WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taihape Daily Times, 23 September 1918, Page 3

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

WELLINGTON CENTRAL. THE FIRST SHOT. (Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, Sept 20. The official Labour candidate for the Wellington Central seat in the House of Representatives, Mr. Peter Fraser, opened his platform campaign last night when he expounded the principles of his Party to an audience of 300 or tOO of his sympathisers. Of course he had nothing particularly new to say, but he reiterated the old things* with considerable fluency and with very obvious earnestness. He roundly denounced the Government for its failure to stay the advance in the cost of living and the Independents for the efforts to divide the forces of reform. His worst five minutes were when he attempted to explain the quality of his loyalty to “King and Country” and he did not emerge from a little controversy on this subject with a discordant element at the back of the hall with flying colours. On the whole, however, he filled his role" fairly well and appeared to give satisfaction to his friends. It remains to be seen how he will farewhen hemeets a more critical audience, THE COAL TROUBLE,

The ballot papers in the recent conference of the coal mine owners’ oner to the men were to be received in Wellington this morning and later in the day the result will toe officially announced. In the meantime there is a general feeling abroad that a majority of the miners have accepted the owners’ proposals and that the acute stage of the trouble is over with a prospect of much better relations being established between the parties. The fact that the Minister of Mines went out of town yesterday and will be away till the beginning of next week is taken as a good augury for a satisfactory settlement of the dispute. Mr. MacDonald evidently left with a sanguine view of the situation. The ballot at Kaitangata probably represents a larger majority in favour of conciliation than will be found in some of the other mining centres, but it is an indication of the trend of opinion among the 'men themselves and so far is a matter for congratulation. THE COST OP LIVING

In his address last 7 night Mr. Peter Fraser referred to the increased cost of living as the cause of the industrial unrest that was spreading throughout the country, and if one may “judge from the complaints on this score that are coming from all the unions he was speaking with some authority. The tramway men, the railway men, the seamen and a great body of other workers are striking the same note and hinting at further trouble to follow if they obtain no redress. The Government is receiving most of the blame for the existing'state of affairs, but the Board of Trade ’is not escaping criticism and the wholesalers and retailers are suspected of making huge illicit profits. The cost of living, indeed, is going to be the predominant cry in theT Wellington Central by-election and the candidate who has not some royal road to lower pri ces will fare badly at the hands of the constituency. THE SESSION.

It is reported now that the session of Parliament will not open till tho last week in October, and this is taken to mean the absent Ministers will not return so early as was expected a week or two ago. This is a subject cn which public speculation is not permitted,- and there is no information to be obtained from those in authority. It is understood, however, that if Parliament does not inert till the end of next month it will be impossible to get through the absolutely necessary business before the Christmas holidays and that after a short adjournment members Will' be brought back in January. What will happen then will depend largely upon the course of the war and the temper of the House, but it is believed that quite a number of the members, perhaps a majority, are in favour of a dissolution and that if Mr. MasSey and Sir Joseph Ward are inclined towards this step they will meet with no opposition from their followers. STREET ORGAN DESERTS LONDON. It is quite seldom that a street organ is seen or heard in Loudon nowadays, and the very few about are not ground and trundled by an Italian or his wife. The Italians have left their organs and gone to fight their country’s battles; tbeir women folk trundled and ground the family organ in London streets until air raids decided them to start on country rounds. In consequence the provinces have had, and are likely this summer again to have, more “music” than they 'ever bargained for.