WELLINGTON NOTES.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 February 1924, Page 1

WELLINGTON NOTES.

PARTIES .VXD POLITICS. A It EVI VA L OE INTEREST. [Srrcr.u. To The Gpaudian'.] WELLINGTON, Eeh. Id A meeting of the executive of the Liberal-Labour Party on .Monday and a “welcome home'’ to Mr T. M. Wi!I’ortl, the leader of the Party, last night, have set the tongues of the gossips wagging again eonccrning the intention:-, and prospect.' of politician-,. The ollieitd memorandum of the proceedings at the meeting of the executive i - east in the customary optimistic .strain with allusions io the -Ma.-v-y Dov •: niiieiit a.s “A spout force’' that In, ''signally tailed to moot iho roye roim'nis of the people” and an e-- -i t ion tliat "a change of (love i'll moll I would ho welcomed.” Whothoi ,o "Ml Mr Will'ord and his colleague can l:-e aceopled as unbiased judges ul such mat tors is, of course, a debatable i|UOstion : hut i hero eertainlv is a fooling of grow ing dissatisfaction wilh llu- Govc-rninent abroad and an incroasing desire for a , hang,- that would imparl wider vision and greater vitality In the Admiuis trillion. Mr Mas-soy retains all hipersonal popnlarily and much o! his political "niana,” hut he no longer is regarded as the country's only saviour from “lied Ked“ domination and chaos. The “lied l-'cd'' bogey, indeed. has lost most of its terrors for the average citizen since the lasi general election and is not. likely to he

nearly so potent as ii was fourteen months ago when the next appeal to the eoiist it uoneics comes round. THE REFORM RETORT.

The “Dominion'' makes a perfectly legitimate retort to the hare assertions of the executive of the LiberalLabour Party. Imt It cannot h'e said that ii altogether dissipates them. “People naturally will want to know why the Massey Government should he regarded with intense dissatisfaction' and as a spent force,' '' it declares. “Is it been Use taxation i' being re,lncod year hv year, while ai the same time a sa t isfael ory reserve ol revenue is being maiiilained 'i Or is it because it is promoting a better lmU'img policy than that ol any previous Government, giving liberal a--

-i-taiioo lo soldier solihrs who are in dillioiillios. increasing the pensions ~! disabled limn, and in other ways giving help whore it i- needed and deserved. that the present Government is regarded with 'intense dissa l i'lae lion’ l,y Hu- Lihoral-Lahour Parly f ('util public ouriosiiy on those points is a',l-lie I. Mr Wilier,l and his followers will ho in some danger of being eh'-sed with those who 11-e wordbo' the sake of the sound they make.” All this may serve well enough as a temporary screen against a mere re'e.nuoilering movement, hut when the Opposition attacks in force the party in possession will require to put up a more convincing detVuu'e. THE EIH'l! AL-LAHOI'i: DEMONSTRATION. The “weleoine home” to the leader oi the Opposition al Petoiie last night bore rather the el.ia rai'ter of a social gathering than that ol a party doilioi.sll atioii and, beyond paying a Very high trihin.o to the zeal .and omhusicKm of the stalwarts with whom 1m was associated ill the Mouse i’epre.-eiitalivi-.-. Mr "'ilford coillined himself mainly to a recital of his experiences and observations during his recent travels in the Ear East. Mr \Y. A. Veiti-h. the nminhei for Wanganui, was the only other speaker oil the ,-ot programme and lie, too. touched only lightly on party politic-. As a member of the executive ol I In- Party he heartily thanked the people of IVlono for coming together in such large numhi-rs to welcome hack its leader, and promised them that before very long their member would be (tilting a much more active and prominent part in the administration of the afliiirs of the country. Mr Veiteli emphasised lhe very happy relation: prevailing between the members of the executive and the other members of the party. and extolled this mutual loiilidenee and regard as the verv happiest augury lor the success of the Liberal-Labour Party at tli" next general elootion whenever ii might 1 °nio, GOSSIP. Tin* street: gossip promoted by the presence of a number of visiting members of Parliament in the city is to the ell'eet that the Prime .Minister is not altogether pleased by the manner in which his Colleague- hold the party fort during his absence Irom the Dominion. The inquirer usually beers what, he desires to hear oil occasions of this kind, and if does not follow because In- has been told the “Government is a spent lorec" Mr Massey and his colleague! are tottering to their fall. It is fairly plain, however, that there is a good deal of grumbling going on over, lor instance, a member of the nominated branch ol the Legislature holding the ofliee ol Acting Prime Minister, the continuance ol the wheal subsidy in an aggravated lorm. the arbitrary ret iremeiil.« from the Civil Service, Ho vexatious delays in the Advances Department and the dilators - and inelfcctive administration of several oilier departments. Much of the grumbling may ho quite unjustified, hut in the absence ot Mr Mas.sev there has been no one lo answer it and ii has not waned by iteration and reiteration. Tl looks as if the head of the Government would he engaged during the remainder of ihe recess in repairing the omissions of his colleagues.