PREMIER RESIGNS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1486, 8 July 1912, Page 8

PREMIER RESIGNS.

ME. MASSEY SENT FOK.

HOW THE VICTORY WAS RECEIVED.

(CONGRATULATIONS FROM ALL PARTS

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS,

•The Hon. Titos. Mackenzie handed in iis resignation as Fritno Minister to tho Govomor on Saturday afternoon." I >On Saturday evening Mr. W. F. Masscy, Reader of tho Opposition, was sent for (by his Excellency who asked him if he iWas prepared to undertake tho responsibility of forming a Ministry. Mr. MnsWy said ho was prepared to undertake 'the responsibility. ( -But for .the fact that Mr. Henries will bo' in Wellington till Wednesday, Mr. Massey would probably not ask 'for .more than one Or two days' grace before forming his Cabinet. As ibis, when the -Houso Meets, on Tuesday; he will probably ask ■for 'biily a brief interval. When his (Cabinet; is; formed -.he will meet. Parlia•ment'and in. all probability willask for : a short- adjournment to . get ready jfov the Work \of the session. ' Tho session '-inrill probably run its ordinary course. It is clear, however, that owing to the interregnum and the consequent delay not a very great deal of legislation can be attempted this, session. '• The policy of tho partyj': will.', ntf doubt ,be fully developed w the' Financial Statement.

tecnth chapter, versus twenty and twentyone; congratulations," From Waimate-.—"Bearty congratulations from a delighted country vicar."

From tlib north:—"Heartiest congratulations, especially on tactics leading up to victory."

/ THE ADDRESS-IN-REPLY £;; PRESENTED.

tWA'NTOF CONFIDENCE/ THE: GOVERNOR'S. RESPONSE.' : ; : v i For/,the.first time since 1891 the. Address-in-Reply to the Governor's Speech' has conveyed an intimation of want'of-con.-fidence in the Government. Oh Saturday, morning the Speaker of"the-House of jllepresentahv.es,.. accompanied '-. by -the ■mover and the seconder of the, Addxess-;itt-Reply '(Messrs. M'Caliuiu and Brown) conveyed to the Governor the Address, of .■■which tho last paragraph read'as follows:— . .'.:';■'■ -;.;

-■■We feel it,' However,, '.tq; be our duty ;10, submit to ■-your that it is' Essential that ; your.; Excellency's Government sholUd vPO>scs> .the , confidence', of 'the House'and -'of'''the country, and respectfully- to: 1 -Represent your "Excellency that such'confidence is not reposed in tho Government,hi at present constituted." '.. To his formal acknowledgment of l the iAddress-ih-Reply, the Governor added the following:— . !■'■""." !,5

"With ; reference, to the paragraphr.in your -reply \to,. my-: Speech, '■■ intimatirig-to m 6 that the Houso havojiot confidence in My Advisers" as at present constituted, 1 desire'to assure.you.that I. shall take the necessary steps to appoint .Advisers who jrill possess the confidence of Parliament."

CONGRATULATIONS.

