The Manawatu Herald. Saturday, December 6, 1913. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 1181, 6 December 1913, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. Saturday, December 6, 1913. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

The Second Ballot has been wiped off the Statute Book, and its repeal was the cause of a long stonewall in the House by Opposition and Labour members a short while back. As an expeiimeuc the Second Ballot has p oved a failure, and was one ol the causes which led to the defeat of the Parly which brought it into existence. Those who stonewalled its repeal and, incidentally, delayed more important legislation and incurred considerable expense to the country, excused themselves on the ground that the Government had not substituted some other electoral reform in its «tead. Yet the Prime Minister had pledged the Government to bring down an amending Bill before the close of the present Parliament. The Second Ballot will operate for the last time in the coming Lyttelton by-election. The Second Ballot lent itself to trickery and bargaining—experience of which we had in this electorate at the last general election, which is not likely to be soon forgotten. It also served to arouse the bitterest party feelings among voters, and caused gaps in friendships which will take years to again cement. It is unnecessary to refer to similar happenings at Grey Eynn and Wellington Central. Speculation is rite as to what form the new measure will assume, proportional representation or piefereutial voting. The proposed legislation is receiving the careful consideration of Cabinet, and possibly will be first applied to an elective Upper Chamber,

The contest for the Lyttelton byelection is pushing strike matters in that constituency into the background. The candidates are: Messrs Millar (Government),, Laurensou, brother of the late deceased member (Opposition), McCoombe (Social Democrat, otherwise Federation of Labour), and Dr Thacker (Independent Liberal). The Government and Opposition candidates are meeting with fairly lively meetings, while the Labour candidate seems to tare much better in this respect, It is difficult to say which two will be in the second ballot. Dr Thacker does not appear to be in the running, and it is almost a certainty that the Labour candidate will contest the final. If the sympathetic dement counts for anything, then Mr Laurenson should be the other. If so, it naturally iollows that this candidate will receive the almost unanimous support of the Government, and in that case he should win out with a large majority over his Red Fed. opponent. If, on the other hand, the Government candidate should be left in the second ballot, after what is happening, Opposition supporters will rally round his standard, and despite the cocksureness of the Red Feds,, we see very little chance of their champion’s success. What happened at the Grey election is not going to obtain at Lyttelton, ot that we feel confident.