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THE OBSERVER
Asu j;vr.s‘jso ihusuasj: courier.
TJIl:lt*!|>AV, XOVJ3MBBR 81, 1918.
from day to day.
POLITICAL MIXTURE.
statement
structurn
The altitude of parties i» the
Intivo A—onfitly on the Mount Mulligan
i.iil-.vay proposal was very interesting.
Ttifiv w.*» a general mixture of mien si*
and parties. it was Just in* difficult to
niidciflotid the opposition «>t a lew of the
u-uiiil Government supporters us the sup
port of the real red-hut ^socialists ‘d
I .,i I lorn- Party. ‘I'li*.* few who went ovfl
front the Government nth* to vote against
the proposal nave the very peculiar icasaD
that a breach of faith hud been eons*
mitteif in that the Government was jp>i»rt
on wills a ness* railway after a statement
from the Premier t>i the effect that them
would .be no new line started until w*st
veitv : mid two added objections to tiw
Hhod involved. Now the
* to the eu-iliK off in eon*
..as made because of the
financial stringency, and it -was a plain
and honest statement. The modification
of it was because the CiiilSagoe Company
L-amu a intis' with what was practically tho
olfer ot a loan of £100,0UU to build n
special linn. That eon in nc» way he
hornetly said to involve a breach of faith,
n.»r is it in any way financially dubious,
it may be frankly said that if the logic
i.f Ihn-o who alleged a brearb of faith was
accepted no Government would in bail
limes, when money was scarce, be able to;
accept a financial offer in respect to a |
special railway because there were no i
iMinin available to build lines elsewhere, j
The assumption is ridiculous, and it w •
worse ; it is misebievmts. As to the
tinaiieiu] method, it 'may he ashed what
in wrong with it'! Why were such * Irony,
bitter, and tnupiulified words used re
* pectins it ? Mr. Wienholt put it that
the Government had borrowed money in
l.nnilnn re.illy, und that the inmirriw
ot other and side loans was not cpiitc a
square thing. That is a very rein ark ab f
statement, a statement absolutely devoid
of justification. Queensland is in no way
tied to the London market ill Hint way. \
AH our loans uxu well secured, and it ;
would *bi; a nhockiiiK thing to suggest
that the Government was paltering with
its credit-that it wan mrnrrinit loan* fo'
tlie absolute security of which there
might 1m» a doubt. We are
sure that neither Mr, Wienholt
nor Air. G. P. Ihlrncs—the main
critics from the* Imnttctni point »«
meant Mieti a thing, but certainly tut
enemies tri the Government would he glad
to read it, into their HpewhiH, Tho Gov
ernment- ha*••in this matter merely nr
ranted ft loan of 4MW.0W, ami for mi ex*
eellent purpose, lor ft matter, m* thw ,
Premier wld, of superlative importance |
t» North fjm-i’jwilnnd, H is to be re* (
gretted that n»y narrowness nhonld have .
crept into tho rank a «f the Government
BU |) port era *, but what of tho expansive* j
tu*^ of tho Socialist members '! Truly
it wan amusing to bear thoir application* <
of conscience naive. Something windy had ’
hypnotised u few of them. They seemed
l.‘» ,swallow alt their old ami well-worn
\l(<iilat.ition against “ ►yndicatw," mid
’•job railways,'* and “the fat man," pint
at a iiiestMemi'd youth swallow* a caudle
WILLIS AGAIN 1
The New South Wale a Speaker is «t it
again. Two members were thrown out j
as a sort of preliminary-, and then the j
l'remier was several times told to^ sit
down, and adjourned the House. Tin
whole job is ft rcmnrkttbh* one, though
those who most desire to see political
order ami political iJeecm-y restored in
New South Wales will be glad to note
that the present unforluimte position docs
nut hi-,.HI likely to last much longer.
When the Premier—and a Labour-Socialist
Premier of » dum titer ring type-is ordered
to sit down, and has hanging over him
the risk «t the order, “tint you go V he
has got into a very tangible difficulty.
.Mr, Willis, of course, laughs in Ids sleeve
all tho time, for he really lias the |w>wer
to run the l'remier out, and would do
it in -a minute, ami the Premier is afraid
to fight the new Old Man el the fcea.
Why ? Uecaiise if Mr. Willis went out
of the chair, and the (.Soveinment had to
appoint one of its tuipporlcm to the office,
the Ministerial majority would be gone,
and Mr. M’lSowen and his colleague..*
icon hi have to slide back to the Opposi
tion lwnohei, or appeal to the country.
