POLITICAL NOTES.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1564, 7 October 1912, Page 6

POLITICAL NOTES.

PROGRESS OF THE SESSION', -SITTINGS,ON MONDAYS, LATE NIGHTS TO BE AVOIDED. The JPrinie Minister is still confident that fhe session will be 'concluded before the end of this month. Hβ proposes to ask the House during the course of this week to agree to sit!on Monday evenings, commencing with' October H, in order to pass local Bills through their final stages, aid send them on to the Legislative Council. Asked whether he intends to ask for the suspension of tho Standing Orders to permit new business to. be taken after 12.30 a.m., Mr. Massey said he would endeavour to avoid this course, and if tho , House maintained a satisfactory rate of progress, it would not be necessary to depart from his practice of early rising on each sitting day. The Order Paper is still a heavy one, but if .it-is attacked in a businesslike ■ manner, the House should bo oblo to work . through it comfortably (luring the next three weeks. It is feared that the Laud Bill may delay tho House for some time,, but it is really tho most difficult hurdle' to be tackled. Amendments in tho Defence Act will probably cause- a long debate, and the Eailway Authorisation Bill will not go through without much talk. During this week a Bill to provide peneions for Maori war veterans will be circulated. It will be found, to bo a 1 very generous measure. The pensions will be fixed on a sliding scale. The new clauses to be added to the Land Bill will bo. submitted to the Lands Committee probably this week. Another Bill that should make an early appearance is the Government Railways Amendment Bill, containing the Government's proposals :■ for increased pay for railwayroeri. The Public Works Estimates are nearly ready, and ;will probably be brought down at the end of this week. 'The four sitting dnys of this week will. be almost entirely -devoted to Government Sills'already on the Order Paper.

'!•■• PUBLIC SERVICE BILL. ■ POSSIBLE. COMMISSIONERS.' ■ 'The.passage into law of the Public Service Bill .is ndw .virtually assured. The debate on the second reading is proceeding in the Upper House, and it is anticipated that any opposition to the measure will not be nuniencallv strong. Some amendments will be made in Committee. The most important will be a reduction from-seven to five years of the term of appointment for the commissioners, and if this is made it will be accepted by the Government, .-. 1 Though the now.scheme of control over the Public Service will not come.into operation until April'l, 1913,. the commissioner and his,two assistants will probably be appointed soon after the close of the session, in order that they may make themselves fully acquainted witli the various branches of the service to bo administered by. them. Only one of the Public Service. Commissioners in ls T ew ' South Wales was' appointed from the service, the other two being prominent business men. The three commissioners for, the New Zealand service'will probably all be chosen from among the present chief officers. Tho office of Chief; Commissioner, for. whicln a salary of.#l3oo;is fixed,.will, it is generally beJieyed, be. offered -to < Mr. I). Robertson, Secretary of-the. Post and Telegraph Department, who is --understood to have given much .valuable assistance to the Hon. A. L.. Headman in the 'preparation of the 'scheme, for-submission to Parliament. In tho event of his , declining tho position it , would, probably be offered to Jlr. W. R. Morris,. ' Assistant-Secretary of the Post and;.Telegrap!i 'Department. For the two offices of • Assistant Commissioners the salary is ,£IOOO a year. The selection for these positions cannot be. so definitely forecasted, but it is generally believed in official. circles that Mr. \Y. B. Hudson, : Deputy-Commissioner "of the Government Insurance Department, will be appointed to one of them. '

, '-, NAPIER-GISBORNE LINE. ~ NO,INTENTION OF DELAYING THE ~.....;■..'■ WORK; Wild rumours" are current in tho i Hawke's Bay district regarding the stoppage of construction works on the NajoierGisborne railway. The fact ie that the Minister, has decided to stop earthworks on ;a little piece of track which cannot be made a railroad -until a bridge is built across the inner harbour over which rails and other necessaries can be delivered. It has'iiotyet , .been; decided .whether' the bridge is to be a railway bridge or a combined railway and traffic briclge. In case .the .latter bridge should be decided ■upon, the County Council would be called upon to pay a part of the cost. It is also'possible that the bridge'might be so , built as to confine water for an inner \ harbour/in ivjhich case it would have;to bo_ high enough to permit of the nassage underneath of coastal craft. If a high bridge were to be built for this purpose, the .Harbour Board would presumably have to pay part of the added cost, it has been alleged that a hundred men have been, dismissed; as a matter of fact only SO men' were on the works. Of these flO were,difcharged last week, 30,wi1l be discharged this week, and the balance will be put off -next week, when the fencing of the earthworks is completed It is not contemplated by the Minister or anybody 'else that tho work of .building the lm«"shaJl be abandoned, or that the route ehall be changed.

GOVERNMENT CAUCUS,

THE END OF THE SESSION., ' % As the end of .the session approaches it is customary for the Government party to hold a caucus. The Government members met on Saturday mornings to receive, the confidences of the ■ Primo Minister as to what measures would be proceeded with during the session. ..'.The Prime' Minister, interviewed, by a Dominion, reporter, said he could ■not'.:.disclose''the business of tlie caucus.merfing, l but he indicated that programme had been decided upon which he would announce when he asked the; House to agree to sit on Mondays. -He added that although the programme ,was a heavy one, he hoped to be able to complete it by tho end of October.

MR. PAYNE'S ELECTION PROSPECTS. NO CHANCE FOR HIM. ~; Mr. John Payne, Grey Lynn, claimed on' Friday night to represent a constituency of 20,000, people, and he meant thereby thel'edefationof Labour. He added later that he disapproved of proportional representation, because under it Labour men would not\be v elected.. ■ It'has- been apparent for some little while,' and it was made more apparent on Friday that Mr. Payne is not in total agreement with other Labour men in the House; Mr. W. A. expressed amazement.at a member (Mr. Payne)' who had promulgated'a scheme for electing.'fortyfive working men to the House, and who now said there was no chance of working-men-being elected at all. under proportional/representatidn. - An hon. member:.No chance for him. ■ I don't think there is in any case. "■ It raay be mentioned that'- Mr. P. H. Webb,' president of the Federation of Labour, was sitting on the left of the Speaker when Mr. Payne was speaking. ..WHO ARE THE WORKERS?" "When I speak of workers I includo the working farmer," said Mr. W. A. Veitch, in the Hpiiso of Representatives on Saturday morning.- "We are always confusing* the working, farmer with the wealthy landowner in this House."

■'LOOKED FOB BAD TIME. "Knowing my child was subject .to ctohp andtiiving been unsuccessful with so many things, I looked f6r- a bad time when I hoard him bark one night," says Mr. F; M. Little, Park St., North PitzToy, Vic! "I gave him Chamberlain's Cougbr Remedy, and he ■ slept till ten o'clock, when I gavo him a double dose and tho resujt was wonderful. He did not wake up again until two o'clock and that was all tho trouble I had. The effect of Chamborloin's Cough. Remedy in removing tho BhloknV is Tonderfule"