OPPOSITION ANTICS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1924, 5 December 1913, Page 4

OPPOSITION ANTICS

RUSH-WORK ON PETITIONS. i MINORITY SEIZE A COMMITTEE. Gdhai-lian proceedings by a little hand of Parliamentarians yesterday morning found an echo in the House in tho afternoon. It then came out that the A to L Petitions Committee had that morning witnessed a sort of bloodless revolution, as a result of which Mr. Isitt and sniius others had it all their own way for half an hour or so. The nominal bone of contention during an hour cf animated discussion in the Houeo was a petition by a former mail sontmctor (.Mr. A. Cassidy, of Springfield), wire alleges a grievance against the Railways Department. Tho actual business, howover, was a squariuy-itp between the re\olutionary party on tiie committee and the party which was temporarily deposed. The facts of the ea'so only camo out gradually. When the committco reported upon Mr. Cassidy's petition, recommending it to the Government for favourable consideration, the lion. W. 11, Herrics moved as an amendment that at should he referred to the Railways Committee.

This course was strongly opposed by some Opposition members, amongst them Mr. G. W. Forbes, who asserted that the Government was bringing party influences to bear upon the treatment of tho petition. Another story was told bv Mr. H. M. Campbell, who stated that' Mr. Isitt, in the capacity of acting-chairman of the A to L Committee, and some other members, had done a very wrong thing in suppressing evidence.

Mr. L. M. "Isitt said that they wero having a ridiculous exhibition of petty and contemptible party spirit in connection with tliis matter. (Government members: Hear, hoar.) Ho denied that evidence was suppressed. The position that morning was that if business wcro not dealt with at that meeting it would have had to stand over until nest year. No evidence was forthcoming from the Railway Department, so tho committee declined to take any more evidence from Mr. Cassidy or his son, and came to a decision. Tko fact of the matter was that there was a vendetta between the Railway Department and .Mr. Cassidy. It was left to tiio Hon. F. M. B, Fisher to really illuminate the. subject. Tlio position was, ho said, that there was a meeting of tha Government party that morning, so that Government members wero unable to attend the committee when it- met at 10 a in. In tho absence of Government members the Opposition members on tho committee placed Mr. Isitt in the chair and dealt with seven petitions (including Mr. Cassidy's) before the Government members got to the mooting at 10.35 a.m. " Mr. Isitt hero interjected that air. Cassidy's petition was tho only important one dealt with. Evidently ho was angered at the way in which the Minister stated tho position and when Mr. Fisher blnmcd him for not giving the date, of a letter from which ho had quoted, ho walked towards the Minister, shaking a file of letters and protesting in furious tones that ho had not been able to read the date and that he "didn't want to play any wretched tricks/'

Mr. Fisher, after touching on the merits of the petition, expressed tho opinion that it was an unheard-of thing for a committee, in the absence of the whole of tho members upon it, belonging to the {'overnmeiit party, to elect a temporary chairman and put through an important petition like this. He added that Mr. M'Villy (Chief Clerk of the .Railways. Department) was,.,only, advised at 9.67 it.in. that the petitionwas ro bo gone on with. Ho came up as soon as he could to give evidence only to bo told that the petition had been' put through. That was the chance he got of giving evidence. Mr. Isitt; Half an hour afterwards.

Mr. J. 11. Bradnoy, Chairman of the A to 1/ Petitions Committee, said that ho had sent word-to tho clerk of the Committee that ho would be unable to attend until 10.30. He was staggered to iimli on arriving at the Connnittccroom at that hour that Mr. Isitt was in tho chair with a bare quorum present, and that seven petitions had been disposed of. Mr. Bradnoy went oil to remark that on Mr. Cassidy's evidence alone iie would himself have voted for a favourable report on the petition, Irai; it was surely necessary to hear more than one side of tho case. Ho considered that Mr. Isitt had taken advantage- of the absence of tho Government members to rush through this petition and cix others as well. If this was a specimen of careful consideration the country would not get much benefit from tlio proceedings of Parliamentary Committees.

The House sat a few minutes late iu order to come to a decision on the matter. It was agreed on the voices to refer the petition to tho Railways Committee.

Immediately afterwards Mr. Isitt reported that the A to L Petitions Committee had that morning passed a resolution expressing appreciation of the services rendered by Mr. Uvaduey as chairman.