THE Temuka Leader. TUESDAY, MAY 2, 1893.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2497, 2 May 1893, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. TUESDAY, MAY 2, 1893.

MR SCOBIE MACKENZIE. We have read with great intere-.t the speech which Mr Scobie Mackenzie delivered to his constituents last week at Naseby. It cannot be regarded as a serious criticism of the Government policy; it was a farce, a burlesque such as no one could read without feeling highly amused, but it possessed no political merit whatsoever, unless it may sei ve to deceive the unthinking, and secure votes for Mr Mackenz’.e. It was a speech in which fact and fiction, truth and falsehood, were so cleverly dovetailed into each other that the reader is puzzled to know what manner of man is he. Any one who knows his history as a politician knows that he is a man who wins elections by means of soft-soap and deception, but the Naseby people must indeed be gullible if last week’s speech deceive: them. It was intended to deceive them, but it surely must have overshot the mark. Mr Scobie Mackenzie began by saying he would sp; ak to them “ without reservation. There has been too much reservation in some some quarters. It reems to me that some have been altogether too mealymouthed.” This of course is a blow at Mr Rolleston because he did not hit the Government hard enough. Ho then proceeded to let out at> them, and said theirs was a policy of “ downright imposture,” but the way he proved it was amusing. He found no fault with what they had done, what he complained of was that they had not done enough. They promised, he said, to burst up large estates, but they did not do so. People were deceived if they thought the Cheviot Estate was burst up. It was more likely that the Cheviot would burst them up. They had not burst up one single large estate, and now what was their proposal ! It was to buy up large estates, and here is where the imposture came in. They promised the people to burst up large e 'fates, but instead of doing that they were going to buy them. On theze points he spoke so long that he filleda column and a half of the Otago Daily Times, and was frequently applauded, and yet this is the whole substance of what he said. The fact is the present Government never dreamt of such a thing as bursting up, and their policy all along has been to buy up large estates where required. With this object in view they passed the Laud for Settlement Act, which was strenuously opposed by Mr Scobie Mackenzie, He told his constituents he hates and loathes large estates, but he works in their interests in Parliament all the same. The next subject he tackled was what he called the J.P. policy. The Government, he said road 6 J.P.’s not because they were fit for the position but because they were working men. But here Mr Mackenzie discovered ho had encored upon dangerous grounds. It would not do to cast reliections on working men by insinuating they were not fit for J.P.’s, so he smoothed the matter over by saying that the men appointed were “ perfectly harmless, quite unexceptionable as justices. He would himself “ appoint thousands of the same sort to moivow.” So the fault in the appointments, as will be seen, lay in the fact that they wore made by the Government. Two columns and three-quarters of the Times are taken up, and this is all that is said. The next question is the female franchise, and of course it is treated .;n the hackneyed style of insisting \ government did not want it 1 earned/ the public debt is ■fcreated of. Last there was a great discussion as to" whether public debt was increased of decreased. Some I said it was, some said it was pot, but Mr Scobie ,ssjd it was. This was the okly legitimate attach he made on the Government. He also went 4e.Bpjy into the Legislative Council appointments, and proved most satisfactorily that the Government were ’mposters. They promised iQ appoint working men, but the *our labov councillors were not labor leaders, and the men they ought to have appointed were MrJ- A- iila r, |§,crptary of the Seaman’s Union; P^Pi«her, president of the Trades and Labor w nrL C.’,, and so on. Of course the object of all this is to try to prove to working men that the present Government pro not genuine. He next treated of land settlement ir a similar strain, went into hysterics in denouncing the ot immense fortunes, and wound tip by saying that if any one in future called him a Liberal he would knock him down. As lie was not as big a man as he would like to be, if a bigger, man tha?;. himself called him a Liberal he would prosecute him for defamation of The speechj is a discredit to Mr Scobie Mrckcnzie. All he attempted to try to show was that the Government were not half Radicr’ enough, and that they 7 | were only posing as such while; they are really Conservative in ois-: guise. But we suppose he cannot help; it; there is nothing to be said against the ■ Govern nent, so we presume ho must not be blamed for not being able to make bricks without straw. He ought at any rate, to have criticised the Government policy manfully and seriously instead of asking his constituents to swallow such rubbish, *• •'Her all poiTbap? it : s the best election Biiu... m tm-yc made. The whole speech he cov ~ to WOl'kipg men ' tenor of it went to pro. ‘ • "kifiy to j that the Government were not mo. ->i { their cause, and of course if he can gm. them into believing that he may secure votes through it. After afi his busineis is not to educate the people, but to secure his own election, and it is possible ho knows his marks. In an intelligent constituency ho woidd bo laughed at.

THE POLITICAL SITUATION. From a private telegram winch we received yesterday from Wellington we learn that no important changes w 11 be made in the Ministry for the present, with the exception that the Hon. J. G. Ward is appointed, Colonial Treasurer, From

this wo conclude that Mr Seddon, who has been acting Premier during Mr Ballance’s illue s, wi'l now become Premier, and that all other Ministers wi'l continue in their positions. This we think will be found a very satisfactory arrangement under the circumstances, and we see no reason why the Government thus constituted should not fulfil the expectations of the country and be acceptable to all their supporters. We should very much like to see Sir Robert Stout amongst them, but he is not at present in the House, and it is not altogether certain that he can afford to make the great sacrifice which entering into politics would entail. He is of course the ablest and the most experienced man on the Liberal side, but he makes between £2OOO and £3OC9 out of his profession, and very possibly his partners would not bo agreeable to his relinquishing such a splendid practice. It is very hard-to find men ready to throwaway between £IOOO and £2OOO a year, and that is what Sir Robert Stout would have to do if ho accepted the position of Premier. Still it is said that Mr Ballance’s last request was that he should become Premier, and that Sir Robert promised to do so if it was the wish of the Liberr 1 party. We are perfectly satisfied that Sir Robert Stout would make as large a sacrifice for his country as any man in it, and very probably he may at the general election offer his ser vices. For this, however, we have no authority. Our information from Wellington is not as full as we should like, but so far as we cn see at present no changes will take place between this and the general election. The most important position of all is that'of Colonial Treasurer, and that is now filled by a man whose career will inspire perfect confidence. If Mr Ward cannot fulfil the duties appertaining to that position, no man in New Zealand can, for no man is bettor fitted for it by training and education. He has managed his own business with extraordinary success, and that is the best guarantee that he will manage the business of the country. He too will have to make a sacrifice; £BO9 a year w ; U not pay him, but he has been making a sacrifice for the last three years in working for the country for nothing, and this is the best proof of his sincerity and disinterestedness that can be obtained. Under his guidance we cee no reason why the finances of the colony should not be managed as carefully as ever, and we have no doubt but that they will. From a later telegram received since writing the above we learn that Sir Robert Stout will stand for Inangahua, that all arrangements are made, and that great satisfaction is felt in Wellington at Sir Robert consenting to re-enter politics. 'We are certain the whole colony will be glad of it. Sir Robert Stout when in office never had a chance. He had not a strong following, but it will be seen as leader of a powerful party he will give a good account of himself.