WELLINGTON NOTES-

Hokitika Guardian, 26 April 1923, Page 1

WELLINGTON NOTES-

MAYORAL ELECTION. VOTE SPLITTING. rSmcUT, To The Guardian.] AY ELLINGTON, April 23. The local papers continue to deplore with increasing iervciioy the votesplitting which seems to be inevitable in connection with the approaching mayoral election, the "Post returned to the subject on Saturday evening with the suggestion that the electors had it within their power to avert the impending catastrophe by inducing .Mr L. M.Kcnzio, a staunch Liberal in national politics, to retire from tne contest and to leave Mr R. A. Wright the sitting mayor and an ardent Reformer. with a clear field to deal with Air P. Fraser, the If.ibour candidate. Probable an arrangement of this kind would facilitate the return of Mr Wright for a second term of office, but unfortunately, from the point of view of .Mr Wright and his friends, .Mr McKenzie and his friends have got it into their heads, that the sitting mayor and not the senior councillor is the candidate that should be retiring. Mr McKenzie has been invited to submit the matter to the Selection Committee of the Civic League, but as that hotly some time ago decided in favour of Afr Wright against Air George Afitchell and the League itself has been working since in the interests of that gentleman, Air AlcKoivde not unnaturally has declined to accept the Comm it tee's intervention. LABOUR'S OPPORTUNITY. In these circumstances it appears quite within the range ol possibility that the splitting of votes between tlio Reform candidate and the Liberal candidate will end in the return oi Air Eraser, who is the host platform man of the three and has a strong and active organisation at his hack. Curiously enough Labour, which stands to gain utosi from vote-split-ting. is the only one of the parties advocating a change in the method of voting that: would insure the electors against the evil of minoiiiy representation. It would have the mouthers of all local bodies, where there are three or more to he returned, elected by proportional representation, and presumably, in the case ol single electorates, including mayoral elreAjons, would adopt the system ol preferential voting. This system would have saved both Air AYright and Mr McKenzie from the peril of so dividing the auti-T abour vote as to let Air Fraser in. The Labour candidate might have bad (lie greatest number of first preferences, but the distribution of Air Wright's and Air McKenzie’s second preferences, bad not Afr Frasers first preferences constituted -■II actual majority, would have decided definitely and accurately which candidate was most in favour with the electors. But the "new-fangled" no-| lion still has to find favour with tin ! old parlies. j THE OAMARU FI.Ft TH)N.

The Oninnru olcnion i' not arousing tmtcli iniorost !:<

PXeol>l. ;UI!UM 1. t! 1“ >,->! i l i <i a ii i i n til od i;i t < • I y concerned. Ml Mnssev si lid liw ( 11 1 li'H; naturally arc putting: I\>ft 1 1 every ellui't to recapture tlie seal, the Prime Minister having practically estahli-lie'i hiheaihpiarteiH in the constituoney roilin' mu" heinc.. and hi- eoileapuoilia uhai a-Lu'iee tliey call i'lcmi a iilllre ri ‘ ill distant'. Ihe i rue

o| | lie "Financial Statement" troin Oamaru on Saturday was quite a

stroke of diplomacy and probably will have a belter effect l ball any amount of platform sneaking would have had. The Liberal leader-, here are watching tin- position closely and arc eager to be in the Iray; but Mr Mm pliei son, the Liberal . annulate, prefers to confirm the previous verdict oil bis own bat -;» long as I lie Prime .Minister ami the Reform candidate do not call an anilv of helpers to iheir assistance. Mere it. is impossible to get any very clear outlook as to the prospects of the contest, but the general feeling is that the line showing made by Mr .Maeplierson la-t December in wlmt appeared in he a. very up-bill light, will stand him in good stead on this occasion. The sporting instinct of an indifferent public i- on his side.

COMPANY TAXATION. Mr 0. Shi iteiifl'e, who ventured last week to cross swords with .Mr V . TV limit on. tlio question o! compnuy income tax, withdraws from the controversv in a lei ter addressed to the 'Dominion” This morning without having made his ease quite good. •■While some lending and trading companies have unlortuiiately lost duiine- recent years a substantial portion of their reserves, entailing a coiresponding reduction oil theii dividend earning capacity,” he says, “the Piet remains that the. purely lending companies having practically maintained their reserv.es have been able, whilegiving good service to their borrowing clients at rates probably not exceeding fit per cent on the average, to pay their shareholders reasonable dividends, even during the recent difficult times. I do not doubt that such companies will pursue the even tenor ol tl, e i r way, and as conditions improve -how even better results, either b\ w;,y of increased dividends or lurther additions to reserve or both.” Mr .•shirtelifi'c has retired trom the controversy just as ii was becoming inI,si jog, without, it must be admitted. disposing of all ibe fads arrayed against him. but probably Mr Hunt s-di has something to sav that will tfirnw further light upon the points in dispute.