WAR AND THE ELECTIONS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 1399, 18 May 1915, Page 2

WAR AND THE ELECTIONS.

The Leader of the Opposition (the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Ward), in the course of an interview in Auckland on Friday, staled that the idea of election contests during the currency of the war had been all along to him deplorable, but the Government had decided otherwise. This would suggest that the Leader of the Opposition had been prepared to postpone the elections until peace had been declared. The matter was the subject of a conference last session, at which the Minister of Public Works (the Hon. W. Fraser) was present. In view of this, a Dominion reporter waited on Mr Fraser on Saturday to ascertain exactly what took place at that conference. “It is somewhat amazing,”, replied Mr Fraser, “in spite of direct proof to the contrary, that the Opposition Press will insist on endeavouring to make the public believe that the Government refused au offer from the Leader of the Opposition to postpone the eleclious for twelve months, or even to the end of the war. No such offer was ever made. Many hints from the Opposition ranks were tbrown out during last sessiou that it might be advisable to postpone the elections for five or six month'!. Finally a conference was arranged to discuss this subject. I was a member of that conference, and therefore can speak at first hand as to what took place thereat. The Right Hon. Sir J. G. Ward being indisposed, the conlerence met in his private sitting room at the Royal Oak Hotel. Tbe right bon. gentleman suggested that the elections should be postponed till the end of March, or possibly April, when, if peace had uot then been proclaimed, Parliament should meet and decide what to do. The Government delegates urged that such a course would be quite futile, as there was uot the slightest probability of the war being over at that date, and that the electors would be even more disinclined tor a general election at a period when sanguinary battles would in all probability be raging, and the fate of the Empire hanging in the balance. We said that if any postponement of the elections took place it must be for twelve months, or earlier if peace was proclaimed. The Leader of the Opposition would not agree to this, hence the decision of the Government to proceed with the elections at the usual date. The matter was referred to iu the House on more than one occasion, but the above facts are now conveniently forgotten. The Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Ward, when deploring the fact that the general elections had been held in December, should also have stated that during the session he desired to have them postponed only till March or April last.”