NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2135, 29 April 1914, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY.

The Police afld the District Coroner are to be complimented on tho very thorough manner in which they have carried out the task of attempting to clear -tip the mystery surrounding tli© tragic fire at tho Upper Hii-fct. That the iiiqui.ry hag failed to disclose- the origin of the outbreak is no fault of the Police,, who called every available witness in their endeavour to thro* light on the causa of tlw fire: and the disastrous cxplosioii which followed. In his finding the Coroner caffle to th& conclusion that tha explosion was caused by gelignite, which Messrs, Bexgb and PiUfT had stored on the preinisca for sale. With this finding most people who have followed tlie evidence- probably will bo inclined to agree.

The Chief Government Whip seems to be in a most contented frame of mind just now. It is natural, perhaps, to expect a genial. ofltiiMisfc like Mb. Guthrie to make mo best of any situation in which ho might find himself placed, but ia .reviewing the political outlook fee certainly lias a good piftrjy grounds for cheerfulness. His Government, to use a sporting phrase, has unquestionably "made foorj" in most respects. But when he'softies to recount, tho reasons for his satisfaction over the way political matters aife shaping, the merobcf for Oroua misses of ignores a. point which is worth, making, iii tho course of his reference to the activities of the opponents of tfeo Govtirnmeiit, Mb, GothWe stresses .the fact that the Reform Party believes in free speech and fair-play, and does not attempt to upset tho meetings of its .opponents. This, lift. GiraiuuE seems to argue, was being used to create the idea that the Anti-Reform-ers were making a groat impression and silencing opposition by virtue of the excellence of their cause. As a matter of fact, all patties in polities greatly oveffats the importance of these electioneering meetings, They »o doubt serve a useful purpose in hardening up supporters, and perhaps here and there, winning eonverts, but usually, they arc a false guide to the state of public fooling in an electorate. It would be_ difficult to find a a electorate in New Zealand in which both the llcfora .Party and tho Wardists could not, got a good hearing. Sir Joseph Ward might even go to Ik- Franklin electorate and get a rote of confidence pissed in his party, while Mft. Massev was winning ix similar couipliraent for the Government in Awania, acd cadi cmtld claim that his reception was tho plainest possible evidence t>l the popularity of his own particular party. Tho party politician seires on every conceivable happening that can -be usrd te hearten up his friends and strike terror into the hearts of his opponents. But nothing could bo move ludicrous than the attempts which have- been made of lftte to treat seriously the perambulations of Messrs. Witty, Seddon, Macpgnald and other ostiraablc members of thn- rank and file of Wardism, who hav<«. been toiling wearily owr the b»ckbloeks addn>ssing littk groups oi people and publishing in' party orgaiw, under big headlines, iiaimng acfiouwk di thmr: onitorical inuiHphs. It is all ft part of the political game, no doubt, but most people- that it is a transparent attempt to humbug the public. Curiously enough, it; is. the politicians themselves who take it inost Rfiriotisly, prabably because the.v unilerrati , the intelligence of the average citizen.

At thoii , meeting in tlie Town Hall last, evening thft'Bofiai Democrats apptfarcii to tie quite «s niuch con* cei'tii'd over the fate of their frwiuls in gaul as with Use'candidaUU'c of Mk.'Gloveh for the City Mayoralty. Tho esttaviigiince of the language used concerning 'ho piinishment of tiw men who have flagrantly broken the law, and are oniy. meeting

their'just deserts H the Immis of rSoriety, is Mifiicimsf, in itself to ini\\r.nU: how hDjv'.li-ssly incapable these \ciii\i:ti\ of the: l»;ifootir-?k>riaHst. piovciiH'iii, srv !,.j reeogni&ing the obligations of citizenship, ;Tncy probably realise that Qμ ifoors 'A the gaols of tl;« (.ountry are n«!, Hk(;}y i.o «jj open [.(«raUi spi!«fth. Thfiii , ijjirrioso. i« io inflji.tnc tli'; jmssioas of their foliowcrs f.'i inafefl Uwir! the raota Nvi.lling toolH to serve ■otliw ends. Host, oi tk'in probably cafe little for the forlnr.!«« of H«u.AK!i) of Yo'fcsr;, or the othflfs wlio .in': paying tlic ticHaily of j tlio land; but if suits t-hftir pufposc to jn'ofoss Us regard those mo-ri as ■ martyrs suffuriwK in a good ciuiw, WoHJf] they, if they hokl "unconditionally rf:lp.aKf;" the, !aw4.)rcakors now in gaol? if they are to k (>!;iicv«d {jiey wo«f«i cfco so; and t-hw, ace the yiuoplc who waat to w:ei*re the control of the Government of ti-m country, Thraa: are Uμ pnoplc who arc- to-day asking tho peopje of 'Wellington: to elect- their ti-owirree to the Mayoral r/ffico,. Wo have publishwl some of t!io offensive relerciices- rn«ide ■ to tho WiKP Jusncfi arid ts Mr. : Luke and not becauso they are worthy of the slightest cftsdenfeS, [but In order that the ptiblie may be abfo to form some itloa of the class ; of persons who represent the Social* tteriiocratie movfrractit