The National Cabinet.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15312, 28 July 1915, Page 6

The National Cabinet.

That a National Cabinet should be formed is so much the desire of a majority of tho peoplo that there is sure to bo somo indignation to-day when it is realised that a settlement has not yet been reached. Tho Prime..Minister has behaved with admirable patience and forbearance, and is clearly sacrificing a good deal.in bis'desire to do all that is possible to give effect to the wish of tho public. Ho is not hampered in any way by his party, who have given him a free hand, and the assurance of their loyal support of auy arrangement he may bring about. The difficulty is with the Opposition caucus. Sir Joseph Ward is possibly as anxious as anyone to assist in the formation of a National Cabinet, but he has placed himself in the hands of his party, and he and'.-r Massey aud the country have therefore ; to wait upon the decision of that body. Some of the Opposition members are bent on making trouble. They have secured the aid of a taction of the Opposition Press, and they are doing their utmost, for their own ■ purposes, to thwart the Prime Minister's efforts, and perhaps their own leader's efforts to give the country • ■

the National Cabinet that is desired. If the negotiations corce to nothing, the responsibility will rest primarily upon the irreconcilable half of tho Opposition. The public will know very well who these diehards are, and they will not forget to pay them what is due to them for putting their party plans above tho national interest. In tho meant im-) we may notice the attempt that is being made to impede tho negotiations by urging that a National Cabinet, containing representatives of both sides, would bo unable to deal justly and honestly with the question of war taxation. Perhans it is unnecessary to say tliat that kind of talk is quite insincere. If the question of war taxation wero not available to the eager partisans in the Opposition group as a pretext, they would find another. But where is the difficulty ? In Great Britain the question of taxation must come up every year, and th 6 next taxation proposals must come from the present National Government. That Government comprises men who have been entirely at variance jn their fiscal viows. It contains men who arc opposed to Freetrado and to land taxes, who support Freetrado and oppose land taxes, and men who are in-favour of both land taxes and Freetrado. Yet the majority of people in Great Britain are confident that just and wise fiscal enactments will proceed from that Government. There are some people in England, as we noted yesterday, who may seek to mako party capital out of the situation and the fiscal expedients adopted, but they aro in a small minority. Are we to euppose that self-seeking partisans of that kind are very numerous in New Zealand? Aro we to allow them to dominate the situation? Thero is no doubt that a very substantial section of tho Opposition in our Parliament, stimulated by a few active wire-pullers outside, aro anxious that the present Government may be left to bear nny odium that tlio new taxation may incur. We are afraid that they intend to see to it, if they can, that prejudice Khali be created against the Government whatever the taxation proposals may be. In Great Britain, the Opposition scorned to turn the consequences of tho war to party account in that way. The mis-chief-makers in this country may rely upon it that if they succeed in preventing the formation of a National Cabinet they will not bo able to prevent the public from understanding their action and passing judgment upon them. Progress of the War. According to the "Daily Mail's" correspondent, there is a feeling in Petrograd that the Russians, in giving battle as they are doing round Warsaw, are taking a risk which they would not take if they did not wish to assist tho Allies in the West. At this distance, of course, comment on such a situation should bo made with all due caution. Even Petrograd knows little, but hero one has only tho cable messages to go by. It would seem, however, as if the situation has not yet reached tho point at which tho Russians in tho end of the Warsaw , salient would be in danger of being cut off. If th© Germans force the passage of the Bug t 0 tho northoast, Warsaw's position will be precarious, but even then there would probably bo time to withdraw the army. There does not appear to be anything to indicate what the Grand Duke intends to do. - The stubborn resistance he is offering to th© enemy is consistent both with confidence in his ability to hold on to Warsaw and with a resolve to abandon it. In tho meantime the Germans claim to be pushing the Russians towards the Bug, and to have crossed the Narew at another point, above Ostroleka. The Russians report having repulsed attacks at several points from the Baltic to the Lublin-Cholm line. In the Western theatre the operations reported consist of bombardments, mining, and grenadethrowing. No infantry attacks are mentioned. The Italians officially report progress on the Isonzo, and the Austrian version of tho. operations i.s less assuring than usual, so that thero seems to he little doubt that the Italians are getting tho best of it. Gorizia is again reported to have fallen, but when the Italians do take that place, wo shall know about it immediately. Tho recent announcement of severe and successful fighting in the Euphrates region has been followed by news of a victory on Saturday, which resulted in the occupation of Nasrieh, 70 miles up the river from Kurnah. Theso sharp defeats on the Tigris and Euphrates should not bo without effect in Constantinople. The Germans may say what they like to tho/Turks about Britain's lack of power, but the occupation of an area of Turkish territory 150 miles long is a fact that cannot be explained away.