y ; !',messages to mr!-. massey.'. ]'.":'■ from all parts of the ;••;;,(!".:; ■';■ dominion. 'Telegrams expressing congratulations kind .good wishes, are simply showering in J .upon Mi'. -Massey. They come from one ■end of the Dominion to the other, and in such numbers as- to show how very wideand popular ig the rejoicing of the victory. The telegraph messengers '■'have been .arriving, not with single.!telegrams, but.with batches of from ; :twenty to fifty at a ,tirao. One bundle, he received at lunch time yesterday contained ;no ;fower than'sixty-live telegrams, cun-'taining-congratulations from people of nil degrees and. 'Shades of political opinion from' North Auckland to the' Blurt. Among . the messages received are quite a number from former supporters of the'' liberal party, many of whom are already showing a disposition to con;? under tho I!c----iorm standard in the hope of sound Government,and better: .administration. The~ nrs t congratulatory message—a very ■early- one—was received from Mastertoii, 'find read as'follows:— "Palmaui qui meruit feral." (Let him . "ivho r Jia3 won,the palm carry it.). ! '■■ of the more interesting messages ,>»ro"aii follow:—. ! .One supporter, with half his mind, on (.the':'Test." Match and tltc other half on [l)r. Newman's simile dn-ro Mo-e.«, wired: [•— "Afler passing through the desert, you 'gained'great! victory..off-your oivn bat." | ■- Hero is another,:—"Very heartiest congratulations. -"-I am a' Government > sup--jiorter for the first. time in twenty' years.". i There aro several cablegrams' included \in the bundle, but the telegrams represent, from tho Bluff to AYhaVigaroi. ■ ■ . < i From Newmarket:—"l fdiare with you |the joy which warriors feel in I'eeiuen (worthy of their steel." ; Another:—"Congratulations. Auckland (wears.a'broad smile of gratification." .. j •From ft compatriot:—"Congratulations. "Country saved, thank' God; Ireland for lever." ' ' ' I From Blenheim:—"lfs a long lane that 1 »ias no turning." : From' a northern, newspaper:—"Literary ■staff rose early to send this message:— 'Hearty congratulations. Our only regret is that you kept it going until the paper had gone to press.'" ,- From Auckland:—"Another bark of congratulation from ono of your pups." r From Gisborne: -r- "Congratulations. /The-mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceeding■■ small." I-''From Taumaranui:—"Keep the helm lhard aport and her head to the wind; land' you'll., weather all storms. Send fiansard." ■ 'From".AVyndham:—"Consistency rewarded." ! • ; From Kaiapoi:—"Congratulations.' God ihiide you'- " K ec P y° ur hail" on." "From a "Wellington boot and shoe im-porter-i-'-'You will have to face a big Wvashing day, be of getid .courage;. we will Wnd by you and provide the soap." (From WanCTnui:—"Tho king is dead, >longlivo'the king." "■. ' 'From Rangiuru:—"Doxology. •'From Tainan?:—"There is more joy in. tTaih'ape over tho eight who repented than over tho thirty-eifht just men. who needted no repentance." ■.'" _ .." " . .Auckland again':—"Triumph of right. IAII good men glad." ■ _■ \ , . From ths same town;- Sow is the win'W'bf our discontent made glorious summer'by this son of Franklynnc. Dominion' freed at last from bondage of taihoa--.-"Hip-hip, HuTrah!" From Nelson:—"Have killed a bullock 1709 pounds! dead-weight. Shall I send a Firloin to give the boys a.treat?" To this' Mr.'Massey replied immediately in th« affirmative.""'■-;,; ■ ' ' From Hastings :-"No longer the Moses, but now' the Joshua who reached the promised land.' Congratulations after . your "many trials in the wilderness. From Auckland :-"Hea.rty congratulations - Hopo soon see you do something renllv prime. You are now our Ucform From Colenmurry':—"Congratulations from all Colenmurry friends on securing ■l.iish.fellin.T contract; at Inst an, conndent 'crubbine will bo satisfactorily don* aH no trew Wt "n .stumr.. , From Wellington , bis-

THE NEW PREMIER.

