WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 December 1916, Page 3

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE PRIME MINISTER AT HOME. HIS SPEECHES. * (From Our Own Correspondent). Wellington, December 18. It is scarcely necessary to wait for Mr. Massey's own 'protest before concluding the summary supplied by the Press Association of the address he delivered at the Queen's Hall in London does not convey a very accurate impression of what he actually said. It is inconceivable that* the IPri'me Minister, who is both tactful and deliberate in his speech, would select such an occasion to lecture the Mother Country upon Irer duty to the outlying portions of the Empire. "It was regrettable," the report of his remarks run, "that the dominions had had no voice in Imperial affairs since the beginning of the war. He believed the infusion of new blood was always productive of good. The situation demanded more patriotism and less politics. The British Parliament was obviously over-burdened. <lt should relegate local affairs to provincial legislatures." Mr. Massey may think all this, but lie certainly would not give expression to bis thoughts in this brusque fashion. That sort of thing is permitted only to the redoubtable Mr. W. H. Hughes, the Federal Prime Minister. It will be time enough for New Zealand to offer her assistance in revising the British constitution when she has placed her own political system in order. ELECTORAL REFORM. The inclusion of proportional representation in the programme of the New South Wales Government has given the local advocates of this reform additional hope of seeing it applied to New Zealand in the near future. It is not quite clear, from the cablegram published towhether Mr. Holman proposes the system should be employed in connection with the State elections or the Federal elections, but in either case the discussion of the principal involved ought to awaken the Australians to the flagrant iniquities of their present electoral systems. The local reformers are persuading themselves that with Mr. Massey ready to give proportional representation in the Council and Sir Joseph Ward ready to give it in the House, the only logical compromise between them would be to grant it in both branches oi the Legislature. The difficulty in the way, however, is not so much the attitude of the party leaders as it is the prevailing apathy in regard _to domestic politics. If the public could be induced to take an interest in the question no doubt Mr. Massey and Sir Joseph Ward would find some means of reconciling their conflicting views. COMPULSORY SERVICE. The campaign against compulsory military service which is being carried on in the Grey district is receiving very little sympathy here even) from the workers to whom a special appeai is being made by the promoters oi the movement. Though many of the unions have formally expressed disapproval or conscription on broad principles, a majority of their members realise that the war has reached a stage at which there must be no slackening in tile efforts of the nation. Contrary to general expectation, the ballots under the Military Service Act and the sittings of the Military Service Board have materially weakened the opposition to compulsion by plainly demonstrating the fairness of the law and the impartiality of its administration. The ballots have beta conducted with the most scrupulous care in the presence of an accredited representative of Labor, and the boards have shown themselves no respecters of persons. The only fear remaining with the workers is that after the war the country will find itself saddled with a burdensome military system. PEACE PROPOSALS. Of course, the peace proposals have been the general topic of discussion in Wellington during the last two or three days, as they have been everywhere, but no one seems to imagine there is the slightest chance of their being seriously considered by the Mother Country and her Allies. Their publication has given several of the local bodies an opportunity to re-affirm their devotion, to the cause of freedom and righteousness, and the Mayor, speaking for himself and for the Mayors of the adjoining boroughs, has cabled to Mr. Massey asking him to "urge the British Prime Minister to treat the enemy's peace terms with tne contempt they deserve," and telling him that New Zealand "objects to any discussion of peace till a decisive victory, smashes Prussian militarism." The message does infinite credit to the warm and patriotic hearts of Mr. Luke and his colleague*, but at the moment it looks as if Mr. Lloyd George would require no urging along the course he has mapped out for himself. SHORTAGE OF LABOR. Reports ol sjiortagc of labor continue to come from the country districts, and it appears that the trouble is being accentuated by the operation of the ballot. The reservists selected as recruits for tUo Expeditionary Force include many hundreds of farmers, farmers' sons and farm workers, and though periods of exemption may be allowed in cases of particular hardship, most of the fit men will have to get into camp. "The pinch is being felt even more severely than the farmers generally admit," said a Wairarapa man yesterday. ''The work on many farms is being carried on with extreme difficulty, and I know of men >vho are hard at it fourteen and sixteen hours a day in the effort to keep tilings going. Their difficulties will increase as time goes on." -

