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The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848-1954) (about)
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Cite: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1595122
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1 Min i-titiLt I milli,, mil «isti lm\i bien Hie ii li in Vustmllii in limit mu», nntl ilmiiir, (Iii. «Hil lint tin« « ir nilli Jtii piopli linn deiuundcU (loiionn In inn 11 ti I mi i > Oii\ ernmeut iMunlltuu lln\ hi« tint Inslciul o£ n lu"i loiluttioii lu 1 l; mude the und pin touiud i, ei eli «ns not merelr' lilli,, I ipi ll| llUc llllllllj ilicri tlbCll J
linn Hull ihm mil», fir letiiniliment
lu um Miiifcious md ihicalcning und, in \kloiln tin Sinti "oiunni.iil was)
Uiiml to ni ii i homo «-lion of com pli nui Ciitiiin publii «orks «erepost poiinl iiitnln iionoinlis in other dliei
lions m cn mude und lerluln tn\atiou| « is pioposid hut it «is ujcited with]
public, npniowil lij the ii_IblutheCoun iii ilii li\pi\iib «ero pleiibed JLhcj lind not olittilncd till tiley c\pected, but thij thoii_ht Hi it the Mlnlsti«. «iib at I i«-t iou\iniid tliut Li«oii)iiij «as neus sir\ ind Hint ufoiiii Inn in_ bein com
nu m id \\ uld lu i ii i lid on cnrilully I
liitlstililh But thoj no« dlsco\ ir tlut j
Hie Mlnbti. ii ilf is billi uneonvinied Sli Yli\undu l'cucuil In the specib he dilhiied ni hingston on 1 ilday uttered ii ptolou_ed mid lu.ubilous «hine o%cr the bunill inodiiuiii of icouoiny whlih luit, bien ioiiul upon the Minlstrj The iiltkisin to «Illili tin Minlstrj lind lucit Mibjuled « is hi said often ¡,rosslj
uni iii und ol ten ubsolutily lnslniere
Jin Huilwtns deliilt «us unuAoldablc I hue h id hicn no luibinuu i"einent and no c\Liinti_in.c Sir Ylexander inif,ht li ni bun foi.h eu foi pliadlng that lie mil his Miiiistrj (lidno«ion" Piobuuh
thin his bien no instunie In VIcLoria I ot ti 11uulii tu i »linitlnig thal he had
il< ne «mu, in in\ respicl or that his |
Mlulbtn «as ntiAtlil ig bboil of fault
less Tut hi m!_lit ti le tbt hine been |
iNpetled to uhnlt tint tiouoim und re
tun liment iii no« nciessui. Hil
minlii hine pleidoil that i\pendiUue |
«as foiled on bim In munbeis and In
the constituencies, hut. having regard to tho terrible» mittlre of the war, the un- certainty of its' (turillIon, anti the serious condition of the (limitées of. the Com- monwealth und the States, he would now Pledge himself and his Ministry to a I policy of Hie most rigid economy.
Not one «ord of that kind do
get from our highly placed and highly paid guardian ol' the public purse. Tbc people might well suppose that every ¡sovereign saved was taken from bis own pocket, so doleful was bis tone. It Is quite unnecessary ti) follow him through the mass of figures lie presented respecting the past. Lot it be admitted that be was immaculate in bis borrow- ing and lils spending, in his taxing, nnd In his generous handling out of money to all the departments in Increasing volume. But let him then cense his whim- pering «bout being mibiinderstood and Misrepresented and tell us what he thinks of the position to-day, the pro- spect«, and the sane and prudent way
'to deal with the problems which con»
j front us. Ile still pltads that ho
.ought lo be allowed to impose more
¡taxation. "The ecouomic policy Is," ,11c says, "to pay our way, and
"' especially to pay our way while "we are in a position to do it." The thought at tlie buck of his mind is probably this: Enormous taxation is
being nnd will be imposed by the (Som- j
monwealth for war purposes; let us grab what we can, while the taxpayers ' arc still in n position to be squeezed. Then ho descends to the lowest aud most unworthy appeal that a demagogue ever
j made. Only about 2,000 persons would
¡have paid the super-income tax. It
old not have touched the rest of the
wou
people. That Is his argument, and It Is vicious and deceptive.
