WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3340, 19 November 1919, Page 5

WELLINGTON TOPICS

THE GENERAL ELECTION.

PROBABLE, DATE.

(Special Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, Nov. 18.

This afternoon the Prime Minister, who is back in Wellington attending to a number of pressing departnlental aifairs, was unable to nilake any definite announcement in regard to the date of the general e-lectilon, but from what can be gathered from other quarters it seems most likely the polling will take place on Wednesday, December 17, or Thursday, December 18. This is a later (late than has been fixed for any election for a very long time past, but the preparation of the rolls is proving a Very difficult business this year and both si_des naturally are anxious to go to the country on a complete register. "Mr Massey expresses himself as very Well pleased with his‘ reception during his hurried northern tour and believes his party will improve its position in the Auckland district at the polls, but he is not indulging in any extravagant boastings about the result. BIINISTERS ASSAILED.

Mr Massey ’s own seat, of course, is safe and from this forward he will be able to devote most of his time to campaigning work, but several of his colleagues are engaged in keen fi-ghts and will be tied pretty closely to their constituencies till the struggle is over. ‘Sir James Allen in Bruce is meeting an active young Liberal, personally popular, with no political sins tocount against him; the Hon. VV. Nosworthy in Ashburton is opposed by his neighbour Mr W. J.- Dickie, also a farmer, whose former constituency has been extinguished; the Hon. J. B. Hine, in Stratford, is being tackled by one o-f the best equipped recruits the Liberals ‘have discovered for ‘a very long time, and the Hon. W. H. Herries, in T-auranga, is meeting at live Labour candidate who may give him some. trouble. " The Hon. J. G. Coates, in Kaipaua. probably will have little difliculty in holding his seat. against a Labourtcandidate, and the Hon. D. H. Guthrie, in Oroua, as yet is without an opponent. . LIBERAL PROSPECTS. Most of the prominent Liberals appear to hold fairly strong hands. Judging from,the accounts of Sir Joseph Ward ’s Southland tour which are being jublished here.thc Leader of the Opposition has a safe seat in Awarua; the Hon. W. D. S. MacDonald is a. “certainty” in Bay of Plenty and probably will be spared the Worry of a. contest; Mr T. K. Sidey is meeting one of the strongest. of the Labour candidates in Dunedin South, but his maria in the constituency has -not departed; the Hon. G. W. Russel-l is “the old dog for the hard road” in Avon and should pull through even against a younger and equally capable candidate of the Labour persuasion; the Hon. A. M. Myers did such good service in Parliament, and in the ‘Cabinet during the wareperiod it is impossible to think of his being exchanged by Auckland East for either of the alternatives that are btfering; Mr George Forbes, Mr L. M. Isitt, the Hon. David Buddo and the rest of Canterbury Liberal stalwarts all seemsafc enough. and, except for Ashbur—ton, no material change is expected in the representation of the Wheat province.

THE FINAL RESULT. Never before has the result of an election in this country been so difficult to "~‘predict. During the last five years thousands -of boys and girls who had given scarcely a thought to politics and parties when the war hegan have reached manhood and womanhood, and have taken their place on the rolls. They have been brought up, as it were. under -the party truce, and are now realising for the first time the sharp difference between the elements they see, in confliet. How these young people are going to cast their votes no one can tell, but probably the great majority of them will take on the colour of the environment in which they have grown up and support Reform, Liberal, or Labour, as their parents and friends did before them. Arguing this way, the quid nuncs are predicting a very even division of representation between the two old parties and the final decision remaining with Labour. Perhaps lat. the moment there can be no better guess.