MR. GLASS IN REPLY TO MR. SMITH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXIII, Issue 81, 26 April 1901, Page 2

MR. GLASS IN REPLY TO MR. SMITH.

TO THIS KIMTOIt, Bm, • -Huiiring th« worthy roomW for Niiw Plymouth, K, M.HuiiUt, Esq., M.M H., hug fafien having a hlip at our Union whilnl, I was away, I bog to roquoHt to give ft '"'ply to liia meiate, Why did Mr. Smith not como to our meeting ; be know when it was to bo bold, and oxpress his opinions lik iaman, and not hit mo whoa hj« knew I wdh not present to defend our Union, The least he could have done was to invito either myself or eome other momber to be pressnt, knowing as he did ho intended to speak against it. Poor little fellow ; well, sir, I am quite frightened. Surely he does not intend to use " all" his influence against the farmers combining. Well, Mr. Editor, I almost " fainted " when I heard of it. That anyone having the extensive, practical and theoretical knowledge of farming Mr. Smith has should upset our CJnion " all by himsalf " ; I suppose when he comes back we shall have to seo him on our knees and beseech him to have a little mercy on us poor, misguided men and womeu, and by oll'aring a humble apology to him for our audaeity and presumption he may condescend, from his lofty ' p?rch of " ,£240 for four months work and £4O ex ra for doing nothing," and »ay ho will forgive us for doing what ? ■ Now, Mr, Editor, I always thought that Mr. Smith had a little fairness I about him. Evidontly he was thinking i about his trip, with full pay, or he i would not make such absurd and unjust : statements. I have a copy of your i report before me, which I presume is i correct. Sa ha reilly thinks it is an ' attempt to get the thin end of the > wedge in does he. Well, sir, is that i not a funny thing to do. That the k poor, ignorant cow spankers and fari mers generally wish to have a siy in > the Government of the country ; no ; wonder he is shocked, Of course i Vlr. Smith knows perfectly well that ' other classes "do not" take any interj est in poli'ics, not even to boasting > what they have made Mr. Seddon do r for them They don't organiss to ex- , orciso political inSueoce "dothey". 1 they don't have the Labour Bills sent • to thair branches for their consider.*i tion and allowed to alter them do tboy; s they don't nominate members for the t Housa do tbey; they did not pledge - themsfc!v<>K to support the Hon. E. M. i Smiih did they; they did not lay a . political pi it form down at their Dune- » din mea'iog a short time ago, one item > heing to take off all duty oq articles t that cannot bs manufactured here at a i profit and put an extra tax on the - land; that the Government should p tjxke over practically all commerce and . omp'oy them at their own rates of pay I laid down by themselves abs lutely, F and 10s par day for all unskilled i labour, and a more holidays, etc. ; > but I am forgetting, Mr. Editor, that ; it is not politics Mr. Sinihh be'.i?v6B i omi. e'yin; that, excepting when the f wretenm of farmers and ountry i settlers dara do the sirae. That I said - the Government had done nothing for t fariaem I deny. T/iaf, sir, is abs ilutsly 7 fals», and he knows it as well as I do or i else he dsas not know what he is tatkl iug about. I have always praieed Mr. - Ward up, especially for the Advance to 3 Settlers Act and cheap money geaer--1 ally. Of course he knew I was not i there, and that I advocated doing i away with Party Government. What • I s lid was that as at present Party - poli'ics were a curse to the farmer. Why! Because the members of the Seddon and other parties are bound hand and fjot to th<-ir leader, and to ge; grants, pickings, o'c, must support him through thick and thin. Just look tlnougii Harvard acd iee what Mr, Smith voted foe at the lash of the whip of his party. Whit the farmers want is a rum who has the pluck to vote for the farmers when a Bill is before the House which is against t'neir inter. gt not shves to any ie.ider, an i according to Mr Saaith the prrsaat Government; are as open as the d*y, perhaps so, I never said they weie not, we are all hu'uan and of course I must look to our own interests first especially that £4O ; aud that tf we form i Union of farmers free from party politics we should govern the county by a ring of cliques, I thought he bad hoi e tense than t > talk a lot of humbug like that, are wo not beiVig governed by a s crec lot of cliquasnoi*. Take the lab mr combinations, the merchants combinations, the school teachers combinations, ths shipping combications, lastly thu fire insurance ring which h>is lutely decided to iaite the insurance* in the Noi'h Island. Joking apmt Mr Editor. I may state that we don't; care a iig for Mr 'Smith, or his rp nion, or thrents as to but sling us up, talk is cheap, the farmers have the power to give him no ehatico to vote agimst us a* he lias thrown down tlw gaui.tl<jt, let him t:-.k i care tha* it i» not brutish?, up at our Taranaki c jntVrein.e to black ball iiiin, thvn he will iiad out tout it is not the party nut the man wo are fighting, we don'o caio a button whoJier a Liberal or any oilier mm is elected, but if ho defies us aud trits to t-quash us when wo aie only crawling, when we are able to iua ho may find out, that ti.4 tongue, hi<j pen and lus voto won't save his 1.-acon. If Mr Smith has any champions lots them coaie to the Farmer's 01ttb meeting at 1.30 p.m. «n Saturday, 27th. lam icady to argue tun questions.—l am, etc.,

Aii'muii G, GLASS, Organising Seare'u i-y N, /. P. Union.