No one can escape tlie ocffete of ex- cessive taxntion unnecessarily imposed. It causes the withdrawal of capital from industry, the reduction of employ- ment, the raising of prices, und the increase of the cost of living, and is really a tax on eevryono's income. And it it did not involve all these consequences, the incitement to rob the few who would have to pay was grossly Immoral. On the one hand we have Sir Alexander Peacock pro-
posing It as a safe move in politics to despoil a section of the people as n means of avoiding the cutting down of expenditure, while, on the other hand, lie urges those same people to give em- ployment to labour at existing high rates of wages. And the Federal Trea- surer at the same time calls upon thom to support the.War laoan! Sir Alex- ander cannot haye it both ways, llesltles, whiifgood would It do to put penal taxes on the two thousand? 'rhe country wants to he nursed back (o prosperity, ami that cannot be done if the means by which recovery may bo assured aro dissipated by Government extrava- gance. Taxing is no cure for reckless spending. Economy is the only cure, ns the Premier will soon bo forced to admit. The most serious aspect of his speech at Kingston was that it showed that the Ministry does not .stand for economy. Every concession In that direction is reluctantly and grudgingly made. "It economies can "be effected In the allilways ad "ministration, well and good," tlie Treasurer says, but ho does not be- lieve they can be made. Spendthrift Labour (¡overnments have charge of the oilier railway systems of Australia, and our system is more economically run than theirs, so he aflirms. Therefore Sir Alexander l'en cock gives up hope lu advance. "It cannot be done," he says In effect, "but we aro making inquiries." The speech was deeply disnpi>o!ntltig, he ciius-c it indicated thal the most obsti- nate opponents of economic reform in Victoria are the members of the Minis- try who ought to la» retrenching.
Oflil'iiil Labour is openly espousing the cause of convicted criminals be- longing lo'the Iiidustrlnl Workers of the World. It lins found (lint it »innot do without the support of the organisation, for It lins forfeited the support of immy thousands of law-abiding worker, who have no sympathy with murder, sedition, or lncendlnrlsin, or I.W.W.-Ism In tiny other of Its forms. Possibly the I'u rilli menin ry leaders of Labour fool the odium of ussocintion with the «.l'iiiilnuls. bul if they ure to remain Par- liamentary lender«! of Labour Uley can- not help theuiRolves. The way Is open to thein'to escape the degradation. They «in denounce the I.W.W, and maintain their reputations tis men of honourable chnrnctei', but they prefer lo pander for I.W.W. voles. The resolutions of Hie Political Labour Council of Victoria and of the Trades Hull Connell bnve plnced Labour nii'ii.bere In Hie position of having to make choice. Theso two bodies uro appealing to niions for funds «'Itb which lo obtain n "fair trial" for men who, on the clearest evidence, given in open court, «-ere convicted of one of the most shocking crimes of recent years. The testimony against them «;us overr whelming, nnd the jury «'tic unanimous ' in Us verdict of guilty. The sentences | were not unduly severe, ¡society had to j lie protected against men who, with the i utmost deliberation, plotted to burn l down buildings lu which thousands of workers were employed. There was no Impulse about this crime. The conspira» lors. «-Uli fiendish calculation, conferred over the details, prepared chemicals, and even worked on ii kind of time-table. Yet they nre now regnrded by so-called Labour lenders in Victoria, not as criminals, but ns political martyrs. They aro held up ns heroes who have been wounded In a good fight, nnd money is lo bo raised from trades unions to have their cases reopened.
It is Instructive to recall the fact that the extremists of the Labour party were sympathetic with these scoundrels even before they had boen tried. It was they who prejudged Hie cases. As early ns November IO, when the cases were sub Judlcc, the Trades Hall Council of Sydney passed a resolution protesting against the appointment of Mr. Justice Pring "to try the working classes;" and Mr. Webster (Miscellaneous Workers' Union) declared that Mr. Justice Pring was "one of the most class-biassed legal " savages I know of." Possibly Mr. Webster und the Trades Hall Council would have preferred to have the "work " ing classes" tried by "miscellaneous " workers." The central Labour bodies ot Victoria no«' stand committed to nn association with the I.W.W. (an associa- tion none the lass definite because it is not In black and white) which is dis- tinctly discreditable to them. They themselves are organisations recognised by the law; they are beneficiaries of the law; yet they have become the associates of organised criminals-men whose policy is treason, murder, and arson. It is for the unions (many of whom bnve, to their credit, denounced the I.W.W. in unmeasured terms) to decide «'hat they will do in answer to the official appeal.
General satisfaction will be felt at the fact that the tone of discuiäsion in Par- liamentary Liberal counsels yesterday was favourable to it coalition with the Ministerialists. A union of forces will entail sacrifice of advantage, but not of principle. No decision has been readied, because the Thjdor party is to have an opportunity of sinking par- tisanship and rising to the level of patriotic endeavour. This party meets to-morrow. Frankly, nothing may be expected of the meeting. Mr. Tudor does not openly commit himself, but lils followers are hostile to any association with Mr. Hughes: and what can a leader like Mr. Tudor do with supporters like, say, Seuritor Blakey, who would not touch the Cook and Hughes parties willi "n forty-foot pole"? However, Mr. Tudor and these gentlemen are to have their opportunity, though it would have suited Mr. Tudor admirably had the Liberals and Ministerialists united be- fore his party had met.
