WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 April 1918, Page 7

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

MORE MEH. THE PRIME MINISTER'S ATTITUDE. (Special Correspondent). Wellington, April S. Speaking at the unveiling of an Honor.- Hoard in one of the city suburbs on Friday evening, the Prime Minister gave the first definite public indication of the Government's attitude towards Mr. Lloyd George's appeal for more men. Sir James Allen's allusions to the subject implying as (hey did that the Dominion had done its full share in the great struggle and could not be expected to increase its effort, had created an unpleasant feeling in the community and the local newspapers had taken the Minister of Defence severely to task for what they conceived to be his lack of sympathy and enthusiasm. But Mr. Massey, ?ommg straight from a prolonged Cabinet meeting and having, it may be assumed, the full approval of his colleagues speedily dissipated any doubts that may fiave heen, entertained as to the Government's determination to place all the resources of,the Dominion at the I disposal of the Empire in the hour of | its peril.

THE LAST MAN AND THE iLAST SHILLING. The Prime Minister, of course, was speaking to a larger audience than the one that had assembled to witness the immediate ceremony in which he was engaged.. "The Imperial Government, in the hour of common peril," he said, "has asked New Zealand and the other States of the Empire to give all their assistance. We 'have done it already and we are going to do it again." .fhis was the key-note of an inspiring appeal in which the Dominion's pledge of "the last man and the last shilling,", sanctified: by the sacrifice and blood of its sons, was received and confirmed. Just what shape New Zealand's further effort will take Mr. Massey was unable to say. Certain proposals have been made to the Imperial authorities and if they are approved they will be put into effect at the earliest possible moment. They prohablv vill entail calling up reinforcements ..ither earlier than was anticipated and perhaps a shortening of the period of training here. The latter is a. step which had been under consideration before the need for haste arose.

THE SHORT SESSION. While the call for men may Necessitate during the short session the introduction of certain measures which otherwise would not have been required, it is pretty sure to exercise a restraining influence upon those disgruntled members who have been credited with an intention to seize the opportunity to air their grievances against the administration of the Government in general and against the administration of the Defence ©epartment in particular. There would be little public sympathy with a member who attempted to hold up the business of Parliament with personalities and trivialities when, the very existence of the Empire is hanging in the balance, and public sympathy would be as necessary to the success of a parliamentary strike as it is to an industrial strike. Mr. Massey declares that all the ■House has to do ought to be done in a week and that any prolongation of the session beyond that period will be quite inexcusable. Sir Joseph Ward, as Minister of Finance, will have the bulk of the work to do and his methods encourage neither futile delay nor factious obstruction.

MILITARY EXPENDITURE It will riot be very surprising, however, nor very reprehensible, if mention is made (luring the session of some of the recent disclosures in regard to the expenditure of the Defence DepartmentOf course the proper time for the discussion of this subject will be when the report of the War Expenditure Commission is presented to the House, and that is not likely to be during the short session, but some of the waste and extravagance is so'flagrant and so notorious that even the least aggressive member with no personal grievance to air may find it. difficult to withhold the criticism which would be his bounden duty in different circumstances. When the Commission's report does come down there will be much to say on. this subject and nt the regular session towards the end of the year it will have to be said, but at the present moment thero are 'nanv reasons why the debate should be postponed.