The removal ot the Premier—the "chuck
ing out of the Premier”--would be a fit
ting close to tile whole discreditable
Willis episode. The Sspeuketship whs of
fered to that gentleman m>t -Wiimso of
any filings which lm showed for it, hut
because toe Government could not spare
a me in he r to take it on. The margin be
tween the two parties was too narrow,
and a Government supporter being elected
would have accentuates! the ponttmn. lint
that v/us not all : Mr. Willis was an
opponent of the Government ! That is
why the feeling of the Legislative As
sembly was so acute against him. Now j
do. Will lhe lac- the innsie, ami by .mi
ini; the disgraceful po-ilion in the New
Eolith Wales A^eii’I'ly t ml Ids Govern
ment also V That is the only detent
course left ; but even that would never
wipe out the stain upon N.*w Ninth Wales
of one of tho most disgrareinl pages nf
its Parliamentary history. The litileiie^m
of Mr. Willis, his bullying method, his
Unites are had, very bad; hut they ,n*«
nothing eompaied with the grave t,o>
that a Government opponent was p-t*
Minded to take office as Speaker ho that
the Government might retain a elo-e
majority, and retain place and pay. It
! would ho absurd to incJuil«* puwer in those
{ oMioioit* of office, Cor it is Mr. Willis
kvvlm has the yuWer. The whole thing will
I doubt h-s-s have to end; but in its begin
ning and ending, and in the middle pie.-e
1 ot the history. it liny he hoped there will
| he it sid i it ary ic-.-oo tor the mother State,
Ithe state landlord.
I hotels it doesn't do mi with any p»v*
, titular idea *>t philanthropy; but if Uteie
• t' any cottsi.lfi-.ition of the general well*
being of -immunity at the out-et it j-o.ui
; ..fit seal ditfj<«Ui”s. Tin* bc-t tiling |.»
wash .nit political ini.piiti.-s is money - •
T.wt is made manifest by the hotel bn j.
* l*e*o already voajuet.'d by the State iu
West Australia, fait vte got another
(hunk of evidence in aupjiorl. A Hal
■l«w lit1 (.‘ii passed in the legislative As*
tmutbiy at I’ortk to provide fur the ©stab*
linhim-nt of two hotels, ow* at I tot t mu t:
Inland, And the other at Wongan Mills.
The principal opposition won to the first*
mimed, but the Premier's theory wsw that ,
the island should “be made a paying pro- j
iMx-ition.’* There is something for ;
Voce inlanders to get into their heads
imd turn irver. It is not pleaded that
the hotel is meet**ary for even the rote
\emenre of the people, or for the well
being of the locality concerned; the f'oe*
taint Premier badly puts it that the is*
land must be rude n paying proposition.
Now that is thp way i.f the fuirialistH.
teiiUou-* of nationalising the liquor tiatfic,
“with 4 view t» alxdittmi,” and the
Socialist Government of West Australia
Himu-.s how they c.tiTy out the idea.
When a Socialist Government starts an
•hotel as a money-making eoneern, what ,
proaitecl is there of the trade ever being J
wlmlisln d ? No hopo! We hear a lot }
hew of nationalisation end abolition, and
many good people absolutely desirous of
doing good to their fellows really believe
it. That is very much t<> be regrett<*d,
WJhmi rile QuiH'iishiml Sot-inti^ts-— with a
win!; of tiie eye-talk of the State getting
hold of the liquor trade, and then abolish
ing, let people turn their minds to the j
position of affairs in West Australia i
Over there the cat his Oecn let out of |
the bag. What plea of desiring to curb t
the liquor evil and ultimately wipe it
out can there 'be when the KoiialUt
Premier proposes the public house as a
means of making t pine ”n paying pso*
position” ? We think the teetotalers of
(J mens land are not folds, that many ot
tlmm arc hurd'bratled hustmt-s men, and
«« sidi them to tints the effect of State
trading in West Australia. Had the Id**
hecu to give public accommodation in
tills way of food and drink the question
would have only In'cn one of expediency
on the part of the State; but when it
oimr.1 to establishing a bar trash? to make
the place **a paying proposition," thy pro
position ia entirely different. The moral
ia thin: That the State may Mart
Imtcls and many of thorn, may even
nationalise the liquor traffic; but it will
lint stop it. The State will go for Use
money all the time—at all events that i*
the experience of lhe Socialiatd.
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