THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1911. BEFORE THE BATTLE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10497, 7 December 1911, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1911. BEFORE THE BATTLE.

The battle which as being wtaged in New Zealand to-day is one of the bitterest .that has. beeiii fought liin the annuals of the. Dominion. Tile wave of unrest which has been pass&ng over' the country for tlhe last few months—ever si'ivee Sir Joseph Ward ■mad© ilie fatal .mistake of acecpting a. Baronetcy— haw cultminiated- in •something approaching a political ori. «as. It seeniis. almost certain that, wiilth the people in their present temper, the Ward Administration wi'Hl 'experience great difficulty in. secur'ing a- working majority a.t to-day's polls. 'lke pro.baibiillities. are that in several! electorates—notably WangalLiii, Napier and Otaki l —the Labour eand/klates w.ill.li be returned, aiul that in' othoiis the Opposition will gain ivil accession to their ranks.. The

'pbsutiiionJ lis lii'ke'ly, therefore, to be very interesting. It secnis! tolerably certain, tliat there wii'l be second bal•lots. in between thirty and forty electorates., so that it will be impossible to forecast the result on to-day's, poll. ll' the Labour candidates 'should be returned for the seats we iia.ve indicated, and Messrs Hogg, Arnold, FowMs ;t.ud McLaren aro re-

elected, it ils not uniliikely that the •Labourites will; occupy the same position in the. New Zealand Parlia-

ment ttbat the Home Ruler* fill hi.

the Home PaffTiament. Thais- i» an aspect of the question that electors in Mostorton. would do well' to consider. Are they prepared to entrust thedr destihies to a minority of Radical Labourites? If they ane not, they ■should pause (before recording their votes for one of the candidates nam•ed. The time may be comiiiig when Labour wifll' exeneifce a greatea* influence, in the polfitios' of the Dominion than it does to-day. That time will be when- the Adnvira-s.tra.tdon: is un>seated and ,thd Liabouir forces are united. It would be a- tfl'avesty upon oui' legislative system if a handifiuil of Labour Teprvsentialtrves were in, tlie position to dominate: the legislation of: the country. Ini reoord)i\n|g their votes to-day, Mla&terton> electors' should seriously oonlte-mplate tlio pos--sir.i'Mu.ty. we have stated', and ask tlicTOiselvffis. if they arei prepained to 'hand over* their destinies to a minority.