WHY ENDEAN SHOULD WIN

THe Parnell By-election Will Be A United Scrap

LABOR HAS SLENDER CHANGE NOW (From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Auckland Representative.)

ItltllllllllllllltlllllllllJllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllMtlllllilllllllllltlMtlllllltllllltltlMttt lllllJltllltllllllllllllllllllllMlllllllllllUtlllllllllllillltllMllUlllllllllllllflllllllllllllllllllllll<^ £>oon Parnell will be represented by a Reform member — judgf I ing by the signs and portents discovered by a "Truth" investi- 1 gator. In three-cornered political contests, the unexpected often | happens, and the results of by-elections are notoriously difficult | to prophesy, but, weighing- all the factors, personal and politi- | cal, m the balanbe, it will be surprising if Mr. Endean does not 1 become Mr. Jenkins's successor m Parliament. I MiiimiiiimiiMlilimiimiiMiiiimimiiimiiiimiiiiiiiiimn 1 i imiiiiiiiiiiiit iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniim v' ■ „n.»i , „„ , , „^

WHILE no by-election is a foregone, conclusion, that which is being .fought out now for the Parnell seat is probably easier to forecast than mo.st, V/With a clear-cut issue between three parties, each of a definite political color, the fight is an, open' one. Parnell comprises more than the usual number of what have b.een termed the middle class, comprising people oX independent or semi-independent means who, though not "highbrow," are capable of sound judgment. , Against Mr. W. A. Donald is the. fact that he has not been long back m New. Zealand, and is practically a stranger. He is therefore, personally, more or less of' an unknown quantity, and he will be under . the suspicion of being rather ignorant of the field m which he is tilting for the first time, though withal a likeable and worthy contestant. ,'■.■■" If Mr. Donald's local or. political experience were, wider m range .his pros-, pects of election 'would be I ' much 'en-' iiifiiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiJiiiiiimiiiiHim

hanced. There are electors enough who would be only too delighted to see a man who could rightly, be classed as educated representing them m the House. If Mr. Donald combined strong personality with courage and culture he would be an acquisition. It is the mediocrity . of Parliament which irritates electors, and gives this country the political ap-, : pearanceiof stumbling along on crutches. But the Donald family, stock is not at present at the par mark, and possibly the chances of the United candidate might be better were he not overshadowed by the ministerial relationship, coupled with the fact that the Uniteds came m with a whoop and degenerated with a wallop. If ever a country needed Parliamen-

tary stimulation it was New Zealand a little over a. year ago, and the la-' meritable procrastination, opportunism, and general spinelessness since demonstrated by the Uniteds has left a nasty taste. Labor might have stood a good fighting chance of success if J. A. Lee .had been chosen as the candidate, but the prospects of Mr. T. Bloodworth are not rosy. « Mr. Bloodworth may have many virtues to recommend him, but he is better understood by the general public than his own estimate of himself leads him to believe. ; Mr. Bloodworth's chief testimonial

for his capacity to become an M.P. is his dogged determination to be "m the swim"- — given the opportunity—whether it concerns local politics, prohibition, Power Board or Harbor Board, he "gives it ■- a pop." It will be realised that like. Caesar, Mr. Bloodworth is ambitious. Electors require , other attainments. Mr. Bloodworth does not appear to have unsheathed his' scholastic sword of eloquence m a formidable manner among those who share with him the responsibilities m matters of local government. Such returned soldiers' votes as he gets will be few, and it is inconceivable that the conservative" 'mind, of

which Parneil is largely composed, will take liim at his word value. - Utopian platitudes are not policy, as Mr. Bloodworth will discover. Behind Mr. W. P. Endean are mar-' shalled strong and silent forces, which coupled with some very good personal qualities, will stand, such a tyro m politics m good stead. That he came came forward at all was at first a surprise to Auckland, which, however, soon recovered itself to ask: "Well, why not?" .' Never a man to seek the limelight, Mr. Endean was nevertheless known as a good fellow to many people. He is a "spbrt;" he has never played with prohibition; he is not a wowser; he has a certain strength of character, and while not brilliant cannot be classed as a sluggard. . ' , ■.. ' Men of the calibre of the Reform candidate are badly needed m the House, for it is safe to say that he will not pander to the "longheads" or throw his weight m with the kill-joys, .and the ultra puritanical law-makers. • • The fact that he is not dependent upon the salary pertaining to political rank places Mr. Endean above the. rank of the snooping opportunist, and this should count for much when it Is considered how numerous word-juggling mediocrities rush Into the discredited game of politics as a means to a salaried self-importance. "•-,-. Ruling Labor out and having regard to the United candidate's chances as a man of independant means and edu"cation, but a stranger under the badly torn flag of a party which. has let Its electors down, -it seems likely that Mr. Endean will drop into the seat vacated by Mr. Jenkins. The Parnell electorate is an extensive one and embraces voters of two very divergent minds, so that the polling for the United and Reform candidates is expected to be close, but the swing of the pendulum should faVor the Reform man. If it does, it may be regarded as the writing on the wall for the Government, which wilj, m consequence, strain every nerve to hang on to office.