POLITICAL BLUFF.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 March 1917, Page 4

POLITICAL BLUFF.

The Acting-Premier last week saw fit to issue a statement to farmer reservists beseeching them not to sell off their stock and shut up their properties, for, to quote his actual words, "it seems to me a national necessity at the present time to keep all farms going at their normal stock-carrying and grain-produc-ing capacity, in' order to maintain the Dominion's output of foodstuffs." The statement bore evidence of sincerity, and it appeared as it Sir James Allen had really awakened at last to the necessity for studying the interests of those of our primary producers eligible for military duty. But when put to the test, he fails miserably, as we will proceed to show. A Taranaki reservist of the first division, owning one partly improved bush farm of Tii acres and a partner in another place of 041 acres, also partly improved, appealed on being drawn in the ballot for six months in which to place his affairs in order. The Court, as was its wont in those days, turned an unsympathetic ear to the request, and he had but three weeks to arrange his affairs. This, of course, was impossible, and, when Sir James Allen's statement was published, he put his position clearly before the ActingPremier. Did" Sir Sir James offer any help in what was a genuine deserving case? Not he. lie simply said nothing could be done, the decision of the Military Hoards being final. The farmer does not desire to escape his military obligations. He simply wants reasonable time to arrange for the carrying on of his farms. Thfs, as everyone knows, is exceedingly dillicult, labor of any kind being very short, and expert labor impossible to gain. To fell his stock now, when prices are down owing to the prolonged dry weather, would result in a considerable loss to him, and to leave his farms unattended would mean that it will take many years before they are fit for ftock carrying again. This is clearly detrimental to the best interests of the country. In any case, some consideration should lie given to men who have taken up the bush land and worked bard to bring it into profit. We maintain that the country has no right to ask a man to sacrifice his material interests as well as risk his life in "the .defence of the eountrv. and the Government should see that in a case like this reasonable extension should be allowed a man. If instead of a farmer ho were, say, a. racing liandicapper, he would probably obtain the necessary extension without beiii" obliged to appeal to the Acting-Jremieit "Lose recent statement about conserving the interests of the primary producers can, in light of the above experience, bo regarded as nothing more nor les-' than political bluff.