MR. MASSEY'S CAREER. AS POLITICIAN AND STAN. It is now just over 41 years (according to a sketch of Mr. Massey's career which recently appeared in the Auckland "Herald") s'ince there stepped ashore at Auckland from an-English passenger ship a lad of 11'' years, fresh from school in his native town in Ireland, full of boyish hopes, and fired- with all the eager "enthusiasm that, the romance of commencing lifo in the then comparatively little-kuown colony naturally awakened in his youthful mind. William Ferguson Masscy, for snch was the boy's name, had just left behind him the land of his birth, and the homo '.of his fathers,: in order to rejoin his parents, who, in the early sixties, had come out from.the Emerald.lsle to Auckland, in order to earvo out' for themselves and their children anew home in a new land. The educational facilities in New Zealand in" those days, unliko those of to-day, were very restricted, and Mr. and Mrs..Massey had left their son with relatives'in Londonderry in order that ho might receive' his education there. In the year 1870, tho subject of the present sketch, having completed his studies, ca'ino out to join his family. The Auckland district, has- been ■ his . home from then until the present time, and neither, he nor his adopted land has had reason to- regret it. Entry Info Political-Life. ■The-immigrant lad lived with his late parents, who were farming—first at Tamaki AVest,, and soon afterwards at Mangere. ''Here tho boy developed into the youth, and in- due course rose to man's estate. First as the energetic young'settler, and again as the ardent student of public affairs, serving his political apprenticeship on various local bodies, W. F. Massey became known-and respected by those amongst whom ho lived and laboured as one of the best types of. tho sturdy, industrious, and successful colonists. Thus honoured by tho esteem and confidence of his fellows, his horizon of thought soon began to extend. ■ Endowed with a natural energy and a duß:sharo..ofithat ambition .that characterises'- tile' man of Br«iHs''«lrid -a' capacity for using them, Mr. Massey's sphere of usefulness was not long confined by the narrow borders of parochial politics. Thus, a few years later, we behold him, with his political vision and aspirations broadening out, seeking a voice in the councils of the State". At tho first attempt, in 1893, when he first contested the Franklin seat against Major Harris, fortune did not attend upon him, but at the second effort well-earned victory, after a hard-fought fight, was his, and thus in 1891 he made his appearance into the political arena as tho chosen of the electors of Waitemata. A Historic Telegram.

' "Anything noteworthy in connection with iny entry into Parliament? Yes, there was something that I well remember," said Mr. Massey, in the course of a chat with an interviewer. . "It was harvest, time, in 13M, when',the Waitemata seat became vacant. I was in my stackyard building a, cornstack when a telegraph messenger came along with a telegram. The stack was some height from the ground and the message was 'handed up to me on one-of the prongs .of a pitchfork by tho driver of the wagon that was being unloaded at tho stack." This telegram, w.hich deserves to liecomo historic, but which unhappily was not preserved, contained a request from a number of Waitemata electors that Mr. Massey would meet them on the following day for the .purpose of receiving a request to contest the seat. "I met them on the following day as requested," the ' Leader the Reform party proceeded, "and I consented to acced« to the request." " After a keen fight —the late Premier (Mr. Seddon) ,nnd the Native Minister (Mr. James Carroll) slumped the electorate in favour of the Government nominee—Mr. Massey was returned. Three years later lie was elected for Franklin against his former opponent. Major Harris. Ho is still member for Franklin, and as shown by his large maiority at the last poll, ho enjoys the confidence of his constituents in mora than an ordinary degree. '

'A Career of Hard Work. Mr. Massey's. political career has been one of hard* work, of faithful service in the cause of his constituents and country. For 18 yoars a member of the House of Representatives, for several years tho ohief Whip of hi? party, and for the past eight years Leader of the Opposition, ho has been always a prominent, and of ■ late vears a foremost, figure in the political arena. As Leader of tho Opposition (to which position he was elected in. 1903), Mr. Massey has carried out tho duties of an onerous and ofttimes thankless position with an indefatigable zeal and industry that has characterised him in his private walks of life. - The Leader of the party in opposition must be ever on the alert, ready for now Government Bills, Ministerial statements, or enunciations of policy in whatever form they may be'presented. He cannot toll when some new move may be made, and if ho is 'faithful to his trust he must be ready to examine, and, if need be, to criticise anv new proposal brought forward. Ho 'cannot absent himself foriany lengthv period from his seat, for ho knowcth not. tho hour nor the day when his time cometh.

