Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878] FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1892.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4220, 16 September 1892, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878]

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1892.

Being the extended tiiie of the Waiiuiui'a Daily, with which it is IDENTICAL.

" Let us suppose now that we have "only national land. The pheno- " rncna presented in this case would " be; on the one hand, a body of " cultivators paying rent to the State; "and, on-the other, a greater body " living by wages, mainly in town?, " deriving a beneficial interest from " the rents, and remaining content in " the knowledge that they partioiputo " in the prosperity of the agricultural " tenant, On the ground of self- " interest, the more numerous class " will cast (heir volpb a«ainst the " disturbance of a system which works " in their favor." " We have amoral " right to use every prejudice, every " tendency of the popular legislative " mind to nasist us in the work," The above words will be read with admiration by many in tlm district when they learn that they were written and published in pamphlet form by the Hon John Ballance, the prophet of Land Nationalisation, " Lei us suppose,", writes tho inspired author, and we willingly follow the supposition in order to find out what it leads to. In the Colony of New Zealand there is to be a new heaven and a new earth when land becomes national and the freehold title is" supposed" away. We have the picture drawn in a sketch of perhaps a hundred thousand serfs toiling like bees on their little patches of land and each paying a rent to the State. This is the country side of tho scene, now let us take the town side on the lines "supposed" by the Hon. Mr Ballance, The rents of the hundred thousand serfs are to be expended for the benefit of the toilers of the city. Tbe latter will be the more numerous class and as long as the reals are paid regularly they will permit their country cousins to toil for them. Self-interest will prevent the disturbance of a system which works in their lavour I It will be a beautiful time when each country mouse will have to carry on his back two or three town mice. If the country mouse is diligent in his calling and puts in his sixteen hours a day, the town mouse will only require to labour six hours n day or perhaps but four. He might even say to himself " Why should I work at all. We the dwellers in the town are the more numerous class, we have the votes, we control the men on the land, why should not we make them keep us altogether 1 Let the serft make tho money and lot us spend it I" Of course the Premier has a perfect right to hold these views, and the labour party is quite justified in admiring and supporting them, M'interest should compel such a party to follow such a leader, but there is one little point which tho author of the extract to which we refer, may exteunate but can hardly justify, " Wehave, he writes, a mora) right to use every prejudice of the popular legislative mind to assist us in the work." Now what is the prejudice which the Premier proposes to use in such a wholesale manner 1 Our dictionary defines it as " the forming of a judgment beforehand without tho examination of facts and arguments," In other words it implies trading on tho ignorance of the people, making papitul out of the fanaticism of the labour party, appealing to the passions of the multitudes rather than to their reason. Now we do not propose tp go into tho cjuestion of whether the Premier has a moral right to do this. Like Sheridan'sheroliemtysay " God bless our aims I and sanctify whatever means we use to gain them," It should be quite enough for couhr try settlers to read between his own lines and draw their own conclusions, That the country fflico should be beguiled by the soft and pleasing purr of the prophet of Land Nationalisation is possible, but, we trust, not probable.