MB. WILFORD.

Evening Post, Volume XCVIII, Issue 146, 18 December 1919, Page 10

MB. WILFORD.

The appearance of "Mr., Mrs., and Miss Wilford waa hailed with a thunder of applause. Mr." Wilford said he .desired to take the opportunity, of .thanking his committees for;the gfand; ntajority: they had secured,for hirn^a; majority-of- wv over the second candidate and of. 10611 over the third. It was a great achievument to have .won such ..loyal, support as had been him for the last 20 years. Considering the result of ths contests elsewhere, it was a miracle «hs had survived. ..The fatorewas in .the Jap of the gods. '■ The Independent members had yet to'iaeclare 'themselves;-"-It-TViw with the greatest regret that ho noticed the defeat of Sir Joseph Ward. There ■was no-guestiog-^hgit tn.ere wgs nftjuaa

who was more useful to the community for his commercial knowledge and from the standpoint of Imperial affairs than. Sir Joseph* Ward. The result of the. Awarua election meant a- great loss to New Zealand. A matter fox- sincere regret was the defeat- of ..Sir James Carroll,, one of the biggest-brained men New Zealand, ever possessed, who had lost his seat as a result of tho sorry split. In tha Hou. D. Buddo the farming community had lost one of its best friends in Parliament. Mr. Horn had been successful in wresting the Walcatipu seat from the Massey Party. The Liberal Party was the moderate^party, which stood against reactionary Toryism on the one' hand and extreme Labour on the other. Tho lesson of this election was that the three-party system must cease. The reason for his success in the dimcult vote : splitting contest was-the-splendid work done by his committees.