WASTE.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 40, 17 October 1913, Page 4

WASTE.

In the course of an article dealing with the late "stonewall" in th< House, the Dunedin Star speaks plainly of the utter tolly'of such pro cesdings, and says:—The member o Parliament usually looks forward t td'lvk week-ends with some degre; of pleasure, j lb is therefore onl; fair to credit him with a ee'rtan amount' of solf-dendal over the vra; hb has' elected to spend the last week end' and aiso l omv'-not very Jong ago But'' self-dteriiwl implies tomo benefit actual or ■ intended, i for ; some, outsid pai'ty. • : Presumably i ith<a heneficjar; is''thef 'public or some considerable sec tion of it. Yet where the publi benefits by these performances w utterly fail to see. If the motive: are as we have charitably assumed then no more palpable case of mis guided altruism can be quoted. Tlv of time means, loss to the cQUutry It cannot bio pretended that all. legi? la tion is ■beneficial in its effect. Tin Land BilL, over . which the present impasse: took place, may not be alto gether perfect, but that its genera trend is for. improvement is indicatet by the fact that Sir Joseph Ward, anc quite a number of ex-Ministers foum themselves unable to 'vote against it second reading. And there is quita mass of other legislation, much o which has been already shown to 1) justified, and in some cases actual!"

necessary, waiting to como on one ■ the Land Bill is disposed of. It i; more'and m<tre obvious that the grea' underlying principle of the Oppositio: is to prevent the Government fron putting through any legislation, good had, or indifferent. Sometimes, whel the weather is fair .and tempers art equable, this line of action seems t< have been lost sight of. Bnt !e there come along but the slightes breath of wind, the least ruffling o' j temper, and this fixed determinatio: is suddenly recalled. TiV-nee-forth tin til the breaking strain of each par ticular episode is reached, it hold? sway. The electors sent member:' to Parliament to transact business • one section of members- determine that business shall not be transacted In any other sphere but that of polities the conclusion would be obvious. Put the party system has so obfuscated the vision of those who participate iii politics, as well as those who ward, their course, that this deliberate obstruction is regarded as legitimate, as part of the game, and even as a heroic light For a principle. And how often do stonewalls succeed in their object ': About as qften as strikes; that is to say, relatively, very seldom indeed Both phenomena are striking illustrations of Waste. There is loss of time, loss of health, loss of temper, and a terrible waste of words.