Eternal vigilance, in short, is a necessary qualification for Hie leadership of an Opposition, and in slr. Mas'-ey the Reforin party in Kovr Zealand has a leader who possesses tluVgroat quality.. A'necessary corollary is a Rood nhysical constitution, and hero again tho condition ia not laclciiiK. Tho strong, vigorous form of. tho member for I'rankliu has always arrested attention as he has sat, through 'many a weary- session, in his place in the 'House, with the Prime Minister as his vis-a-vis. One of Hie first to outer and one of tlw last to leave tho Chami her, he has earned a reputation for un 7' flaggine industry that is recognised by members on all sides of tho House.

Looking to tho Future. It i.", of course, only a.s Leader of the Opposition, that Mr. Massey is as., yet known to political fame. Now called upon to till the even more important and responsible- position of T'riine Minister, lie will no doubt be ablo to fill the position with honour to hiir-clf and credit to his narty and country. His policy, as ho has steadfastly declared, is that of true, nroere-'sivo Liberalism, and these are the principle" on which lie will I build his nolicy if lie is piven the onpor-tiinit-v of carrying MiPin inlo ji(!mini;t.rative effect ns tin? T-eader of the IMonr Government. He has fought lon» i'»' \ valiantly for' his ideals, and tho rßward. I that Mir. M>?5M6 to bo wj.tb.in his KfasjiJ

is a fitting consummation of good and faithful service, A "Son of the Soil." A true "son of t lie soil"—his forefathers were fawners in County Deny for generations hack —Mr. Massey has identified' himself with agricultural pursuits from his first arrival in New Zealand. For some years past he lias been one of the most prosperous farmers at Mangoro, where he is the owner of a farm conlaining somo of the bc>t land in that fertile district. As a practical agriculturist, and one well versed in all the points connected with the successful tilling of the soil, Mr. Massey, the farmer, is as veil known in liis district as Mr. Massey, the politician, is known, in the wider circle of national affairs. Bluff and hearty, thick-set, and broadshouldered, of brow, op™ and earnest in countenance, big-brained, as well as big-bodied, William 'Ferguson Masscy is a man among men in whatever capacity ho may be found. The good old North of Ireland grit—determination and perseverance—makes its presence felt. A close thinker and a hard worker—one who will not allow small difficulties to stand in his way, but none the less- a man of worthy ideals and high principles, of unimpeachable honour in public as in private life—ho is of the type of public men that a country stands most in need of. "ALWAYS PLAYS CIUCKET." (By Telegraph-Special Correspondent.) Auckland, Julv 7. The following tribute to Mr. Masscy appears in a biographical .sketch in the "Star":—"Mr. Massey's keenest opponents readily admit that ho-always 'plays cricket,' and whatever one may" think of his politics one cannot help admiring the plucky manner in which he had stood up to the bowling. He was just as keen in 1002, when the Opposition was only such in name as he is to-day, and he was just as keen in 1008, when ho went back to the House with only 13 followers. Like all politicians, he may have made tactical mistakes, but the dogged way he has kept on in face of what seemed to be overwhelming odds is probably unique in the political history of the Dominion."

THE NEW CABINET

NOTHING DEFINITELY DECIDED. Mr. Massev has not yet made any statement regarding the composition of his Cabinet. There are some members of his party whose inclusion in the Ministry is looked upon as certain. These are, apart from Mr. Massev himself: Mr. James Allen (Bruce), Mr. W. H. Herries (Taurai:?a), Mr. A. L. Herdman (Wellington Jforth). For the rest, pending an official declaration, the composition of the newCabinet is purely a matter of speculation.

THE MEMBER FOR KAIPARA.

EXPLAINS HIS POSITION. FKEEHOED HIS FIRST PLANK. The reasons which decided the manner in which. he would vote on the waut-of-confitlenco motion were explained by the member for Kaipara yesterday. Mr. Coatcs explained that ho contested the naiparn seat as an Independent, with certain pledges. Oue of them was that ho would vole against the Ward Government on any no-confidenco motion based on it's land policy, its Native land policy, or its administration of the Public Service; another, that he would givo the Ward. Ministry a chance to.bring down satisfactory legislation dealing with these matters during tho first session, of Parliament; failing that, he would. vote to turn tho Government out of office. As the want-of-coufidence motion in the February session was not based on any of tho matters mentioned in his first pledge ho voted with the Government in accordance with his second pledge. As "tho freehold system of land tenure with limitation of areas" was tho first plank in his platform, ho considered tho proposals in the-Governor's,Speech were not (satisfactory. The members of tho Government expressed views strongly in favour of the leasehold, and the Cabinet showed a decided tendency towards that tenure. He had therefore voted against tho Government.

