THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, MARCH 25, 1912. WHAT DOES LABOUR THINK?

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10591, 25 March 1912, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, MARCH 25, 1912. WHAT DOES LABOUR THINK?

The question which is being asked in all parts of the Dominion, at the present time is, "What does Labour think of the appointment of the Hon. T. ■Mackenzie as Prime Minister ?" Interest attaches to this question, not so much by reason of the strength of the Latbour Party ia the House, as on >aecount of the fact that the socalled party has owed its retention of power for years past to the support accorded it by the working classes. So far as can be ascertained from newspaper interviews, the Labour leaders in the city view the seleetioif of an ardent freeholder and erstwhile Oppositionist not only with distrust, but with considerable alarm. It is .claimed that the aspirations of the Labour party are in the direction of collectivism, whilst the Hon. T. [Mackenzie is a -pronounced individualist. Those who have watched the rise and fall of'the Liberal Party will recognise in the new development a deep-laid scheme, not to capture the support of the Labourite.,' in the country, but to placate the small farmer — the man upon, the land. The Hon. T. Mackenzie and his more astute followers know that the Radicals, if they captured every town and city electorate—.which is an unreasonable hypothesis could not command more than one-ffchird of the votes in the Hou.so. It is the country vote that tells, the tale.- It is this that the Liberals hare lost .through their vacillation and pandering, and it is this that the Liberals hope, through the mediation of Mr Mackenzie, to recover. Alas, however, for the so-called Liberals, it is now too late. The Prime (Minister-elect has stated his intention of striving to bring town and country closer together. He hopes, by the development of the rural resources, to place the wheels of industry in motion and to fmd profitable employment for the denixens of the cities. This is a hope the realisation of which is devoutly to be desired. Had the Reform Party come to power, as>it should have done but for trickery.

there would have been an excellent , chance for the realisation of snob a ] Jiope. Under existing conditions, however, the talk of developing the country 011 systematic and commonsense lines is simply moonshine. Howy can the Hon. T. Mackenzie hope, with the body of collectivist Radicals at his back, to bring about a speedy and satisfactory settlement of the land? The very first move that he makes in this direction will overwhelm him in disaster. It may be that the moderate Liberals in the House have desired to precipitate a secession, of the Radical extremists, in the hope that when the real fight comes between town and country they will be en the right side of the fence. Whether thin was, or was not their motive, the fact remains that' a steip has been tak£u (which will inevitably result in the (formation'of a third party of RadicalLabourites. How soon this result will be obtained, will depend largely upon the new Prime Minister. If he proceeds at once with his scheme foi developing the rural resources, the defection. will come mere speedily than some suppose. Meanwhile the Hon. T. Mackenzie is not only in the unenviable position of leading a minority in the House, but he is face to face with the fact that his views on the major political issues of the hour are not in harmony with those of his heterogeneous following. One cannot help thinking that Sir Joseph Ward was> speaking sincerely when he said that there would be another appeal to the country within twelve months. He saw 110 lupe 0 fimproving the position with himself at the head, and so he induced his followers to .select the Hon. T. McKenzie, in the belief that ,by so doing he would rehabilitate the Continuous Ministry with the rural electorates.