularly competent to defencl; his misrepresj ented and perhaps misunderstood colleague. It must be confessed that the dfaft of Mr. Forbes' speech as submitted by Mr. Coates and qualified by "if", appears to be much more typical of the Prime Minister's caution than his previous bold and direct utterance. It is a habit of politicians to make statements first and qualify them afterwards and even enthusiastic American newsgatherers might have suspected a trap if they had found a politician recklessly making unqualified assertions. Mr. Forbes, however, has run true to form and New.Zealand cannot now look forward to the prospect of j his returning as a convert of the Blue Eagle doctrines. As in | so many of the things which j man proposes, that inevitable j "if" of which Mr. Kipling spoke ' with such feeling, has interven- 1 ed. From the first cabled reports, | it appeared that although Mr. ' Forbes might have come to j scoff, he had remained to pray. | In the light of Mr. Coates' ex- ' planation, however, it is now apparent that New Zealand's i Prime Minister has done nothing ; so indiscreet but has worthily j upheld the best Parliamentary ! traditions. j