THE POLITICAL SITUATION.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 August 1915, Page 2

THE POLITICAL SITUATION.

NATIONAL CABINET AT WORK. l'y Telegraph Special to Daily News. Wellington, August I'2. The members of the National Cabinet have now settled down to work in earnest, and I.lit new Ministers, with an easy air of familiarity, ay: bearing their allotted parts in the administration of the affairs of the country. The Post tliis evening warmly congratulates the Cabinet on having, at its first meeting, decided to discourage the rafl'le industry. There is no reason to assume that its tardy action was due to the infusion of fresh blood, but some of the credit for sweeping away what had nocome a positive scandal in Wellington must be given to the member for Christehtiivh North, who, in season and out of season, lias protested against the needs of the wounded soldiers being made the excuse for the encouragement of an insidioas jind pe"rniciuus form of | gambling. '■The mere fact," says the Post, "that this nubance persisted so I long was evidence that a gambling fever was gaining a grip of large numbers." The Cabinet has made a good start.

A MISTAKEN IMPRESSION. A statement, circulated by one of the Wellington special correspondents, has led to the impression in many parts of the Dominion that the Reformers after all have a majority in the National Cabinet. The impression is quite wrong. Dr. Poinare, though a member of the Executive Coiitieil, Is not a member of the Cabinet, and the Prime Minister lias not got a casting vote. If member* are equally divided on any question of policy they mu*t adjust their difference as best they can by mutual concessions. Equality of representation was the point for which the Opposition contended all through the negotiations, and neither of the party leader- fear that it will be attended by any embarrassing results.

LABOR'S ATTITUDE. A prominent Labor representative, interviewed to-night, sa'tt that he believed nine-tenths of the workers who took any, interest at all in politic/) approved of the formation of n National .Cabinet. "You needn't take the noisv lie'd Fed. element into account," he said: "they're against (lie temporary truce, because it deprives them of their occupation. aiu\ of what little importance they ever enjoyed. The sen-ihle working men all over tile Dominion realise that this isn't ii time for politic;)! lighting. There's more serious business on hand, and the scourge of war Is doing all the reforming we want just. now. The Labor members made a mistake by not letting one of their members go into the Cabinet, and most of us would like to have ■'ecu Mr. Wi'ford or 11 r. Witty there, but, there':; not iinir-h to complain about, and though Mr, Masspy remains Minister of Labor he is bc-jinning to understand us better than lie did. In any case, tiie Minister of Finance is of more .omeoiienee [o us than (lie Mini.-ter of Labor in the present crisis, and the rank and tile of' the progressive parties will keep Sir -Joseph Ward up to the mark." This otherwise optimistic, observer estimates that the Labor and Liberal parties have lust fully .", per cent, of the votes they polled at the last general elc.-t'on, by their contributions to the araiv at the front, while the lieformers. have not lost more than 2 per cent.