Kevvs of the safety of seven of Captain Mackintosh's party, who have been in the Southern Polar, regions since March, lOlü, will be received the world over with feelings of the utmost relief, tempered by keon regret at the dcatli of their leader and two of his companions. The story of the latest-and one may
hope,the laBt-of the Shackleton Ant- arctic expeditions bas been one of per
slBtent and dogged misfortune : the i
vkissltudes of the Elephant Island |
parry; the extraordinary experiences of Sir Ernest Shackleton nnd his com- rades; the' enforced departure of the Aurora from tlie southern mainland, leaving portion of tlie shore party be- hind ; and, flnnlly, the trngedies of which we aro now Informed. When the expedi- tion was inaugurated It was felt by ninny people thnt the Antarctic had exacted more than its quota of human lives, and that such secrets as It had to reveal lind been dearly purchased by the suffering, of tile ill-fated Scott expedi- tion and the loss of life that attended the venture of Sir Douglas Mawson. That view must have since been con- siderably strengthened.
German-Americans aro eagerly
moving not only the hyphen but (ho " German." .They are one with the country, they declare, on tile question of war, and tlie "Staats Zeitung," which has been the mouthpiece of Germany since war broke out, has made a stir by falling behind President Wilson, in whom, it says. It "has every confidence," after having bitterly opposed his re- election. Tills Is n very wiso sentiment nnd a very prudent expression. It is not. likely thnt the "Zeitung" would at lids juncture begin to nbn.se the Presi- dent and sympathise with Count von IlcrnstorfT. The face value of these pro- testations Is small. Tlie United States people no doubt appreciate the peril within their gates. There are some four and a quarter million persons of' Ger- man or aVustrlan birth in the country, and should Congress decide upon war their numbers will cause embarrass- ment Germans in America have already done much damage, and a great deal of secret agency work has been accom- plished. In tlie public service Germans arc numerous, nnd nn early rooting out of suspects will no doubt take place if
war be declared. . I
\ wirclc s message from the Aurora st iles that she is on her way luck with seven members of Shackleton s expédition while the other three have lost their lives (Page 0 )
liberal members of Hie redorai Pariia mont met ve. tcida> to consider an odor by the Pnme Minister of half the portfolios in the 1 ederal Alinisli-j After i very shoit discussion consideration of the pro pos ii was postponed until Wedncsdaj oven ing (Pige 7)
An lmpottant address on the subject of Inde nftei tilt wnr was delivered lay the Prune Aluustcr (Mt Hughes) last mt,ht to a meeting of business men cilled by the A íctornn Chamber of Manufaetutes (Page 8)
Taieutenant Divid Clayton Howell Price charged with having uttcied forged docu monts with intent to defi-iud the Defence department wa« committed foi ti ml in »>\dnc> jesterdaj (I'igc 7 )
Results of n senes of mamu ml tests con dm ted bj the Agricultural department are announced on page 4
Mr riiliVon Al Ia V acting leader of the ?»tito 1 ahour pattj, is btinj, opposed for the ptifj/ s nomination foi the Titzroy st it >\ tontest is also likelj foi the Wiilnms low n selection (Pige 0 )
Reserved judgment was delivered yester day by Mr Tnstico A Heel ett m a ena. involving the ownership of a Alallcc wheit ti op (Page 5 )
lists of successful candidates it th
public and commercial examinations will lie found on pigp 5
Several seasonable subjects aro discussed n Rural Interests (Page "a)
Central Queensland is again heinfc visited by c_tenstve floods (Page 8)
The first number of Vo\ Will of ' The Argus law Reports will bo published to daj It contains an interesting judgment of the High Court in the Svdnev case of
lorsjth v 1 ederal Commissioner of Taxi tion," laying down the method of assess menl of tax where the income ftom per sonal exertion is in excess of -"600 and that from propertj is in excess of CO lOO In the Supreme Court Mr Tuslicc Hodges dealt with nn application in the ease of ' Thfi London Rank of AuBtriln ltd v
the Australian Trusts Pty 1 td for leave to sue under the moratorium regul itions The effect of a f,ift by will to the wife of n non naturalised («erimn was considered bv Mr Tusticc Hood in Cirler v Grnim-ch
and in Aldom \ Dunn tho simo learned judge give a decision winch should be a me ful guide to nngistrites m consideiing the inference to be drum where there is no conflict of evidence Copies of the current number mnv he obtained fiom all book sellers and news igcnU ot will be sent direct from this otiice lo nnj address on receipt of three shillings and sixpence in stamps With tlie current number the Digest and liblc of Ciscs of Vol WH will be issued to subscribers
Following ire lo hv ia auction Rales -C 7 and T Ham, at New street Mid Ile llrighton vilh
nlture 1 O Hall an I Son at Riversdale re Hawlhoraa furniture qv lncv Vrnold Bet
Co at tlicir rooms Qieensticet residence an I eli}
freehold ill ron' inctioi with Mr llcnrv March rata- properties in conjunction with Mr It r Stercnson dell ensed 1 otel ml k1 ops I W. sieic, and Son at Mallen al I 1 oovoier roa Is Toorak furniture W I. Wells ind =on at their rooms Claren Ion street South Mell onrne Í iniltl re clothing ilarrv Moss at lila rooms Chapel trcet
Windsor furniture