Discussing his position in the Altered political circumstances Mr. Coatos explained that he would maintain his independent attitude. "I shall support Mr. Massey until he has had full opportunity to present his policy," said Sir. Ccates. "If it meets with my approval and conforms with the pledges I have given to my constituents I shall continue to support him and his party. If it does not, I reserve the right to vote in any manner I think fit in relation to the "new Government party." ■ ' Mr. Coates added that while he agreed with the opinions expressed in it, tho statement published on Saturday regardin? Reed, Ehotlcs, and himself was slightly misleading. Ho had not entered into any compact with those two members to support the Reform party, but hod given his support independently.

GETTING TO WORK AGAIN. PROCEEDINGS TO-MORROW. The defoat- of the Mackenzie Government will not entail any prorogation of Parliament, and the only interruption of the session will be by way of adjournment. When, the House of Representatives - assembles to-morrow the'respective parties will retain the scats they have occupied since the session began. Mr. Mackenzie will make a formal announcement of his resignation and Sir. Massey will follow with-the announcement that

ho has been sent for by tho Governor and has undertaken to form a Ministry. Tho next step, it is understood, will be for the retiring Prime Minister to movo the adjournment of the House, probably unlil Thursday, in-order that Mr. Massey may have time to form his Cabinet. HON, J. A. MILLAR. The Hon. J. A. Millar is reported to be improving somewhat in health. He will spend a few days in Wellington before returning to Rotorua.

"PEGGING OUT CLAIMS."-. Although members will retain their present seats when the House meets tomorrow, a number of them have already "pegged out claims"' in view of the impending change of position. Mr. J. Dickson (Parnell) and his bench-mate, Mr. E. P. Lee (Oamaru) have arranged to exchange seats with Sir Joseph Ward and Mr. T. E. Y. Seddon (Westlaud). The Hon. R. MlCenzie has put his name on the front bench at the extreme left, hitherto occupied by Mr. W. Fraser ; (Wakatipu). Mr. Isitt (Christchurch North) has moved down to a front bench near the middle of tho House, and Mr. P. M. B. Fisher (Wellington Central) and Mr. H. Atmore (Nelson) have exchanged scats. Mr. H. Davey (Christchurch East) and Mr. G. Witty (Riccarton) will occupy tho seats vacated by Messrs. Dickson and Lee. Tlie Labour members will probably retain their present seats. Mr.-Massey, it is .expected, will take tho, front bench occupied by Sir Joseph Ward when he was Prime Minister.

LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION. '. Some interested speculation is golnj; on as to who will be selected to lead tha Liberal party in Opposition. The lion. T. Mackenzie, it is understood, will not take tip this position. Mr. T. 11. "tVilfovcl, Sir Joseph Ward, und .Mr. G. W. Hnssell are looted upon as possible leaders, but the opinion most in favour is that no Leader of tho Opposition will b formally appointed by tho Liberals in ti' meantime. It is anticipated that some members of the party will work with tluReform party, and others with the Lnuoi' section, and that ultimately the lender of the last-named conf indent will wX aLeader of the Opposition.

THE DEFEATED LEADER. Men of all panics commend the manner in which tha .lion. T. .Mackenzie took the defeat of his rinycniinent mi Saturday morning. In the evening, Mr. Jlarkeii: was oiio of (lie .-pccliitJi'.s at a piclnre show. He did not look at. all worried, or in any way tho worse for the trying "X----jiprieiiw which ho hnd paswd through