The Guardian (And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times.) WEDNESDAY. MAY 28th, 1921.

Hokitika Guardian, 28 May 1924, Page 2

The Guardian (And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times.) WEDNESDAY. MAY 28th, 1921.

parliament to .meet. I.n about a iiiuiu li’o time now. Parliament will meet at Wellington for the most uil| ortani .-••seinii. Tin- eiming meeting will he the ieroii:l session o; tlie |ires:-nt Parliament, and that is lousidered n-usdly the -.-.orking session. This a ill lie more so on thi- occasion, as last session owing to Alt Jins.-

desire to get away as early as possible lor the Imperial ('onfereme. the work '■ns great.lt curtailed. and the slatigbter uf the innmeiii-. aa- rather mote severe than usual. Rumors are ahioad as to probable i.tii'tv developments also, so there will be a more interesting n<peet to Pin liament l.eeause of tin- mystery enveloping seme possible developments. The railway strike had it ended otherwise might hate supplied bailor with a si'ceihl stick "ith which to belabor the Ministry, but. us matters have turned out. the (fnv<*j nnieni bus come through the ordeal with credit rather than discredit, and tlie l'ulminitiolis of the Lullin' members will not entry much weight now. The capitulation of the men was so complete as to fully justify the Government's altitude, and altogether Labor appears io have been rather badly checkmated bv the development of the game from wilieh at one stage so much was lio| cd. But, :t.s to the serious wink of Parliament, it- Kiustriietive programme, mticli will lie expected from Govcrnmelii. lieesiti.se much lias been promised. Here, however, the Ministry must face its party trials. The chief of these is tlie .small working majority, utul the necessity of considering individual rather than party feelings. Electortil reform and finance will he of rout sc two of the larger f|tiestioiis to engage serious 1 }- the attention of members. Electoral reform on whatever lines proposed, can lip enacted in the present House only under a degree of compromise which might go so far as to defeat the real object, and give a result which would be colorless in practice. In any ease the opposition of the Fpper House has to he counted upon, so that actually the outcome under this heading, apart from the volume of talk as an incentive of the political trend, will he of very little operative value. But in regard to finance, the Government, will find the administrnHis in criticised very strongly. No doubt the report of the present taxation commission will lie rendered available for Parliament, but it is likely only to add fuel to the fiery oratory. Tlie real action depends main the Government policy, if Mr Massey is so disposed to develope a policy. Here again whatever is reached will lie necessarily in the nature of a compromise, due altogether to the narrow majority by which the Ministry holds office. A groat burden of the work will as usual fall on Mr Massey. His team in any event will l>e weakened by the absence of two members who are ill. but apart from this, all the principal measures to go before Parliament will require to be sponsored by the Prime Minister personally. This is but further evidence of the one-man Ministry so apparent on other occasions, anil while Mr Massey remains at the head of the Government that singular condition is likely to remain. Altogether the session does not promise very brilliantly front a legislative I oint of view. Parliament will bo largely a great talking shop, and the final verdict will be covered most probably by Cecil .Rhodes' expiring statement : “So little done, so much to do.’'