The Stratford Evening Post WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE EGMONT SETTLER TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1913. PARTY POLITICS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 43, 21 October 1913, Page 4

The Stratford Evening Post WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE EGMONT SETTLER TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1913. PARTY POLITICS.

From a purely Party standpoint—ami alter all Party really dominates all else in latter-day polities, however much and however loudly Party politicians may protest to the contrary—the Liberal Re-union held in the Stratford town Hall last night was a thorough success. Three able platform speakers "ere present, including the Member; lor Christchurch North, who for years! has been in the fore-front of our plat*! lorm orators and dehaters: the audience was large, sympathetic, and indiligently good-humoured, and at the) .close the desired resolution was carried without visible dissent. What more' could any Party gathering desire. Pine sentiment poured out in plenty: Pro-j gross and Social .Justice made their j due appearance at the appointed time, and it was reiterated—with perfect [ truth, let it be said—that Liberal' legislation had had a great deal to do with the country’s long prosperity. In, these degenerate days, when labels have become so mixed that Conserva-f fives appear as Liberals and Liberals • ms something else, while the dividing) line of policy of hoik parties is too i (fine almost to perceive the difference, the non-Party man is forced to the eon- i elusion that there is a great deal of, make-believe in the whole sordid, game, and that it would bp difficult indeed to place things where they rightly belong. Always the party in power claims its virtues, while to the party in opposition eaeli affirmed virtue of the other side is a vice. Proh- (

xbly if the present Government were :o dispatch three trusty men from its n side to speak in the Town Hall to- 1 narrow night, they would be equally n veil received on delivering themselves b jf their particular load of sentiment, t and platform oratory, in the p high name of principle: it is merely t the stand-point from which one looks o it it, if he is a Party man. Mr J, Thompson’s emphatic eloquence 1 (though somewhat overdrawn), ins criticism of ilie Government s action, and his extolling of the good deeds i of the Party now in Opposition, was 1 all very well done, and undoubtedly | c the best effort of the evening so far ( c as actual politics are concerned. When 1 it came to the other gentlemen the] 'i anclience may have been somewhat be-' s wildered. The Member for Nelson, | after most emphatically assuring his f hearers that he had no intention of. i being personal even if bis critic.’sm "as 1 direct, gave utterance to decidedly j ( personal attacks. Mr At more also dis-i < claimed that ha vas a pane man amlj ‘ explained his position am! Ids reasons, i for opposing the Governim-nt, a n atter! i that has been already a good deal i talked about. His land humors eerv-l ed ■their purpose and made the peo-j pie smile for, as ho says, the millen-| nium will come in time, as also will the complete breaking up of big estates, j The list of landowners given-by him was a striking one, but to have been; quite impartial, and as a fearless m-‘ dependent also, lie might have mentioned the 65,000 acres commonly sup-, posed to be held by Mr G. M . Bus-, sell. The member for ChristchurchNorth, as we have before stated, is; quite an old friend, and many of those present were attracted to the meeting to hear Him speak if for no other rea-j sou. But those who know him besU could not but feel that the same ex-: hortation he delivered last night fiomi the platform might just as well have been the exhortation be delivered from; the pulpit on any Sunday in the jeai.j Splendid principles were well voiced ; 1 there were, of course some did “wheezes” —Mr Isitt will pardon the use of the term—while platitude iol-, lowed platitude like the waters of a running stream. There wore plenty of fireworks and they went off quite well,) but one felt that plain politics were not there. An occasional rather careless statement was put forth such as, that regarding the taxation per head twenty years ago and the taxation pei, head at this time, though as the fact that the population has about trebled in that period was quite overlooked by the speaker in making the mom-1 pai isoii, it carried no particular j weight. Nevertheless bo scored some good'points and the audience laughed with him and was not slow to clap itsi hands. When will some good Re- ( ‘former, or some splendid Progressive Liberal, 'really 'rUe up and deliver lis ■ 'from the Party system with its many _ evils ? That would ihdeed he prdgress' ami reform. ' That Sir Joseph Ward has not lost his popularity in these! parts was made evident by the way j in which the resolution regarding him | was carried, ami when cheers were, called for the Leader of the Oppsition, they were heartily forthcoming. I Stratford will certainly be glad to welcome him at any time he cares to | pay a visit, and we hope his promise to deliver an address will he fulfilled. | One great point in favour of last, night’s meeting was that its sweetness was not too long drawn out, and it.j was perhaps as well that Messrs Bus- j sell and Witty did not put in an appearance. The latter by-tlie-v ay, could perhaps hardly be expected, be-| cause surely be is still a little sbj of | facing the people be once so coarsely; derided as a community of “teat-pul-j lers.”