Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, MAY 26, 1911. THE OPPOSITION POLICY.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10247, 25 May 1911, Page 4

Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, MAY 26, 1911. THE OPPOSITION POLICY.

Mr W. H., Hermes, M.P., in .the ] course of. his, address, at' PaOimerston j North on Tuesday might, unfolded' i the .policy of the Reform Party for I the coming General Elections. He did, *» in a fearless, and outspoken mJanner, without the vocation or -mental reservation. As be is ipa-abaibly tihe strongest man in the Opposition to-day, tihe policy he enunciated may be accepted as one which has 'been approved by Mr Massey .and other leaders of itibe Party. Ist is matter for sincere congratulation that the Reform Party Tuasi seen, the wisdom of lassuming I an aggressive attitude, and of submitting ito the country an alternative to the weak, puny, vacillating apology for statesmanship which at present dominates the politics of this loaiiKridden territory. Bad the Opposition, thrown off its timidity years back, and submitted a clearlydefined poiUcy such as that outlined by Mr Herries on Tuesday night, it would (probably have been occupying the Ministerial (benches to-day. However, the fact that a definite scheme for reform has now been propounded is something for which the country should fee profoundly thankful. No longer will the party of stability and clean government rest under the reproach that it has noth- : ing .to offer. No longer will political dead-heats be aible to point .to it as the remnants of a decayed and extinct Conservatism. A more Liberal, a more Democratic, ;a more practical programme than that outlined by Mr Hemes could .scarcely be conceived. Briefly put, the policy is as follows: A progressive iland measure; the placing of educated Natives on the same footing as Europeans; the election of members of the Legisla/t----ive Council; tihe setting np of a Civil .Service Boaid; the enlarging of the powers of local bodies by giving them loan money to expend in ktmip sninis; the maintenance of the ArMtration Act without interference by Parliament; and the appointment of from the Old Country to manage the railways. Other

items might reasonably have been . added to the programme, but .those ( given are sufficiently to excite -tflio enthusiasm of every elector in the Dominion. There is no-till-ing approaching Conservatism about them. They are all Liberal and Democratic. The proposal to make the Legislative Council elective is in itself sufficient to demonstrate the broadness* of the policy. * The elector® will now await with interest the policy of the mis-named Liberal party, two of the Ministers in I which were, as Mr Herries pointed out, warm supporters of the Atkin- , son Administration. The present Government has been given an ahunI dant opportunity of submitting a 1 progressive land policy. It has j failed. It lias heen pleaded with to ' deal effectively with the Native , lands. It has given no response. It ha* been, urged to introduce local government reform, and has , promised to do so. Those promises have been broken/again, and again. It has been asked to deal with the railway system in a hxisiness-like way. It has utterly and ignominiously failed. It ha* been implored to replace the farcical curiosity shop bnowtn as the Upper House with something approaching ,a legislative chamlber. It ha® refused. Can such a Government expect a continuance of the people's isupport? Can a hotcQwpotch of opportunism and patronage hope to retain the confidence of an enlightened oonistLtuemcyP Can a policy of vacillation for ever obtain ?' It is for the electors to answer.