POLITICAL POINTS.

Evening Star, Issue 9471, 16 August 1894, Page 2

POLITICAL POINTS.

[Pbom Over tub Ghaib.]

WELLINGTON, Acqust,l6.■,. ; With reference to the statements made bjr Sin R. Stout as to the 4ying wishes of the laje Mr Ballance regarding the Premiership sod Ministerial arrangements consequent on Mr Ballanee's death, Mr Seddon and colleagues have prepared the following official reply:—" They cannot help regretting that the name of their late chief s wife should have been brought into a discussion, and scarcely think it is for them to express any opinion upon the letters of Mrs Ballance Which were last week published. It is not the wish of Ministers to cast the slightest doubt upon the entire truthfulness of Sir R. Stout's statements, much lees upon anything contained in. Mrs Balbwoe's letters, . but they assert that Mr Ballance, before bis death, neither, laid any injunction upon the members of his Cabinet, nor did he intimate to them any wish of his own, as to the successorship in the event of his death, excepting any statement that he may have made to Mr Seddon. He underwent the operation .leading. Mr Seddon in charge as his deputy, and 'he undoubtedly entrusted that gentleman with confidential papers relating to public matters. Looked at without heat, the statements of Sir R. Stout and Mr Seddon are not of necessity inconsistent as to fact. It is quite true that when Mr Ballance died there was a difference of opinion both in the Cabinet and in the party as'to whether his- place be taken by Mr Seddon or Sir R. Stout; but it was pretty clearly seen, even within a few days after Mr Ballanee's death, that a majority of both Ministers and the Liberal members favored Mr Seddon. Under these circumstances an agreement was come to between Sir R. Stout, Mr Seddon, and the other colleagues of the late Premier."

A note of this agreement was taken at the time, and was left in the custody of Mr Ward. That note reads as follows :

Ist May, 1893.—We are to hold office until the party meet, two days before the meeting of Parliament; the party then to decide who is to be leader. Wo to loyally support whatever that decision is. Sir B. Stout to stand for Inangahua. All portfolios as at present— Ward, Treasurer.

It will be seen from the above that nothing inconsistent with this agreement was done, except thut the caucus met on the opening day of Parliament and not two days before it. This, however, was in no respect Mr Seddon's fault, as due notice was given to those members, who, however, did not come to Wellington in time to hold the caucus on the date agreed upon. Sir R. Stout stood for Inangahua at the express desire of the Cabinet, and in his election contest received cordial and important aid from Ministers, who welcomed him back into Parliament as a trusted friend and ally.

The result of the party caucus is well knowu. Only one member advocated the claims of Sir R. Stout to the leadership. The suggestion that after Mr Ballance's death Mr Seddon obtained the support of his colleagues by threatening that if they did not chooso him as Premier he Mould form a Ministry without them is quite incorrect; Whatever the wishes of the late Mr Ballance may have been; Ministers hold that the parliamentary chief of a party can only be selected by the members of that party. The question of the leadership was, therefore, settled at the caucus held in June of last year.

Iu his rejoinder to the Ministerial manifesto, Sir Robert Stoitt says that the incidents connected with the late Premier's wishes were, so far as he was concerned, closed with his Wanganui speech but for the statement published iu the * Lyttelton Times' of the Bth inst., wherein it wa3 stated that, from information received from Mr Seddon, its correspondent was in a position to say: " There is no* thing I have heard or seen to give the least color to Sir Robert's statement." It was because of this that he published • Mrs Ballance's letters. The Ministerial manifesto did not attempt, nor could it do so, to refute his statement. There were some things in it which were not quite accurate. It was stated that no Minister knew Mr Ballance's wishes, but one Minister had told him that he knew that Mr Ballance did not desire Mr Seddon to lead. Then it was admitted that Eoine of the Cabinet had opposed Mr Seddon being Premier. This confirmed his statement that Mr Seddon took the Premiership against the wishes of one of his colleagues.

As to the statement in the Ministerial manifesto that it was quite incorrect that Mr Seddon had threatened his colleagues that if they did not choose him he would form a Ministry without them, Sir R. Stout points out that the words he used in his interview were "he (Mr Seddon) hinted," though he believed that "threatened" would not have been inaccurate. He (Sir Robert) was not at the interview, but was speaking from information supplied *by one of the Ministry. He understood that no formal motion .'is to the Leadership was made at the caucus. The further fact that no Minister except Mr Seddon attended that caucus showed that it was not intended to permit any election. Indeed, just before Mr Seddon went to the caucus he told him (Sir R. Stout) that he did not intend to any division in the Liberal camp, and would not have the leadership discussed.

As to any documents being given by Mr Ballance to Mr Seddon, Sir Robert says he was not aware that any had been so given. He urged Mr Seddon, in case anything did happen to Mr Ballance, to get any papers of a private character ; but he was not aware whether any were given. Mrs Ballance, however, states that none were, which was probable, as Mr Ballance seldom acted without reference to her.