A settler on the East Coast mentions in a letter that his '-last ewe lamb," in the form of his last skilled hand, has been enlisted compulsorily. "I know an appeal; will not be sustained," he writes, "but on these back-country stations it is absolutely necessary to -have men who are physically sound and lit. After forty years a man does not seem to stand the eternal horse-woiv. Every sound fit man we had is enlisted, and from June until now we have had no shepherd on the place. There is a lad here who is just of age, and who drives the bullock team, runs the engine, etc. He and 1 have had to do the whole sheep work of the station, and now he is „o go. : 'On another very large station in this district there are only three shepherds, and on another two shepherds, One large place has the manager and a cowman. Another has a shepherd (who was forbidden by the doctors to work at all) and the young son of the, owner. The only other men on ray place are a gardener, who is a Swiss, a cook who is \ Swede and a Russian Pole. These :v.e:i are all well over military age. We V-' «9Jfe W any way 'grousing,' but I

ain mentioning the facts in order to give you an idea of what is actually happening in these out-districts." COMPULSORY SERVICE. ■Figures that have been made public during the last day or two suggest thai i|iiitc a number of Reservists 'who were tailed up by the liivt ballot have failed lo respond in the way prescribed by the military authorities. In one of the large groups, which probably is typical of many others, only about two-thirds of the men have presented themselves for medical examination, and the others, it would seem, have paid no attention at all to the notices that have been sent theni. The defaulters, of course, are liable to summary treatment as deserters, every Reservist drawn in the ballot being under military authority till he is lawfully discharged, but it is understood the Minister of Defence intends to give them a further opportunity to report themselves before proceeding to that extreme. Probably bis forbearance will be attributed by some people to a disinclination to put the Military Service Act to its final test, but the recruit who deludes himself into believing lie is going to escape service by keeping out of sight is inviting a very rude awakening. THE INEVITABLE. As a matter of fact, a great number, perhaps a majority, of the men wdio have been called up by the ballot will go into camp just as cheerfully as will the volunteers who accompany them. Many of them have delayed going to the recruiting office because they could not make up their minds whether their turn had come or not, and many others because their parents or other relatives had urged them to remain at home as long as they decently could. These men now feel relieved of personal responsibility in the matter and will enter \ipon their military duties with a light heart and with a determination to succeed. Mr. Allen has insisted all along that no distinction shall be made be, tween the two classes of recruits, and though it may be difficult to rtivc the later colors any advantage at the start they will have every opportunity to win their stripes and to go on to commissioned'rank. It is with a desire to encourage the true spirit of comradeship and not with any fear of exercising compulsion that the Minister has deal; gently with the laggards. THE ANTARCTIC RESCUE. Since Sir Ernest Shaekleton's arrival in New Zealand ail sorts of sinister rumors have been in circulation concerning the famous explorer's connection with the expedition that will go down to MeMurdo Sound in the course of the next few days. The gossips have been whispering tales of quarrels between Sir Ernest and the Government over the rescue ship Aurora and of legal proceedings that are to delay the vessel's departure upon her urgent mission. The truth of the matter is that Sir Ernest, while not altogether satisfied with the arrangements made during his absence, has waived every ■personal consideration in his desire to have assistance sent to his stranded comrades at the earliest possible- moment. Both the ActingPrime Minister and the Minister of Marine bear ungrudging testimony lo his chivalrous attitude in this respect. There are, 'however, certain financial matters to be settled in which Sir Ernest claims to have, a voice, and : t is possible these may be made the subject of some formal investigation. But in any case the ship will not be delayed. | With all parlies the rescue of the men stands before everything else. THE LABOR SITUATION. The rumors of a brewing strike still persist, in spite of the apparent calm in labor circles and the assurance of labor leaders that the workers are not going to dissipate their strength on a profitless struggle with their employers. "They have learnt a better way than that,'' reiterated a union secretary today. ''The cost of living has been trying their patience very severely, and really 1 don't know how some of the members ot my own union with families are managing to eke out an existence; but the Government seems to be waking up to its duty in this matter, and are hoping Mr. McDonald and the Board of Trade will now give us some practical results." That appears to be all there is to say about the matter at present. Ministers evidently are a little nervous over the situation, but if a strike on a big scale is in contemplation its promoters are going about their preparations with quite extraordinary secrecy. -*