WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 24 December 1931, Page 2

WELLINGTON TOPICS

i ELECTION FIGURES. PARTY GAINS AND LOSSES 1 • { - ; ‘ !; i-‘ " '• . V \ «■ Special Correspondent. • X WELLING TON, Dec. 22., A contributor to the “Evening Post’’ in the course of a, ;, vefy . interesting analysis of. the party at the recent general ■ elction. seems to-jhitve - taken for granted that the 189,’360 electors'who voted-'for one. or another of the thirty-four Coalition Relprrfi candidates all wore: Reformers while-’ the 12;>.707 electors, wiio voted for one.-or another of the. Coalition L/nit--ed candidates were all Unileds. 'This of course, was not tlkv,gase and would, not, have boon in :• harmony with, the compact between the. Reform and. the United leaders as it was'-understood by the great : majority of their followers'. There were,! Coalition Independents, Independent Refdrmei'S, Independent I’n;teds, and 'lndependents of other denominations yntly. a leaning towards the Coalition. Government, but they did jiot belong .toi the pactordained by the Reform and United leaders. They were the 'free lances ready to take the chances of the melee of the day. the parties. The fact'that- while V Coalition, Reform with tl’iriy-i'our candidates in the field gathered votes- atthe election and secured ■ i wmity-srx-seats, .while Coalition United vfii.h' twentyeight.. candidates • gathered only. 12Q,757 votes and secured sixteen seats provides no occasion for. alarm in .the camp of Mr Forbes and , associates, who, to begin '.with} had tlp-ee of .their colleagues, the Hon. J, G. Cob'ie (Oroua), the Hon. E. A. Ransom (Paiiiatua), and Mr W.■: J. Br.oadfoot (Waitomo) returned without .a contest, while Mr K. S. Williams. (Bay of Plenty) was the only candidate on. the).Coalition Reform side, who received, this compliment. Other , votes were gathered for the Coalition Government independently from - Reform and United, as already Stated,' but the 'outcome of the trial of strength plainly teoough was the. return of 1 fiftysix Coalitionists and twenty-four' libs* |il«i.Labout: members. ' This ! is : - not

the- biggest majority . known in the Dominion’s Parliament, but it -seems sufficiently large for resent ppurposes. LABOUR’S DISAPPOINTMENT The Lhbour Party, which a few .days ago - was clamouring for the un-ion-of the Reform and Liberal Parties, and, representation in the House ct Representatives, is now comtemplat'ing;without any enthusiasm the outcome •of the recent cdcct'on here and the elections in the Mother Country and' in the Commonwealth ,of Australia. It was' encouraged by such concessions as it was able to obtain from the United Party in the first year of its administration to imagine -it * was well on the way to representation of -some kind or another on the Treasury Benches. Then Mr Forbes, the, present Prime Minister, came upon the scene as a very live leader, and Labour quickly came to realise that the ‘atmosphere of the House had changed. Mr.H. E. Holland, the leader, of the Labour Party, who had confidently counted upon keeping Reform and United apart, now made tactful overtures to Mr Coates, but' they were not encouraged; Hence political Labour’s present tears.

COALITION’S. PART. ..Apropos of these, facts it is important that the compact between the Reform' and United parties' in regard to : ths| Coalition agreement should bo §criipulously# observed. During the .rgh-nt election campaign, and before. t|| labour' Party, which never has been representative of a majority of the workers inn.the Dominion, put forth all sorts of wild schemes by which: the financial difficulties of the 'country were to be overcome .without liny sacrifice or effort on the part of the community as a whole- Wicked nonsense: of this sort has been d-S----tri'buted throughout the whole country and unfortunately it has been accepted asl truth Jry thousands of workers ' who, have - deliberately made it an excuse (for rendering inadequate services. , The demand for economy and effort towards -the amelioratoin of the 'll besetting the Empire at the present time are as urgent here as they are at the other end of the world and they should be .met with the same determination and courage as are exercised there.