THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1907. A THIRD PARTY.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8541, 23 September 1907, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1907. A THIRD PARTY.

Judging by the experiences of Australia the advent of a third political party in New Zealand would be something in the nature of a national calamity. That, however, a third party —a Labour Party —is going to make an appearance in the political world at no very distant date, seems to be the generally accepted opinion. We notice that a contemporary remarks editorially:—"ls New Zealand, now at the height of prosperity, unable to learn the Australian lesson? Are trades unionists here unable to realise their present success, unable to see that it has been obtained by the goodwill and support of the whole community, unable to understand that their success can only be maintained and increased by a policy of moderation, and a reliance upon peaceful evolution?" Such observations as W3 have quoted, are not only incorrect, but palpably absurd. For years past Labour has controlled the Government to a large extent, and the Government have made it the chief end and aim of their existence to ■'play up" to the working man. One result of the Government's policy—and a result easy to forsee —has been to create in the end a considerable amount of dissatisfaction with the Government in the ranks of Labour. The Governm >nt are really responsible for the threatened third party. No honest objection can be urged against the formation of a Labour Party, if a genuinely representative j and moderate party could be obtained, | but the so-called Labour parties do not represent Labour as a whole, but usually an extreme section of trades unionists. Take the present Liberal —Labour Government as an example of what we mean—while the lot of many workers has been improved the burden of many other men, who are hi every sense of the word working men, has been considerably increased. A HUGE SWINDLE. America is pre-eminently the home of huge swindles. Apart altogether 1 from the trustß and combines, the controllers of whicfj spernl their lives 1

in planning how they can rob their fellow men and women, every now and then scandalous swindles of immense magnitude are discovered. A little while ago the San Francisco scandals were attracting widespread attention, and now news of another extraordinary and huge swindle is cabled. It appears that the Capitol, the building in which the State legislature meets, of Pennsylvania, which was supposed to have cost thirteen million dollars, is really worth only four million dollars. No doubt there will be some excitement manifested concerning the nine million dollars, which have been paid away for nothing, but in a country so given up to "the almighty dollar" as America is, such happenings are scarcely likely to decrease because of a few odd discoveries. - The true and patriotic American is, no doubt, ashamed of the scandals which disgrace his country, but until the people rise in wrath and make startling examples of wholesale robbers of the public there appears to be no prospect of improvement. In a country where the Legislatures are not infrequently bribed, and where lonest judges seem powerless to prevent the machinations of unscrupulous trusts only the most drastic measures of reform will be of any avail.