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Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14227, 15 December 1911, Page 6

Whflo we are keenly disappointed ! with the result of the Christchureh.;! North election, we are more than ever t proud of tho candidate whom we supported, and whom wo hope yet to see taking a leading part in the public life: I of New Zealand, where his high char- , ■ acter, his earnestness, and his un- j doubted ability, would be of very great i value to the country. So far as Mr < Hall is concerned we do not believe that ' any political contest was over fought . in a more straightforward, manly! and sportsmanlike way. We cannot cay the same thing for hie opponent and the newspaper which placed its columns at Mr Isitt's disposal. Mr Hall's platform utterances showed that with a littlo moro. experience he would develop into a fine public speaker, and he evinced a grasp of public affairs and of poLtical problems which is exceedingly rare in.a candidate making his first entry into public life.' He was fortunate in possessing a band of loyal and devoted workers whoso admiration for him will be increased by the manner in which he took his defeat. In the light of what happened last week and yesterday some recent remarks by, Sir Joseph Ward aTe distinctly amusing. Ho asserted at Palmerston 'North that Mr McNab was to be that electorate's representative in Parliament. The Palmerston people; however, had a say in that matter, and they said it with such emphas:'* that Mr McNab is still able to devoto his time to the Mokau Estate. ; Mr j McNab on the same occasion donned the prophet's cloak, but it proved a misfit. He referred to himself as a ■ member of the Liberal Party, "which was to be dominant again after the election." "Where," so to speak, "i» dot barty now?" "We (Mr McNab and himself) ehaU be wishing each other every success | after December Bth," said Sir Joseph : "as two of the members ,of the Great Liberal Party in Parliament." But when December Bth arrived, one of the two was not in Parliament. Hβ : can, however, still wish tho Prime Minister success. No one, certainly, ; is in greater need of success than Sir Joseph Ward is at present. From "present indications" on " November 29th the Prime Minister drew the comforting reflection that "on the morning of December Bth the people would realise tho triumph of progressive Liberalism," otherwise, of J course, tbo Ward Government. Hope once more told a flattering tale. As ! some laureate of the music-halls has sung. "Oh, what a difference in the morning 1" . About a fortnight- ago tho Prime Minister ridiculed the report that I twenty-four Government seats were in . dancer. Tho returns of the first and j second ballots show, however, that who- l ever was responsible for tho report was not so \ery far wrong. The Government have lost no fewer than nineteen seats, as against j four that have been lost by' the Opposition. Included among the missing from the ranks of tho Government are one Minister (Sir John Findlay) and three ex-Ministers (Messrs Fowlds, T. Duncan and A. W. Hogg), and euch faithful followers as Messrs Slallworthy, Greenslade, Poole, Jennings, and Arnold. Messrs Dillon (Hawke's Bay) and Graham (Nelson) to-

tired from political life just in timo i ! to avoid defeat, and tho same may to ; j said of Sir AY. J. Steward, all three ! n-embers being replaced by Opposition-j J ists. Excluding tho . Eastern Maori j scat, held by .Mr Nn^ta, the Government i has now only ten seats out of fortytwo in the North Island; in the South j Island it is better represented, holding ! twenty-one seats out of a total of thirtyj four. But; that is a reproach which the electors mar be expected to remove as soon as they get the opportunity. It is noteworthy that probably for ; I tilt? first time in the history of tho ■ New Zealand Parliament the; now , 1 House will contain a father and son. I !Mr It. F. Bollard, the member for j the new constituency of Raglan, is the • ton cf Mr John Bollard, the burly ; member for Eden, whose physical re- j semblance to the late-Mr Sc-ddon gavel ! rise on several occasions during the i I the latter to amusing mis-' understand ngs and mistakes. Here- j dity is also seen in there-appearance j lin the list of members of the name of I Bell. Mr W. H. l>. Bell, the "coif , of the Reform Party in Wellington, is ; the son of Mr H. l>. Bell, K.C., for- ' merly one of the members for Wellington City, and a lawyer of the highest standing, and grandson of the late Sir I , *. JD.llon Bcli, who was a member of three of the early Ministries, and sub eiqnently Agent-Genera] for v number ; of years. These young mem bora are not the first cases of sons following in I their father's political footsteps. The ! first instance of that nature was sup- | plied by Mr T. E. Y. Seddon. But ,Mr Bull is the first to take hie place in Parliament as the successor of his lather aaid grandfather. With the oxct-ption of the West Const, whose four members are all supporters of the Wuird Government, no part of tho Dominion is so poorly represented !in the party returned to support Mr I Massey as is Canterbury. Aβ at the last election, the province has returned only three nienibea-s opposed to tho defeated Administration. There were tn:\ . Government members from Canterbury in tho last Parliament.; thero will bu ten Canterbury Opposition members in tho next one when matters aro straightened out. It cannot be said that this is due to want of effort on the part of the local Reform party. Circumstances prevented them putting forward for several seats strong candidates, whose services I will probably be available when tho next appeal is mado to the electors But in the electorates where the party did put up candidates, they made a good fight. The contest for the Christchurch North seat ■ attracted attention from one end of the Dominion to the other, and Mr Hall must be congratulated on making a most gallant effort to win the seat for tho causo of Reform. Mr Mooro fought well in Kaiapoi, but j could not overtake the score put] up Iby his two' opponents at the first I ballot. If Mr ' Blackwell's supporters encouraged Ms candidature" in order to make Mr Buddo'b election > safe, their wily project succeeded. 'Riccartori, for reasons' which are incomprehensible to outeiders, again returned Mr Witty over an opponent whoso first political fight can have left him with no regrets, except, of course, that it was unsuccessful. Our regret at Mr Hardy's defeat 'in Selwyn is now deepened by the fact that it took place just when tho party for whom ho had worked so hard, and to which he had given valuable service, is coming into office. On tho other ' hand, if we have lost Selwyn wo have I gained Waitaki, and Mr Frank Smith's • public utterances suggest that he will jbo a very-useful recruit for the- Re-J form Party. Mr Nosworthy. as ' was ( ; expected, held Ashburton against all- i ; comers, and in the enti won oven more easily than many anticipated. In Messrs Rhodes, Nosworthy • and Smith tho Reform Party has three excellent members, but there • are not | enough of them. It is time that Canterbury woke up, and fell into line with tho rest -of the Do- | ; minion; tho election returns show that , it is lagging painfully in the pathway of reform, and for the credit of . tho province wo should like to see it j tako tho prominent place in tho movement to which importance entitles it... •..'■• "■-■-. •'■ ,