WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, 2 October 1919, Page 4

WELLINGTON TOPICS

THE FIN‘A'.\'CIAL DEBATE.

THE OPENING SPEECHES.

(‘Special COl-1-espondentf)

WELLINGTON, Oct__ 1.

‘ The House and the galleries‘ werecrowded last night when Sir Joseph Ward opened the financial deba.tW"ith4 a speech in which he covefiii, more or less cursorily, of course, not onlfy the nl:ltc-rial points of the Budget, but also most of the matters touched upon in his own policy manifesto. The Leader of the Opposition was in good" form, as the term goes in the lobbies, and though he was at some pains tomake it quite clear there was a very distinct difference between the poliey of the Liberals and the policy of theReformers, -he avoided the personal style of criticism that was common enough on both sides in the days 1:6fore the war and the party truce. He even admitted the good intentions. of his political opponents and besceched them for their own sakes anti for the good of the country’ to adopt the sounder and safer methods of finance he was conmiending "to the House.’

THE MINISTER OF I<‘INAN‘3I:'.- IN

REPLY.

Sir Joseph lWard' had spoken for an‘ hour and a half, the House in itscourtesy having extended the time to which he was entitled under the Standing Ordrs by half an hour, ‘oua. Sir James Allen,,who followed -‘the leader of the Opposition, contented‘ himself with a reply running into barely thirty minutes. He, too, kept’ the debate on a high level and refrained from returning to any of the ‘old, had methods -of the past, but once or’ ‘twice he misquoted, doubtless inadvertcntly, _What Sir Joseph had said and .th_li's_ =et_l‘titl(_;;d"tha:t_ gentleman to make. ‘ah effectixe. .explanation; The hlain; "b_one_ o__f_.conte.ntion between t-horn was ltlle disposition" ‘of’ “the l_ accumulated war surplus Wamovunting to some £14,ooo,ooo’ or’ £15,000,000. [Sir Jgs:gpli" Ward had_.intend,ed -those surpluse:s;.to~~ be tra;nAsfe_l-red,. to the" sinking’ fund forthe extinction of the Dominionfs debt, - _but Sirdames Allen ridiculed -this pro-~ pos-al and stuck to his scheme for employing the _money in repatriation Work. LOBBY OPINION. r The hour for the supper adjournment having arrivled when Sirlames Allen sat down, the Prime "Minister ’announced that if no other member of the Opposition wished to speak that night, he would move for the House’ ‘to adjourn till the following day. No imember of the Opposoition being an- , xious to enter the fray at the moment, the ad_]'oul'nmen't was taken, and the‘ lmembers drifted -out into the lobbies land Bella.my’s to discuss the events of" the CVOI-.ing., Opinions of't.lle speeches ;delivered by -tlle ex-Minister for Fi-n-A ance said the present 3linis"Ter <liijlel'ed, jnaturally, according to the party pl'e--Xdilections of the listeners, but there apipeatted to be a general agreement‘ 'th«aft [Sir Josephlhad said ratller much and‘ ‘Sir James rather little. The fit-Irnxer ‘loaded his speech with »at good deal of’ lunneerssarj'. iteration, ‘-and the latte; lomitted -to refute several of‘ the con» l fentions put forth by his opponent. H

CONTINUATION OF THE DEBATE.

It is never very safe to prophccyin regard to the continuation of an financial debate. Eitlier of ?'the party leaders, with the concurrence of his followers, can bring it to a speedy conclusion if he really wishes to do so. But the feeling about the House this afternoon is that the debate will run at least till the end of next week. Many members,‘ after years of restraint, are anxious to add}-ess their consti‘iuen‘ts from the floor of the House; and -an equally favourable op.portuni‘fy to do this may not occur ‘during the lffe of the present Parliament. The inevitable efieet of lasf night’s speeches Will be to bring the «two old par-“fi’os into better defined lines and to induce the doubting “Indvependent‘s” to declare for one side of the other. Cfiicial Labour will be alone in the‘ belief that there is no difference between them.