Evening star., 1935-10-13

MACKENZIE KING, LIBERAL.
times fall on politics with a chill as
deadly as the Canadian Winter.
| Mr.. Bennett stops short at what he
| thinks safety and sanity. Mr.. Stevens
his former lieutenant, goes on. H. H
Stevens, erstwhile minister of trade
and commerce. broke away from Mr.
Benefits leadership to ask for more
extended measures of social legiSla-
tion. Under his guidance is a new
party-the National Reconstruction
party-which has been eagerly can
vassing the country and putting up
candidates. Undoubtedly their hold is
strong, especially in Ontario. They
will certainly split the vote. but what
they will split it into remains to be
seen. If they only split off Conserva-
tive chips they weaken Mr.. Bennett
and don't get elected themselves. But
if they draw from liberalism, that is
another story. Already some people
foresee the election of number of
Stevens Candidates" their happy re-
union in the new Parliament with the
Bennett men, flood Of tears of joy
and five more years Of fun.
But unfortunately for Mr. Stevens
he has had to expand his program to
make it national" He mas fitted into
it things for farmers, Tor fishermen
something for everybody. He is expe-
riencing the difference between raising
hell, which is easy, and encompassing
heaven. which is hard. The Stevens
policy begins to look like a conjurer's
hat from which you can take anything
you want.
King Experiences Difficulties.
But Mr.. King, too. has got in his
party as many wings as an airplane
and it Is as hard to steer. II all the
Liberal party would sit tight and say
nothing it would be all right. But
they won't. Mr.. Kings flock number
some very queer sheep.
To begin with there is the huge sec
ton of the party from Quebec. kept
together in provincial politics by Mr.
Taschereau. Quebec has been lib
eral' for so long that only quite old
people can remember when it wasn't
In reality it has never been liberal
at all. but deserves the name conServ-
ative better than anything in America
outside of five or six streets in Boston
The province and its government
stand for property, for stability. fol
| the church, for the status quo. Ir
Quebec the whole apparatus of British
democracy is just thin varnish; un'
derneath are realities that were ole
| when British democracy was born
| The province wants to do things ir
its own way, to look after its poor anc
its sick and its old people in its owr
fashion. 1t chafes at any dominion
wide control. 1t sits alone, imperium
in imperio. Its relation to Ontario
liberalism IS just an alliance and
scarcely that. Yet even this solid
liberalism" is showing signs Of crack
ing. The younger men Of the party
want something more equalitarian
more progressive, less heavily capital
istic, and have formed a party oi
Liberal Action outside of the older
group.
Liberals Rule Ontario.
In Ontario the Liberals rule. Theil
election into Office under Mr.. Hep.
burn just year ago came with ar
extraordinary shock Of surprise to the
entrenched and confident Conserva-
tives. 1t was one of those sudden
sweeping victories which show that
democratic electorate puts the blame
for hard times on whatever is nearest
The victory in Ontario was followed
by the still more sweeping provincial
election in Prince Edward Island
where evey seat elected a Liberal. leav-
ing no one to be the opposition,
without which his majesty's govern.
ment cannot go on. British Columbia
had already washed out provincial
conservatism in the election of No
vember, 1888. At the present time
eight of the nine provinces have what
they call Liberal" governments. But
they are, we say, odd sheep. Mr.. Hep
burns government began Office by q
reversion to the good old days Of the
"spoils system" fired every official they
could contrive to, in the name oi
economy, and appointed new ones or
the plea of efficiency. They refused te
eat in state with the lieutenant gov.
ernor, on the ground that he wasn't
necessary-if he isn't then what about
King George? They tore up con-
tracts with the foreign" power COM
panies of Quebec: in fact, they have
carried on an administration that
would make a Gladstonian Liberal
turn in his grave. Turn in it? Yes
spin in it.
C. C. F. Popular With Youths.
Running through this nest of parties
and party Affiliations are the activi-
ties and the organizations of what Is
called the c. c. F.-the Cooperative
Commonwealth Federation. This is q
party that represents the form oi
near socialism" that goes to the
very edge of the bank, but hesitates tc
plunge into the stream-tries, rather
to float down it on the raft of a poll
tical platform. The timbers of the
raft, put together"at Regina in 1888
in a 13-point manifesto include a
"socialized economic order" the $50
cialization of financial machinery" OF
all industries and services essential
to social planning-in other words
socialization of everything except what
O farmer would keep for himself. This
along with the item of progressive
removal of farmers debts" made II
highly attractive on the farms
while its general clauses about labor
and peace and welfare commended II
to the young and ANCIENT. There can
| be. no doubt that tn G, G. r. draws