WELLINGTON NEWS

Hokitika Guardian, 1 June 1925, Page 4

WELLINGTON NEWS

POLITICAL CHANCES. (Special to “GuardWi”.) WELLINGTON. -Mn.v 2!*. The lion .1. O. Contes is now the country’s Prime .Minister, ami while n none rolls sporting public will ho glad to see him got a fair run, it is doubtful whether he can run for any length of time. History appears to he repenting itself, as it lias a way of doing. Going had; to the eighties of the Conservatives with the Into Sir Harry Atkinson as lender, had been in power lor some time, hut at the general election of 1 SCO or Is!)I the Conservatives were defeated. the Liberals under Ballam-c

came into power, hut liallauce died in lsOti. l-'urtunntcly for the Liberals of that day they had a leader at hand in the late !!. ,J. Seddon, who quietly took hold of the reins of Government and held them tor 111 years. There were more highly educated men in the RalInnce Cabinet than Seddon. \\ . I’ember Reeves for instance, hut tfie leadership passed to Seddon. when he died 1 lull•Joties immediately stepped in as Prime Minister, holding the position until the return of Sir .Joseph Ward from Etlrone. who then took over the Premiership. The Liberals, however, were spent and could not hold on to the Treasury Benches. I hen came the Reform Party with its 111 years of oltlec. The death of Mr .Massey is followed by a stop-gap Prime Minister Sir Erancis .Roll— and now we have Mr Coates. The repetition of history is quite marked. Tl e Reformers are quite spent and they admit that lliemselves in the suggestion to abandon the name ol " R form ’’ for some other title and to lose with the Liberal-Labour Party. There is little hope of the Reformers continuing in office even if they change the name and present a brand new policy, flic country is sick of the men in the forefront of the party, and will insist oo an absolute change of personnel. Ihe people of New Zealand want to recover the liberties they possessed prior to the war. They surrendered those liberties to win the war, which came to an end 7 years ago, hut the liberties of the people are still held in pawn by the politicians. To recover those liberties we must sweep away the politicians responsible for withholding them. The Reformers are done, and it is to lie hoped the country will got something better in their place.