The Clutha Leader. BALCLUTHA: FRIDAY, DEC. 3. LORDS VERSUS COMMONS.

Clutha Leader, Volume XXXVI, Issue 50, 3 December 1909, Page 4

The Clutha Leader. BALCLUTHA: FRIDAY, DEC. 3. LORDS VERSUS COMMONS.

The battle of tli.• [induct has hr'-n fouyht iii tlic Lords and lost by :{.)t) votes to 75. and there will be ,111 appeal to 1 lie country. The l.ordj I sheltered themselves behind an auiehil- " 1 meat, moved by the Lender of tin; 1 Opposition (the .Mar<piis of l.ansdownc) : "That this 111 m->' Is not justified in Lrivinu its ronwni in the ) Hid until it has been submitted to r the- judgment of the country." Tin: - ri trht of the Lords to reject a Fiimnew j Hill has been keenly debated durin<, r recent months. That such a re;ection is not illegal is conceded by the Liberals, but. it is the peculiarity ui an unwritten constitution like that 1 of the Hritish that procedure which is J not illegal is unconstitutional. It 0 has been regarded as a settled constitutional principle that only the Commons shall decide on matters dealing witii taxation. It is a practice scantified• by precedent to allow r resolutions of the Common- mi I'iiif a nee to liuve the force of law, awl such has been the unbroken runr lidence in the powers of the ('ominous that taxes levied in thi- manner have never been questioned. And in accordance with this, the extru spirit and tobacco taxes imposed by the Budget have actually been collected since Aprii. To decree otherwws would be to undermine the Commons and leave the elected representatives of the people without this mean's oi B making provision for the carrying on of the public services of the country. It the Lords can stop a Finance Bill, it means that they can make and unmake Parliaments and (iou i niiiciitu whenever they wish. The Lords secure unfortunately in their own seats, have forced the Government to itP" peal to the country, and the ipicstiini is now not the Budget alone, but whether the Peers or the People arc !\ ride, Conservatism is still strong in tin; j ranks of. the workers at Hume, ami " the inlluenecs of the purse ami tlw liquor rinys are still too powerful. Let us hope that an oppressed people will rise to the occasion, circumscribe tho powers of class and privilege, and cast a fair measure of tnv nlion on the shoulders of the l wealthy. The forthcoming contest! will be fouolit with u bitterness tinparcelled in the history of liritnii), I and the issues will be tar-rcacliiii!!> involving indeed ultimately the existence of the House of Lords us at present constituted.

Hospital eollcciion to-Juy hj;. th l ' ladies. The JJalrluUut District U'il'li will break up on Thursday, 2:inl ii |Sl " this iimotion taking place in tin; OuMfellows' Hull. The annua! social of lie I'iK'rtiu Church was held on Tuesday even"'!! when there was a jroocl iti ami a pleasant and successful ing. "I'ho Balehitha post odloe reports tho rainfall for the month of \n\oinbtf as follows :~ Total, 1.98 inches ; « lin fell on eight days, highest oa ISth—.BB. The Clutha Presbytery at its nest meeting on Wednesday first *vill t* ceivo. the formal resignation »t ta« Rev. J. F. 0. Ore. . M.A., ».»., « Waropa, ami thereafter will entertain Mr un<3 Mrs Orr at luncheon in "" Coftft P&iaw,

Mr H. M. Driver has been' re-elected chairman of the Bruce County Coun-

The gale takings nt the Milton Show on Tuesday amounted to £SO ,9/ <, last year they were iW 13/6. [Jhe total entries including competitions (2ti) were 3i>7; last year Jo'L JL Messrs Bell Bros., cycle engineers, 3>ave removed to more commodious Stotemises, and have leased the building on the corner of Clyde and Wilffiam sheets, lately occupied by Messrs iStrqnach, Morris & Co. f Mr Chas. Darling, hon. sec. of the >yi&vy League, has forwarded to Mr r-McElrea 25 copper medals for distribution amongst the members of th» jjocal school branch of- the league. v A very attractive programme has

fhcen prepared for the A. and P. Society's concert in the Oddfellows' F Hall this evening. The "Will o' the LWisp" entertainers, costume concert .party, should be sufficient to draw a house.

