SECOND BALLOT. MINISTERIAL STATEMENT.

Evening Post, Volume LXXVI, Issue 125, 25 November 1908, Page 7

SECOND BALLOT. MINISTERIAL STATEMENT.

ELECTION EESULTS REVIEWED. THE 'ATTORNEY-GENERAL'S ' ANALYSIS. To a representative of The Evening Post to-day, the Hon. Dr. Findlay made an important statement with regard to the results of the general election, and' after a careful analysis of the general results, expressed his opinion with respect to the second ballot. RESULTS SATISP ACTOR"*. "The results must, if looked at dispassionately, be considered as extremely satisfactory to the Government. That the Government's majority should bo reduced was well-nigh inevitable. Last Parliament the Government's folldwing varied from 58 to 60. The Opposition numbered 16 all told — a disparity so overwhelming that during the last three years we had' almost Teached in this country the vanishing point of party government, it is well-known that if Mr. -Massey's following of lb had suffered even a small reduction he could not possibly have been expected to continue with, his party ac a formal Opposition to the present Government. I "IF THEY HAD BEEN AiWGELS." "Hence, if the Government mad been without fault or flaw, and theiinembers of the Cabinet angels, and not /men with some shortcomings, the country would still have increased tho naro^/ers of the Opposition, in order that their extinction should be prevented, and what is considered an essential feature of the British Parliamentary system preserved, namely, his Majesty's Opposition. MR. SEDDON'S HUGE PARTY. "The circumstances which brought into Parliament 58 or 59 followers of the late 'Mr. Seddoit will probably never be repeated in this country. After allowing for his commanding personality to the fullest extent, there was the operation of a wave of sympathy -for him th. connection with two memorable attacks upon hie family — upon the crest of which the elections took place; and there was the further fact that New Zealand at that time was enjoyirtg the fullest flood of general prosperity. ; "These and otner circumstances account for the almost complete annihilation of the Opposition ; and that such a disparity between the two partips would not be allowed to continue must be ybvious to any impartial mind, whatever be the merits or demerits of the Ward Administration. ATTITUDE OF MANY CANDIDATES. , "This attitude is reflected in nearly all of the speeches of Opposition candidates. Here is one of tho statements by a prominent Opposition candidate on the platform when addressing the electors : 'I do not ask you to vote for me with the view of putting the Government onfc. We do not ask that. All we ask is that you should vote to strengthen the Opposition for tho purpose of wore effective criticism.' This will be found to be the line taken both by Opposition candidates themselves, and by the Opposition press; and it implies an admission that the present Government had every right to ask tho continuation of t&& confidence 'of th« people. "If they had sacrificed by their administration or polHy the right to that confidence, why dif Opposition candidates not invite support for the purpose of turning out thX Government? The fact is, whatever shape the speeches took, they cbntaimJ the tacit adiaissionv that the Ward Administration was better than any Government Mr. Masssy covAd form ; and that tiie electors would resent the suggestion that they should be asked to vote for 'Opposition candidates with a view to displacing the present Government. f SIR JOSEPH WARD'S LEADERSHIP. ' ' Upon a disi tssionate survey of the facts and results iXb may be fairly claimed that any addition which has been made to the Opposition ranks does not necessarily imply any loss of confidence in Sir Joseph Ward as a leader, but rather shows that New 2 ealand felt that the very existence of party government here was at stake, and that, apart altogether from the character and ability of the ■present Administration, the ranks of the Opposition should be increased so as to preserve it against extinction. ,THE GOVERNMENT'S MAJORITY. ''That the result of this election should provoke somewhat uproarious jubilation on the part of a certain section of the Opposition is difficult to understand, when we lind that rhe Government will have a loyal following of not less than 52 members out of 80 in the new Parliament — a working majority of 24. And if a reference is made to the list of successful Government candidates it will be seen how thoroughgoing their Liberalism is, and how solid will be. the Hupport behind the Prime Minister. OPPOSITION EASILY INTOXICATED. " Perhaps, however, seeing the Opposition has had so lhuch cold water from the electors of this country during thg last eighteen years, it is to be' expected that a little wine would easily intoxicate them. One thing seems clear upon a fair and calm survey of the results : that the Opposition was never further from power than it is to-day, and that the majority behind Sir Joseph Ward is, greater than that found behind Mr. Beddon himself at the elections of 1902 1" THE SECOND BALLOT : ITS , OBJECT. "its tine Government satisfied with the experiment of the second ballot?" asked our representative. '" The merits or demerits of the second ballot introduced by Sir Joseph Ward," replied the Attorney-General, "have so far during the contest been considered only from the point of view of party loss or party gain, and the general result to the main principles of democracy have been almost entirely overlooked. That most sagacious and able critic of modern democracy, Professor Bryce, points out that in America and younger democracies, public opinion not only reigns, but tends more and more to actually tule. Under the English Parliamentary system for the last fifty years ho shows that 'while public opinion reigns it does not rule. Hie candidates elected are left a discretion which, subject to some party obligation, is an exceedingly wide one. In other words, public opinion, as far as Parliamentary Government is concerned, almost completes its function on the election of the candidates. But in the younger and more progressive democracies public opinion is pushing beyond this stage, and imposing, either at the polls or at a referendum/ or plebiscite, its will directly upon the Legislature. "Of this in New Zealand an example is found in our local option vote, which, it must be remembered, is simply a referendum. In view of this transition from the stage of reign to the stage of ruling, Professor Bryce insists that means should be devised of securing a rule by the majority and not a control by a minority. And in England and elsewhere statesmen are attempting to find some method by which the voice of the majority can be reliably ascertain&d. A TRIUMPHANT VINDICATION. '■' As Sir Joseph Ward made clear upon the passing of the Second Ballot

