POLITICAL UNREST.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 October 1917, Page 5

POLITICAL UNREST.

«. TALIS OF GENERAL ELECTION. | From Our Parliamentary Reporter. Wellington, Oct. 1. The discovery by the country and by Parliament that, the National Government is, after all, only fallible, like other luiman institutions of the kind, has led since the beginning of the session to a good deal of talk about repealing the legislation by which the life of the House of Representatives was extended las - , year, and appealing to the constituencies in .the ordinary course next December. It began by the more restless members of the Liberal and Labor parties twitting Ministers with a disinclination to face the electors, and it. is being continned by Ministers challenging these gentlemen to present a "round robin" to Mr. Massey, asking for a dissolution. The Piir.ie .Minister has jr.-oaiisod that in the event of such a request heing signed by a majority of the members, however small, he will advise the Covernot to let the majority have its way.

THE GOVERNMENT AND ITS CRITICS.

Mr. Witty, the member for Riccarton, went the length of submitting a Bill designed to repeal the legislation of last session, but it was blocked by the Speaker's ruling that such a measure, involving, as it did. the expenditure of public money, could not be introduced by a private member. It was then Mr. Man.sey gave his promise to do his best to bring about a general election forthwith, if that were shown to be the wish of a majority of the House. No requisition bearing the stipulated number or signatures is likely to be presented, but it must not be assumed from this that a majority of members of the House are entirely satisfied with the legislation and administration of the Government. That is very far from being the case. There is scarcely a single private member without a grievance of one sort or another. Never before has a Governent possessed so many candid friends, and never before has a Government been subject to so much scathing criticism. DIVINE DISCONTENT. All this is natural enough, and not altogether to be deplored. The Cabinet is necessarily a combination of compromises. The exclusion of controversial party questions from its programme has given mortal offence to a number oi progressive members, and to some extent has embarrassed Ministers themselves. Both the party loaders have accepted the position in an admirable spirit, making personal and political sacrifices they cannot proclaim to the world, and their colleagues have fallen into line, as in duty bound. But it is well the private members are free to keep alive the fire of divine discontent, and to remind the country that the party truce is an expedient rendered necessary by the war, and not a. permanent condition threatening all legislative virility. The old problems are held in suspense, and many new ones are postponed, but none of tiieni are being forgotten. THE NEXT ELECTION. Probably tlie members of the Cabinet, or, at any rate, Mr. Massey and his Re-'' .form colleagues, if they thought only of their Ministerial existence, would welcome a general election as the very best thing tiiat could happen for them at the present time. Ministers would have to go to the polls standing together as the"ehampions of the National Government, and without any organisation among their critics, and without any alternative Government in sight, they would be bound to come back stronger than ■ ever, and with a materially extended lease of life. No one looking \\i the faets fairly and squarely could expect anything but a confirmation of the National Government in office. But with the war out of the way the result might be very different. Then the electors would 'bo free to call Ministers to account over a score of domestic matters they have neglected or sadly bungled, and. if the history of the Mother Country counts for anything, would insist upon a very radical change.