WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, 10 April 1919, Page 4

WELLINGTON TOPICS

THE COALITION PROPOSAL

THE MINISTER OF DEFENCE

APPROVES

Special Correspondent;,)

WELLINGTON, April 9.

; If Sir James Alien ws.-: eorreetly re-ported-at Nonnanby the other day nis views in regard to the proposed coalition between the Reformers and Liberals differ very widely from those |of the party leaders. "He hoped that | the bulk of the two parties would remain together," the summary of his remarks runs. "He said this net because he was a Minister but because he knew that the country needed a strong lead during the next few years. There would be „an election this year, when the people should say what they wanted. They should not become impatient" but they should make up their minds. If they wanted the conntry run soundly they shoull be careful in the selection of their men and choose, men who would be prepared to make sacrifices and who would resist the pressure sometimes brought upon members of Parliament, to induce them to do things they knew to be wrong." It was scarcely necessary for Sir James to add that he was speaking for himself and for none of his colleagues. THE LEADERS' ATTITUDE

For some time before their departure for London Mr. Massey and Sir Joseph Ward made it perfectly clear to their intimate friends that they would be glad to be freed from the hampering restrictions imposed upon them by the party trace. They went further than this indeed. Replying to deputations they both excused themselves from doing this and that nd the other things by saying it was impossible to submit controversial matters to Parliament during the existence of the truce and therefore impossible to effect reforms which were dear to themselves and their friends. 1 The Hon. W. D. S. Mac-Donald, the acting leader of the Liberal Party, ._■ has since indicated plainly enough * that the views of his chief have undergone no change in this respect and It is a matter of common knowledge thatmore than half of Mr. Massey's supporters are in thinly disguised revolt against the enervating alliance. THE POPULAR OPINION.

There can be no shadow of doubt that in Wellington, at any rate, the tide of popular opinion *has turned strongly against the National Cabinet. The capital city, Ike the proverbial Irishman, is always temperamentally "agin' the Government," perhaps with little better reason than the Irishman emphatically expressed at the three by-elections within its borders. A member of the Welfare League who may be fairly taken as representative of the growing progressive thought among the business r,nd professional sections of the electors, referring to Sir James Allen's statement this morning said the Minister o: Defence had entirely fialed to understand the significance of the .new political Spirit abroad in the community. It was not the growth of party bargaining or of personal ambition, but of a, sincere, desire to accomplish in a decent derly way the pressing things the National Cabinet had failed to do. NEW ZEALAND AT THE PEACE CONFERENCE.

A copy of the Paris edition of the "New York Herald," which turned up by yesterday's mail contains an allusion to one of the Dominion's representatives at the Peace Conference which his personal friends will be glad to read. Of course in the eyes of the American writer President ■Wilson "dominated anft dominated completely, casually, unostentatiously"" the whole proceedings, but he had a glance for other figures at the historic assembly. "Mr. Lansing, Mr. White, Colonel House and General Bliss, all looked in that momentous gathering of the people of the world' precisely what they are —intensely, unmistakably Americans," he tells his readers. "Nor can one quite forget Sir Joseph Ward from Xmv Zealand who severely erect and more immobile than any statue, gave a most marvellously concenrated attention to the President's every syllable; a most distinguished and dignified figure of a man was Sir 'Jojseph Wferd (at illjp Peace table/' A pretty compliment j very prettily putT