AUSTRALIAN POLITICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 March 1917, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN POLITICS.

ELECTION RESULTS. A WIN FOR THE NATIONALISTS. Australiau-N.Z. Cable Association. ' Sydney, March 20. , ' The election has aroused keen i«H ■ tcrcst in the other Stateß. The result is accepted as an indication of the forthcoming Commonwealth struggle. The Herald gives the result ati-4 . ■ State parties and Nationalists, 49; Po« ' litical Labor 30; uncertain, 11. The Daily Telegraph announces:— Ufa,* tionalists, 47; Political Labor, 33$ In- ' dependent, I; doubtful, 1; second balbt. 8. ' The Herald, in a leader, says: "Vie-* tory for tiie Nationalists is victory for a sane Government on well-ordered progressive lines. It is evidence that, while ■ the State is thoroughly democratic in thought, it abhors extremist* on either side, and has no eoniidenca in the men who would destroy its institutions, and out of the ruins seek to erect an Am archie State."

_ The Telegraph, in a leader, sayai; ''The State has reason to congratulate itself on securing a sane, stable Govern* ment. free from a secret taskmaster in the shape of the caucus." Mr. Storey, Political Labor leader, ' says he is not exactly satisfied with the lesiilts as he thought the party would have done considerably better. ' ( Mr Meagher attributes his defeat iiirgely to the foetid, venomous, feobrh an. .issue. The Herald points out that, though' Direct Labor has increased the number.' ' of the supporters which it had after the' recent conscription split came, the result of the election puts the Political! Labor League back to where it stood! ten years ago, at the beginning of I*-'' bor's riso to power. A feature of the voting was that all the constituencies in the metropolis where the Labor Party secured second ballot victories lit 1910, turned round upon them. Of the old Liberal party, dr. Wnddelly was the only one to sutler ' defeat, but the Nationalist section of the old Labor Party suffered considerably, ' losing nine seats to tho Political Labor League. The latest figures leave the position imaltered. All the Ministers are safew ' MR, HUGHES' COMMENTS, A WHOLESOME DEFEAT OF THB ' CAUCUS, Received March. 2G, 9.45 p.m. „, _ Sydney, March 2d. Mr. Hughes (Federal Premier), commenting on the election, said the caucus party had suffered a wholesome defeat. ' ' ■I bey had been living in a fool's para-! disc since the referendum, and the light of day had pierced tho mist through ' wliHi t„, y imagined lay the promised ' am, only to find themselves a hopeless, ly discredited party." " Kahibah which was yesterday includ- ' ed in the Political Labor League wins, is still in doubt, and a sffco „d ballot will be required, though there is n nne.i votntt^coi witu . theabß^ wfu'fi ' S n baie P° Bsi WHty that Mr. .

LABOR MANIFESTO. ™. « - ~ Melbnurn e. March 88. ine Australian Lauar Party, in £ „>t jnan.f«.to says: "The party will con. / v tmue under the voluntary system to •' secure every man fit for the front, if '■ icfnrncd. It will instruct the cenw* to relax their irritating grip of the '''-' pivss money will be lent without Inter- ; i est o returned soldiers wishing to go * on (he .and or engage in business, the .' . ? tnnff will bo revised to give adequate >• protection to Australian manufaetoew;' ' ' them w,l be 1 no tax on wealth for any " purpose but war profits will be taxed ■■■■•'. on the basis of 50 per cent, for 11)10, and 100 per cent, thereafter for the duration ot the war." . ■'■'.•;..