WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 September 1919, Page 3

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE GOVERNMENT'S POSITION^, OPPOSITION ASSISTANCE, (From Our Special Correspondent.) Wellington, Sept. 8. Lobby gossip during the week-end has dealt largely with the troubles and embarrassments of the Government. Discussion has revolved not so much around the prospect of tho reconstructed Cabinet surviving through the session as around the probability of it being able to paas the legislation to which it stands committed. The Opposition evidently is going to "play the game," and Hub morning even the "Dominion" congratulates tho Liberal leader and his followers upon the attitude they maintained through the Address-in-Reply debate. But the division on Mr. McComb's amendment to the Soldiers' Settlement Loan Bill, proposing to make the debentures issued under the measure subject to income tax, is admitted to have been disconcerting. The Government had a majority of only four against the amendment, the voting being 21 to 17, and for this narrow victory it was indebted to the six Liberal members who followed the new Minister j of Finance into the "noes" lobby. j

PROTESTING REFORMERS. The division was taken at the end of an all-night sitting, and, of course, without the existence of the Government being at stake. It cannot, therefore, be suggested that the occupants of the Treasury Benches are in a perilous position. Nor need the fact that good Reformers like Dr. Newman, Mr. G. J Anderson, Mr. J. M. Dickson, Mr. Smith, Mr. C. E. Statham, and Mr. R. A. Wright sat up till five o'clock in the morning waiting for the opportunity to vote against the Government be taken as any indication of an approaching disruption in the ranks of the party. These gentlemen have spoken consistently against the holders of war debentures being exempted from income tax, and they could not be expected to allow the exemption of settlement debentures to escape their notice. 'But their votes on this occasion will help to explain why Mr. Massey, who has encountered the : ncvitable erittei <i in the selection of his new colleagues, could not offer seats in the Cabinet to two or three of his supporters whose names were much on the lips of the prophets.

THE NO-CONTOENCE MOTION. A much better indication of the prospects of the Government seeing the session through was afforded on Saturday morning by the fate of Mr. McComb's noconfidence motion. Sir Joseph Ward had indicated to Mr. Maaaey that neither he nor his supporters intended to speak in the Address in-Reply deoate, their desire being to facilitate the necessary business of the session in every way they could and to get to the constituencies at the earliest possible moment, and apparently the purpose of the member for liyttelton was rather to place the Liberals in a false position than to embarrass / the Government. If this really wetp. so, his scheme failed rather ingloriously. Only the five official Labor members voted for the amendment, and the Reformers kept on watch in the House till the small hours, being assisted by three Liberal ex-Ministers, Mr. MacDonald, Mr. Myers, and Mr. Wilford, in rejecting it ignominionsly. Sir Joseph Ward was kept away by a severe cold, from which he has been suffering during the last few days.

THE SESSION AND THE ELECTIONS Whether or nottrial of strength will take place between the Reformers and the Liberals during the session depends entirely upon the demands the Prime Minister makes upon the House. Though both are unusually active ' and alert, neither Mr. Massey tior Sir Joseph Ward at the moment appear to be inviting anything of the kind, and the probabilities are the parties will go to the constituencies without any serious preliminary fighting. There arc two or three points, however, on which the leaders stand widely apart, and if either of them should assume an aggressive attitude the other would not decline the gage of battle. Both parties are now resuming their activities in the constituencies, and a renewed coalition, which still is the dream of some idealists, is now quite out of the question. Late in November or early in December the country will have to pronounce ita verdict upon their conflicting claims to the confidence of the electors.