POLITICAL NOTES.

Waikato Argus, Volume V, Issue 313, 12 July 1898, Page 2

POLITICAL NOTES.

(by telegraph- special cokuespondent) THE CAUCUS QUESTION, Wellington', Last Night. It will be remembered that the Premier, at the first Government caucus this session, promised to meet his supporters in caucus every Monday morning in order to report progiess on the course of events. The idea was ridiculed at the time, even by the Ministerial press, and it has evidently been abandoned, as no meeting took piace this morning. The Opposition, however, held au informal meeting, at which the political situation was fully discussed, and the various Bills now before the House were considered in detail. PARLIAMENTARY BUILDINGS. The Joint Library Committee met today and heard the evidence of Mr Turnbull, the architect entrusted with the additions to the Parliamentary buildings. Mr Turnbull yave it as his opinion that to complete the additions will cost £-28,000, or, at the utmost, £30,000. SEDDONIAN ADMINISTRATION. The opponents of the Government are constantly twitted with not being able to prove the charges ot corruption and maladministration they have so frequently made against the Seddon Ministry. It may be pointed out, however, that it is simply impossible to prove many of these charges so long as the Premier refuses to give the House any information except what it pleases him to furnish. There has probably never been a Government before in the colony which has so persistently and consistently refused to furnish returns to the House as the present Ministry has done, in fact they have become q.iite notorious in this respect. It is a matter of common talk here that when a change of Government docs take place and when ihe pigeon-hole 3 are turned out there will he such an exposure of the methods of Seddouism that it will startle the colony. UNAUTHORISED EXPENDITURE. A correspondent writing to the Post to-night says : —" There is a growing belief among thinking people that the politician is fast becoming persistently and blatantly insincere. This is painfully evident from the excuse put forward for the illegal expenditure on the Parliamentary buildings by Messrs Morrison (Caversham) and J. G. Ward, viz., that it would have been legal to take the money from the £IOO,OOO of unauthorised expenditure voted last session. The hollown°ss of such a contention is patent. £7OOO was authorised for a special purpose. The term " unauthorised " speaks -for itself, and the vote under that head can only properly be spent on matters not foreseen when the estimates are passed. To argue that the expenditure is legal is to admit that the Ministry was ignorant of its duties and reijuiremcnts in framing the Supplementary Estimates for a period of six months—an idea ouly fit to " tell to the marines."