WAR & THE ELECTIONS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2463, 17 May 1915, Page 9

WAR & THE ELECTIONS

WHY THEY WERE HELD

OPPOSITION WANTED SHORT

ADJOURNMENT

THE GOVERNMENT'S PROPOSAL

■The Leader of the Opposition (the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Ward), k the course of an kterview k Auckland on Friday, stated that the idea of election contests during the currenoy of the war had been all along to him deplorable, but the Government had decided otherwise. This would suggest that the Leader of the Opposition had been prepared to postpone- the elections until peace had been declared. The matter was the subject of a conference last session, at which the Minister of Public Works (the Hon. \V. Fraser) was present. In view of this, a Dominion reporter waited on Mr. Fraser on Saturday to ascertain exactly what took place at that conference.

"It is somewhat, amazing," replied Mr. Eraser, "in spite of (Erect proof to the contrary, that the Opposition Press will ksist on endeavouring to make the public beliove that the Government refused an offer from the Leader of the Opposition to postpone the elections for iwelve months, Or even to the end of the war. No such offer was ever made.' Many hints from the Opposition ranks were thrown out durkg last session that it might be advisable to postpone the elections for five or six months. Finally, a conference waß arranged to discuss this subject. I was a member of that conferonce. and therefore can speak at first hand as to what took place thereat. The Right Hon. Sir J. G. Word being kdisposed, the conference met k his private sitting-room at the Royal Oak Hotel. The right honi gentleman suggested jihat the elections should be postponed till the end of March, or possibly. April, when, if peace had not then been proclaimed,' Parliament should meet and deoide what to do. The Government delegates urged that such a course would be quite futile, _as there was not the slightest probability of the war being over at that date* and that the electors would be even more diskclked for a general election at a period when sangukary battles would in all probability be raging, and the fate of the Empire hangkg k the balance. We said that if any postponement of the elections took place it must bo for twelve months, or earlier, if peaco wafe proclaimed. 'The Leader of the Opposition would not agree to this, hence the decision of the Government to proceed 'with 'the elections at the usual date. The matter was referred to m the House on more than one occasion, but the above .facts are now conveniently forgotten. The Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Ward, when deploring the fact that the general elections had been held in December, should also have stated that during the session he desired to have them postponed only till 'March I or April last,