THE Wairarapa Age. MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1908. MAKING MATTERS WORSE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9035, 28 February 1908, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age. MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1908. MAKING MATTERS WORSE.

Mr T. McKenzie, member for Waikouaiti, yesterday, endeavoured to "make good his marble" at a political meeting in his electorate on Wednesday Fight. He did so as far a3 his constituents were concerned, but as in December next the electorate will cease to exist it cannot be of much consequence except.upon purely personal grounds how the electors of the district accept his remarks. It will be remembered that for years and during last session the genial "Tom," as his admirers love to call him, stood alocf from all political parties in the House. When all efforts to retain the electorate were hopeless, Mr McKenzie went home, and wandered about the primeval bush around his home thinking the matter out —so the wires inform us. The decision he came to was that he ought to support the Government, because Independence could not check rampant "revolutionary Socialism," and it was his duty to make a sacrifice of his opinions upon the alter of Liberalism. He was pledged at the last ehction not to uphold the Seddon Administration, but Ward was not Seddon. Therefore he had a right to choose his own course. Now it so happens that the Clutha district is represented by an Opposition member, and a Government candidate would require to be a strong man to contest the election this year on be-

half of the Liberal Party. Mr McKenzie is strong in that district on account of his deserved popularity., It was Mr McKenzie's mission last night to show that the two circumstances had no connection. He said they hadn't, and his audience believed him; and we are prepared to give him credit for honesty of purpose, but his explanation was lamentably weak, and on that ground might have been omitted with advantage to himself. It has been said that the most unwise thing a Magistrate can do is to attempt to explain his judgments. They may be good, or, if bad, may pass challenged; but to explain them is to challenge criticism. Every Opposition paper in the dominion will doubtless use Mr McKenzie's speech in order to condemn him out of bis own mouth. One Government paper has done so already. But after all who can say that honesty of purpose and circumstances have not combined to work the change? It is certainly unfortunate for Mr McKenzie that the wiping out of his electorate and his' change of political view should happen to synchronise, but the member for Waikouaiti seems to have been born under a malignant political star Whatever the motives impelling the action of Mr McKenzie, we are quite prepared to believe thev were not sordid.