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WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE HOLIDAYS, '\f : . A QUIET 'fIME. i " Correspondent,) • j Wellington, April 1. < So far unfavorable weather has pre- | vented anything like the usual amount of ' gaiety in the capital city during the i Easter holidays. Wind and rain kept , / the great majority of the people indoors • 011 Good Friday and the picture shows / with (heir selected programmes were the '> only places that attracted crowds. There wits an improvement on Saturday, though a clouded sky and threatening showers' kept the grounds damp, and a beginning was made with cricket, tennis and bowl- , ing under extremely unpleasant condi- ' tions. Rain fell again on Sunday, contri- , buting to the congregations at tK6 churches, as it had swollen the audifinces at' thrf picture shows on Good Friday, and this morning the outlook is any« thing but encouraging for the festal end of the celebration. The early tnunfe ingoing north 'iere crowded with passengers for the Feilding races, but with this exception both the trains and the tram- i ways have done poorly and there ought to be a good many saved half-crown* for the war loan.

HANGING BACK. Though the Minister of Finance, has not yet made any official statement on the subject there is a feeling abroad that subscriptions to the last instalment of ■' the 191 V war loan are not coming in go freely as did subscriptions to the first • instalment. If this is really the, case V it probably is due to the half-yearly - ' balance of so many financial and mercan- i tile institutions taking place on March. ' 31. At this period everyone is anxious ; ■to .Jiave his account looking well, and to ! the casual observer a substantial cssh credit appears even better than a large '■ holding of war bonds. No one doubts 1 that Sir Joseph Ward will obtain all the / money he requires, but if he should be i driven to putting the compulsory clauses ■ 1 of the Finance Act into operation the ;• reluctant capitalists who have failed to • i subscribe voluntarily wouM obtain little sympathy from the general public. Sojne '<■ of them already have received a polite intimation that they are expected to clo their duty. THE BETTER WAY. During the last day or two every ' member of Parliament has received a circular letter signed by a number of > patriotic Canterbury ladies urging an amendment in the Military Service Act . Which would provide a more rational Way for dealing with conscientious ob- •' jectors than the one in vogue at present. The ladies are careful to make it per-,' fectly clear that they are in no sense j ' anti-militarists, and that their desire is. ' not to embarrass the Government, but to facilitate its efforts towards winning '• the war. With this end in view they would do away with the so-called "conscience test," which allows a conscience ' only to members of particular sects, and substitutes a "character test" which" would get at the general trustworthiness • of .the objector and deal witli him accordingly. They deny the possibility of any tribunal being able to judge accurately a man's'conscience, but they claim it would be easy with a man's character ascertained to gauge the validity-of his objections. CIVIL CONTROL.' i

Several local members of Parliament ; confess to have been favorably impressed bv the proposals contained, in the circular, and it is understood Ministers Thjiild ! place no obstaclo in the way of their being discussed during the approaching 1 short session. Their authors would pro- ; vide no additional loopholes for the slacker or the shirker. [Rather the*,reverse. The reservist who had estftb- • ljslied the validity of fyis objections ' would not be turned loose to leave his i; duty to the Empire and to civilisation. ' ' in the present crisis undone. He would be removed from military control to : civil control, and would be employed in New Zealand upon work which would benefit the State, "at such reduced rate of pay as might commend itself, to the i judgment of the House." The idea,. ?f T course, is not a new one, but it is re- ' stated so sanely and with such obvious sincerity that Parliament could scarcely.' brush it lightly asiae. •' \ V ;

PRIVATE WEBB, M.P.

Mr. P. C. Webb's claim to be allowed to sit in the House of Representatives while serving a terip of imprisonment ' imposed by a military tribunal for a military offence is being made the subject of many a jest, but it is not at all certain it is the joking matter many people have supposed. Parliament is properly very jealous of the privileges of its members, and the Crown law officers having decided that Mr. Webb may re- ■ tain his seat, it very well may determine lie shall occupy it. The position in that case would be an extremely comical one. Presumably Mr. Webb would be con- y ducted to tbe precinct.? of the House by the prison authorities and there left to enjoy all the rights and privileges of the representative of the Grev electors till the close of each sitting, when ho would be conducted back to liis cell by J tiie same authorities. His constituency . would lose nothing in notoriety, and - probably nothing in service, by such an :■ entertaining spectacle.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19180403.2.27.14

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1918, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
866

WELLINGTON TOPICS. Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1918, Page 5

WELLINGTON TOPICS. Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1918, Page 5

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