WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 November 1917, Page 7

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE VACANT MINISTERIAL SEAT.

(From Our Own Correspondent). Wellington, Nov. 3. ; _ There is some ground for believing ithat the seat in the Ministry rendered jvacant early this year by the death of the late Hon. Dr. McNab will be filler! in : the near, future. The Government tool! tywer during the session to pay two .additional ministerial salaries, making twelve iff all, and Liberal members have 'shown all desire that their party should have again its full half of the representation in the National Government. The name of Mr. T. M. Wilford, member for Hutt, i s being mentioned again in connection with the vacant portfolio. ; THE SHIPPING OUTLOOK. ■ The shipping outlook at the present time is far from encouraging. Ministers nave little to say on this subject at the present time. Their information does not extend beyond the end of next month, and they naturally have no wish td meet trouble half way. But shipping men generally are disposed to be a little pessimistic about the prospects. The American demand for shipping is growing rapidly and must continue to grow in the future, as American troops, munitions and supplies are moved to France. Britain is economising on tonnage as far as possible, and, as the Shipping Controller pointed out early this year, it is not economical to send ships to i Ne\v Zealand if they can secure cargoes of equivalent value nearer home. The ' Australians have been told already that they may have to hold part of their woo! until after the war. The British authorities want beef, and, in a smaller degree, mutton and cheese, but the official view seems to be that lamb and butter are luxuries. Mr. Massey and his colleagues will not allow New Zealand to be forgotten, but they believe that 1918 may be a worse year than 1917 for shipping aB faT as New Zealand is concerned. MILITARY SERVICa The issue of to-day's Gazette containing the names of 1500 First Division men and 5000 Second Division men called for setvice with the Expeditionary Forces makes the total number of men brought under the compulsory clauses of the Mlitary Service Act 82,474. The first ballot was taken in November 1916, just a year ago. Considering the number of men handled the system has worked with remarkable smoothness. A few hundred men have made difficulties, but the great mass of the reservists have accepted the •lecis'.on of the ballot willingly and goodhumoredly. The officers who have had the handling of the system from the first are well pleased with the results of their efforts, and they admit that they anticipated greater trouble than they have actually encountered.

THE HIGH-PLACFD RAILWAY OFFICIALS. Among the few people who have set themselves to place difficulties in the way of the Recruiting Department are certain high-placed railway officers. Tlie details of the long-drawn quarrel between the Railway Department and the Defence Department are. not public property, but the known fact." are serious enough. The Railway Department resisted as long as it could _the demand that it should part with some of its ballotted First Division men. Then it consented to let a, tew hundred go, after over 1500 had been drawn, but insisted first on a severe curtailment of railway services. The services were curtailed, but the Defence Department has not yet got all the railwaymen who were to be released. The Railway Department says that the Defence Department is to blame for not taking them. But the Defence Department has found obstacles in its way all the time and the Eailway Department is certainly not making any active effort to help. Its attitude is rather that of passive resistance. The recruiting authorities are not slow to take men who are within their reach, as the business people of New Zealand «re well aware.

SOCIAL HYGIENE. The Minister for Internal Affiairs is making arrangements to put his Social Hygiene Bill into operation. The Bill suffered much pruning during its passage through Parliament and it is 'but a shadow of the measure originally introduc«d by the Minister. But Mr. Bussell states that it is useful still and that he expects to be able to deal in a practical way with some of the worst features of the "red plague" in this country.

THE NEXT BALLOT. The next ballot under the Military Service Act will be taken three weeks hence, and it is likely that the number of, men to be drawn from Class A of the Second Division will be the same as in the last ballot, that is, s*oo. Four weeks later the men remaining in Class. A will be called up en 'bloc for medical examination, since they will not number much more than the required 5000. The married men will be supplemented each month by youths who have just reached military age, by nineteen-year'-old volunteers and by stragglers from the First Division, including men whose appeals at present stand adjourned sine die by the Military Service Boards.

THE FIT MEN-. The proportion of fit men to be secured from Class A and the other classes of the Second Division remains to lie revealed by the medical examinations. The indications are that the proportion will be high. It is noticeable that the number of« "starred" men in tho first draft of Class A men is small. This means that the Class 'has not been enlisting freely under the voluntary system and so has not been drained of any large number of its fit men in advance of the ballot. The proportion of exemptions to be allowed among the married men is another question. Probably it will be higher than among the single men, owing to the larger business responsibilities of the married men as a group. MEDICAL EXAMINATION. The recruiting authorities are arranging that the medical examination of Second Division recruits shall be conducted with a. minimum of delay in all cases. Volunteers will have preference before the Medical Boards, but the ballotted men will be called up in comparatively small bodies in order that they may be handled promptly. Officer commanding districts have been instructed to give the widest publicity to the itineraries of Medical Boards,'in order that recruits away from the centres may know when to present themselves for attestation and medical examination. It hirmcus offer thai recruits. "-Vn appearing brfore the mllitarv Nfi' 1 .■•-> ;I I Boar,ds for examination, wish.to bring 'forward some ini'i>ru;ation siveu them

by their own doctors or some medical evidence regarding their physical condition, liccuits must bring medical certificates with them if they wish to .bo heard in matters of this kind. Verbal statements are not sufficient and the men will not be entitled to re-examina-tion on .the mere plea that they failed to place their evidence before the Board at the first examination.

TWELVE WEEKS' NOTICE. It has been arranged, as already announced, that iSocond Division reservists are to have twelve weeks' leave without pay after medical examination before they are taken into camp. This privilege does not extend to First Division men who may be called up with the married men. The First Division men in the twelfth ballot and subsequent 'ballots will be treated in every way similarly to tne First Division men in previous ballots. They will go to camp, unless they appeal, with the first draft leaving their group after fourteen days from the date of their medical examination. The dental officers attached to tho District Medical Boards are to cease duty at the end of this month. The dental examination and treatment of all recruits, voluntary or .ballotted, is to be undertaken in the camps.