THE VOICE OF WELLINGTON.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1312, 15 December 1911, Page 6

THE VOICE OF WELLINGTON.

Wellington has done niagniticently. It has just fallen short of returning to Parliament the block vote of five for Reform that we had hoped for, and that alone could properly roprenont tho dotcntation of our city. Ids ffliudinrn,. JLjl jslrajyje

(h'baclc of 1905, the Wellington City area sent to Parliament Messrs. Aitken, Baruer, Fisher, and Izard. In 1908 (another, the Suburbs seat being added) it elected Messrs. Fisher, Luke, Herdmax, M'Larex, and Wright—three Reformers against two Wardists. To-day Wellington is represented by four Reformers and one Labour candidate. The outstanding fact is that of its five candidates Reform has elected four to Parliament. Wc should have liked the perfection of unanimity, especially because the seat that the official Reform party has lost—and lost, it is significant, not to WaVdism—has been occupied by one of the clcanesfc and brightest fighters of the party. Mr. Wrigut's defeat will be very sorely regretted by every friend of Reform.

There is but one lesson to draw from such a large plain fact as the victory of .Messrs. Herdman, Fisher, and Bell and Dr. Newman—namely, that the totality of the forces Wardism can put in the field are mere mops against the ocean tide. The victory of Mr. Bell calls for no comment. It was merely the victory of a clean and honourable fighter for Reform over a desperate opportunist ivlio sought to win by allying himself to a degraded, and a beaten, u.irfcy. Mr. Hinbmarsh owed, his iuccess to his lucky ability to avoid my such definite identification, with tVardism as proved fatal to Mr. il'Lakek. The victory of Me. Fisher s especially a subject for gratificaion. It was against him that Wardsm had arrayed, or saw arrayed for t, the strongest combination of bit.oi'hoss and enmity that any candilate could ever expect to face. We :ongratulato him, and we congratulate Dr. Newmak also, upon their plendid fight and their victory igainst the heaviest odds. The reult of the five contests is not a compete and pcrfcct victory for Reform, mt it is a complete and perfect mashing of Wardism. The two local Vardist journals combined to fight ieform, and they have failed utterly o turn from its oath the solid march if Reform feeling. Mr. Wright can ook forward to a triumphant return n the future; and the City and Suburbs will beyond all doubt make |uite perfect, when they are next, ailed upon, their already almost jerfect mandate for clean governnent. We congratulate our city. It ms done magnificently.