Weather Forecasts.—Mr Paulin fore cast E.N.E. to S.E. winds and thunder showers.—Rev,. D. C. Bates :

Winds freshening, probably northerly, strong to a gale ; expect warm and humid conditions ; rain probable : glass fall; sea moderate, tides good. The Rev. T. G. Riddle, one of fho •Missionaries to the N'ew Hebrides, will give on address on his work in the Balelutha Presbyterian Church on Sunday morning, when no doubt advantage will be taken by very many to hear what is being done in tho Islands.

At the Dunedin Trinity College of Music examinations Miss Isabel Florence McDonald, of Balelutha (Mr Vallis) successfully passed the associate examination, and is now an A.T. C.L., the first and only pupil, wc believe, to hold this distinction in this district. We congratulate «her on her success. Miss Florence Ada Dunne also of Balelutha, (Miss Baton) successfully passed the exam, far certificated pianist, a distinction of .:onsiderable merit.

Mr A. Sligo, of Dunedin, died on Monday. Mr Sligo was an enthusiastic Oddfellow, and took an active part in the business of the District meeting at Tapanui in September. Although 78 years of age, on the day following the meeting he accompanied a number, of delegates who visited Tapanui cemetery and State Nursery, and kept pace with the youngest. The MX. Order loses one of its most esteemed and able members. There will be a peculiar vacancy at District meetings, for Mr Sligo had been a regular attender at these for nearly 40 years.

Volunteer matters are again on the move in Waipahi district. A year or two ago the Popotunoa Killes had a smart section of men there, but gradually interest drop|>od, and the men gave up volunteering. Lately some members of the Second Mounted Regiment have settled in the district, and being wishful to keep in touch with their old regiment, they have been recruiting with so much success that they have hopes of forming a troop ot the Kelso Mounted Rilles (D Squadron), with Waipahi as their centre for drill purposes. A meeting has been called at Waipahi for Saturday (to-morrow) night, to enrol recruits, and al! interested arc invited to attend. The older men are 'taking aa interest in the matter, and it is hoped there will be a sufficient number of young men join to make a complete troop possible. Several old ''soldiers' have already given in their names, and as the surrounding district has a large number of smart men with suitable horses, there is every prospect of success. The Kelso Squadron has a reputation for keenness and smartness, and any recruit will be sure to learn his work thoroughly, and be able to take pride in belonging to the Second Regiment.

The Arbitration Court this week gave judgment for £lB6, and costs in the case of John Lawless and Bridget Lawless v. H.M. the King, a claim for €SOO as compensation in respect of the death of petitioners' son, Patrick Lawless, who was killed by accident on May sth last, whilst employeih on the Catlins railway construction works. Mr A. R. Barclay appeared for the plaintiffs, and Mr .). I". M. Fraser for the Crown. Mr Barclay argued that the co-operative workers were really contractors, and thai Patrick Lawless, though not employed directly by the Government, was entitled to succeed, because he was working for the sub-contractors. 11 r fraser argued that the co-opera-tive workers were not contractors at all, but piece-workers. The Arbitration Court, however, held that the plaintiffs' contention" was correct, and awarded compensation. The Star says that the result of this decision, whieh, doubtless, is correct, in view of the form of agreement drawn up for the co-operative workers to sign, and signed by them, has a startling effect. It means that no co-operative worker employed by the Government, and who has signed the usual printed agreement, throughout the Dominion'. is entitled, if injured, to recover compensation from the Crown. Lawless, though one of. a party, was held to he legally working for one Scholes, who had signed the agreement, and who was, therefore, a sub-contractor, but had Lawless, himself, signed the contract he.would therefore have been held to be a contractor, and therefore Dot entitled to compensation. The workman can come upon the employer for damages, but the sub-contractor, Or contractor, himself cannot. It is qiiitc obvious (sa>s the Star) that this is a state of affairs which ought not to be allowed to exist for a s'ngle day. The difficulty could doubtless be irot over by altering the form oi agreement to be signed by the men taken on to work in future. It is tl'arly the duty of the authorities to take steps at once to relieve the men from the unfortunate position in which the decision of this case places .them.