THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1891. MISREPRESENTATIONS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2271, 24 October 1891, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1891. MISREPRESENTATIONS.

The Opposition leaders, are putting forward frantic efforts to bring the present Government into disrepute! They know full well that if the present Ministry are able to retain power until the effect of their policy is felt, nothing can remove them for many years. They know that if the farmers find their taxation reduced by pi’etty close on one-half, that class which has hitherto been the main stay of the Conservative party will become Liberal, and that, consequenly, their chances of regaining power will be reduced to nil. The Land and Income Tax will not come into force until next year, there may probably be another struggle over it in Parliament, and the whole object of the Tories is to turn the Ministry out of office before the farmers can taste the sweets of reduced taxation. They have swindled and befooled the farmers for a long time, and they are frightened now lest the eyes of the farmers will be opened by the change of policy. But the way the Tories have adopted to attain their ends show that they lack originality. They are crying the country down ; everything is going to wreck and ruin ; enterprise is is killed, confidence is destroyed, and we are drifting fast into a deeper depression than ever we have hitherto experienced. This is the description they have given of the condition of the country now, just because a Liberal Government is in office, but it will be remembered that the same party did exactly the same thing when Sir George Grey was Premier, and when Sir Robert Stout guided the ship of state. Then the Tories kept up the cry that the country was going to ruin, and it is the selfsame tactics they are resorting to now. Mr Scobie McKenzie is foremost in promulgating this doctrine. He has visited Auckland and given his views to, the local press there, and his utterances are characteristically endorsed by the champion liar of the party—the Christchurch Press. In Thursday’s article that paper says that the previous Government had M put us on the high road to prosperity ; yet employment was never scarcer than it is at' present, and the Government, as we have already pointed outj are trying to hide it by a lavish expenditure on public works.” Anyone can see that that is a barefaced lie. No Government ever had less money to spend on public works than the present administration. That, however, is too plain a fact to require further argument. And now as regards the Atkinson Government, what means did they take to bring about prosperity ! Really the only thing they did was to increase taxation by at least 25 per cent, and add £2,400,000 to the public debt. They increased the Property Tax and Customs duties, and in this way brought about prosperity according to the Press and Mr Scobie McKenzie. What was the character of their prosperity ? Simply that about 20,000 people left the colony, and that the value of real property, according to the Property Tax Commissioner dinjinished by 5J millions. We are only stating faqts, but what very stubborn things they are in this instance. Then the result of the policy of the Atkinsonian Ministry was to increase the public debt by £2,400,000; to increase taxation by at least 25 per cent.; to decrease the value of property by 5£ millions; and to frighten about 20,000 people, or one out of every 30 of the total population out of the polony. Out of every 30 persons in the polony when Sir Hary Atkinson took the reins of Government, one of them left for other countries, and yet we are told now the colony was made prosperous. We are willing to admit that our exports increased, and that the years ■which Sir Harry Atkinson held offioe were in a measure prosperous, but this was not due to the policy of the Government. It was due to the high prices of our produce, and in a great measure to the demand which sprung up suddenly for New Zealand flax, with which the Government had nothing to do .

I But the question is, \vliat present Government done ; to brii)g * the country to ruin. They have notborrowed one penny ; . they have not ( increased taxation in the slightest degree; they have in fact .absolutely done nothing, for such measures as they have passed have not, and will not, come into force for a long time yet. It is, therefore, impossible that they could have done- anything to ' ruin'the colony, and the cry on that head is merely a deliberate attempt to throw dust in the eyes of the public.

THE BOOTMAKERS STRIKE. At present we hear of the probability of a big strike in the boot trade throughout the colony. Perhaps it would be interesting to state how the trouble arose. In February last a statement of wages was drawn up, and agreed at a conference of employers and employes. That statement was signed by the masters, and was to remain in forcee till 1893. There were, however, a few Auckland masters who would not sign, and hence came about the late strike at Auckland which lasted for six months’, and the Leather Trades Union after expending a large sum of money—some thousands of pounds—gave up the battle. The masters then throughout the colony who had signed their honorable name to the statement of February last, thinking no doubt that every spark of resistance had been sapped out of their employes, met in secret conclave, and drew up a new statement and conditions of labor, which the employes assert are simply ruinous and tyranous to them. This new statement will be brought into force next Monday, and in the meantime an endeavor is being made to bring about a meeting between the Leather Trades’ Union and the Employers’ Association. A groat deal is spoken "now-a-days about honor among superiors, but from this it would appear that many employers, who consider themselves superiors as compared with the workingmen, have not much honor. They sign a statement for two years, shake hands with the men and express tlxemselves delighted with the amicable settlement of all difficulties, and seven months after, when they think they have gained power, they do not hesitate to break their agreement.

EXTRAVAGANCE

Oxb of the charges levelled against the present Government on all occasions h extravagance. The Premier answered this charge in Dunedin, He said the Government were accused of increasing this year salaries which they helped to decrease when in Opposition last year. This was true. Some salaries were reduced last year which ought not to have been, and these were increased this year, but all the increases put together amounted only to £475. That was the increases—£47s —and it was over this all the cry of extravagance was raised. The Government had cut down expenditure by £41,253, and increased salaries by £475, so that the net saving was £40,778. He did not think there was much extravagance in that, and we quite agree with him, and we believe the great majority of the general public will endorse the sentiment.