KETTLE CALLING THE POT BLACK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 217, 12 March 1912, Page 4

KETTLE CALLING THE POT BLACK.

j In our last issue we published a violent letter, written by Mr. James Fortune, against the action of the Labor members for their action in voting for the retention of the Government on the no-con-fidence motioii. Words are probably wasted on a man capable of such* a splenetic, unrestrained diatribe. But, conscious of this fact, we c&nnot help recalling'that the Labor members (whom, by the way, we can't see eye to eye with on many points) against whom our correspondent directs his vituperation, stated between, the first and second ballots that on a no-confidence motion they would vote out the Ward Government, but, at the same time, they gave no tindertaking that they would support a Massey Government, which more than one clearly intimated they hated worse than the Ward Government. The Premier, seeing the state of affairs after the election, gave the country to understand that 'he and his Ministry would retire. A new and unexpected position was thus created. Whether the Labor members did the right or wrong thing in. voting for the retention of the Liberal Government in the special circumstances permits of an honest difference of opinion. One thing, however, is certain. It is that the Labor members but took a short cut in achieving their object, for it must be conceded that had they voted for Mr. Massey on the no-confidence motion (as they probably would have done 'but lor the Opposition leader's bulldozing tactics) they would subsequently have hastened to join the Liberals in ousting Mr. Massey. The position then would have been exactly the same as it is at present. If the action of the Labor members was, as described by our correspondent, "cowardly aJid hypocritical" and showed a "lack of moral principle," what of the behaviour of some of the leading Oppositionists in going about the country, and also in the House, maligning and misrepresenting the Premier and others associated _wit!h him in the Government of the country? Who has been responsible for the lowering of the standard of politics in this country? Has it been the Labor members? They, at any rate, have stopped at impugning men's characters, and have never felt called upon to apologise for their wrongdoing. Really, it is about time political Pharisees of the stamp of our correspondent ceased accusing men opposed to them of malpractices and holding them up to contempt, and turned, by way of a variation that is very necessary, ( to dhasten their own party and improve the tactics which have lately brought them into such bad odor with right-thinking people of every shade of political thought. What is wanted in this country at present is less mud-slinging and petty quarrelling, and more work and regard for "the interests of the people as a whole.