Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878.] TUESDAY, JULY 25, 1893

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4479, 25 July 1893, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878.] TUESDAY, JULY 25, 1893

"There shall be in England sovcn half. penny loaves sold for a penny: All the realm shall be divided | and whea I am 1 King, there shall bo no money, all shall eal 1 and drink on my score,"—Jack Cade. Oh what a day our political Jack Cades are now having ia the House ( of Representatives, making hay while the Liberal sun is shining and improving upon the original Jack Cade who paid forfeit for his singular and original opinions, more than four hundred years ago, by buying his i head-the body being previously detached—stuck on London bridge, Had he lived naw-a-days in Now Zealand ho would have b< en returned us an M.H.E. to the General Assembly and in all probability have 1 become a Minister of the Crown, He , lived, or perhaps it would be more > emphatic to say " he died," just four i hundred years too soon. The last ; idea of our own political Jack Cades, 1 who have no heads to lose, is a - prescription for physicians, a done , for doctors. Seeing that poor ' men are often muoh distressed by the cUmgi'B of their medical attendants, they pray the Government to regulate these charges, to minimise the fee ior 1 a visit, to reduce the charge for a bottle of eough mixture, and to bring a surgical operation within the reach of the most impecunious individual, We are rather in a fog about this, be» cause it, has often occurred to us to notico that very many poor people settle the little difficulty of extravagant doctors' fees by not paying them at all, while others combine together and make pretty hard bargains by which they get their medical at- . tendance for a song, and their Baits and senna for a whistle. We are in a bazo as to who will benefit by this remarkable discovery of ouf political Jack Cades, and are half inclined to believe that they themselves will, at the next..Gpperal Eleotion, when tliey will claim the political support of every unhappy wight who has a griavance with a doctor. We tried to Bee how the proposed regulation would work out in practice, but we got into amaze straight away; we said, a doctor charges seven shillings and sixpeneo for, a visit, and the political Jack Cados would cut this down to,' say lire'shillings. At five shillings .it would pay the doctors, because at present about one third of the patients of an average practitioner don't pay himatall/He justsquares the thing by making the men who pan afloftl to pay give bim seven shillings and sixpence and letting some of the poorer patients, wbo cannot afford to'pay go scot free. Under the present arrangement' tlie rich pay for the_poor,but this does not satisfy the political Jack Cades.-' They bring down the fee to five shillings and well-to-do people wiil bless them, while tbe poor will, ory out, for the do'otois will aay " now out fees mo cat down we cannot really afford to j ato4 you ira love any longer." . ■ In this town we know that often. t|te | poor man's best friends have been tbe (doctor and the clergyman. Of course our political Jack Cades know what tbuy are about, hat it seems to us that they might hesitate before, turnipg one (if the poor jnan's best ffjenda agaipst him, However, the political Jaok Cades will earn thegwtitiide of the \#,to-do; men;; if-they reduce jnedioaJ fees, Jiieo perhaps tliey.

. may on tlio flame ground bring the • lawyers six and eightpence dowir to four'ond sixpence. This idea is. well worthy of their consideration. Also to be consistent they should make it penal for a butcher to charge move , tiian twopence a pound for meat, for a butchers' bill often distresses a poor . roan. Political Jack Cades must come to his rescue and every householder with a comfortable income will feel the benefit of the reduction. Oh for the time, so 6oon coming, when the poor working man can go into the world fortibed and protected by five and twenty guardian angpls in the eliape of labour measures, which will secure him ut minimum uf Work at a maximum wage and all the comforts and luxuries of life at prices below j par. The ideal working man is being developed by our political Jack Cades. He is a person who will never bo required to do anything for himself, beoause the State will do all for him. of life to quit bimself like a man and achieve position und fortune as many _ a thousand working. men\ in New Zealand have done before him, lie is to i be coddled, petted, fondled, wheedled and dandled by political Jack Cades ® till he becomes us soft as a turnip and 1B ashelplets as an infant.