Bill,\is object in pas&mg the measure was to j>rot«ct us as a people from minority rule; and the results of the first trial of the system are surely a triumphant vindication of the Prime Minister's purpose. Had it not been for the second ballot 23 members out of 76 — that is, practically a third of the whole number — would have been minority representatives. As it is, each of the successful candidates at the second ballot is now a majority representative. ' " The scheme was vigorously attacked on the ground that at the second ballot the number of votes recorded would fall off so enormously that you might have candidates elected at the second ballot with a smaller number of votes than the successful candidates at the first ballot; or, in other words, that the evil minority representation would be aggravated and not reduced. THE TWO BALLOTS. "The results of yesterday are a complete answer to this criticism. In four electorates the total votes recorded at the second ballot exceeded those recorded at the first ballot, and a glance at the following table will show how far wrong was the Opposition criticism that the abstentions at the second ballot would be so numerous as to destroy the principle of the measure, altogether. " The following were the votes polled at the two ballots :—: — First , Second

"Before referring to the difference between the totals at the first and tha second ballot, it should be pointed out that in several of the electorates the returns are not yet complete, and that a considerable number of additional votes will be added to the second ballot total. , , , . "It is further to be remembered that yesterday in many electorates- the whole or part of the day was wet, while on the first ballot day fine weather prevailed throughout New Zealand. NO LOCAL OPTION POLL. "Further, it will be remembered that the local option poll was taken at the first ballot only, and that a very considerable number of people go to the polls mainly to vote upon the local option Issue. "Yet, notwithstanding all these influences against the numbers at the second ballot, we find that out of the 124,680 who voted at the first ballot, 120,440 voted at the second ballot— the difference being some 3 1-3 per cent. "And a closer perusal of the number of votes recorded in each electorate wifl still further illustrate how satisfactorily from the point of view of the majority principle our second ballot system has worked. From the point of view of our democracy as a whole siuely it cannot be saio 1 that the second ballot has not been a statesmanlike measure. The predicted evils have not shown themselves. The Government were denounced for introducing the measure on the ground that in the -interva 1 between the fiist and the second ballot Ministerial interference, corruption, trickery, bribery, and the \usual string of things which Ministers are supposed to be constantly doing, would take place in each of the second ballot electorates to prejudice a fair contest in favour of the party in power. In point of fact, however, although nearly every Miniater was pressed to speak in different electorates, the principle of non-interference was strictly observed — the invasion principle being left to Mr". Maesey at Wanganui and Hastings. REPRESENTATION OF LABOUR. "It ./as further declared that the j Government had for its purpose in pas- i sing the measure the exclusion of labour from a fair chance at the polls. No further answer to those repeated charges need be given than that the only chance of election Labour got at the recent polls was that given by virtue of the second ballot in Gisborne, and in Wellington East; and, to complete this answer, Mr. M'Laren, the Labour candidate, entirely owes his election to the measure." FAIRNESS OF THE PRINCIPLE. "It is further alleged that the Bill was passed to prejudice the Opposition in a fair contest. How it could piojudice them in a- fair contest it is impossible to see if one reflects but for a moment ; since the principle of the Bill is the infinitely fair one of securing election to that man whom the majority of the electors favour. "But the concrete answer to this cry of the Opposition is the fact that th*> Opposition have gained by means of I the second ballot ; and the Government ! by that means lost three seats ; and consequently, owing to the second ballot, the Government have suffered a net loss of these tbjree seats, and possibly one other in which an independent succeeded." "I think, therefore," conckided Dr. Findlay, "it must b« admitted : first, I that the principles of the measure as far as the democuaey is concerned has »feandan(?ly justified itself by its operation, and that the Government fchronghost tho twaenty-two second ballot contests, has acted with the utmost fairness and propriety."

_, Ballofc Waitemata ••• ' 5932 Ohinemnri 4579 Gisborne ... ' ••• 6912 Hawkes Bay ... 5755' Pahiatua 4214 Egmont 4688 Wanganui 6559 Palmerston 5424 Manawatu 4720 Wellington North ... 6592 Wellington East ... 6512 Wellington South ... 6404 Wellington Silburbs... 6790 Nelson 6847 Hurunui 4231 A\on 6587 Ashburton 5604 Geraldine ... ... 4730 Timarn' 6418 Tuapeka 4283 Chalmers 5017 Dunedin North ... 6882 Ballot 5047 5049 5656 5683 3792 4574 6459 5529 4689 6594 6465 6349 6620 5727 3719 6292 5281 4597 6326 4210 5020 6764 Total 124,680 120,440