RUMORED CABINET CRISIS

Evening Star, Issue 16033, 9 February 1916, Page 7

RUMORED CABINET CRISIS

THE FINANCIAL OUTLOOK. [Fsok Odb SPKOiAt. Correspondent.] WELLINGTON, February 7. It is expected that the Board of Trade are to sot in motion the Cost of Living Act of last session, will bo appointed by Cabinet this week, and that their oomposition will give some idea of how much truth aes at the of the rumors concerning iunistenal dissensions and impending resh° aations. The delay .in giving cfrect°to Sir Joseph Wards effort to consummate the agreement made between the parties at the • June of the formation of the Rational Cabinet is popularly supposed to be the chief cause of friction between the two elements in the Ministry, and if nothing is done to end it this week the situation will bo regarded as serious. Whether or not the Liberals notion of what ought to have been gone more than a year ago will he carried ,ut now will depend to a very great extent tipqn the composition of the board, and if '"bear personnel is merely official or purely Jommorcial the public will not hail the appointments with any very confident anticipa--sion. The board’s functions will be simply advisory, their recommendations being subject to the review of the Minister of Industries and Commerce, and unless Mr Massey is in full sympathy with the consumers they tT* not, l otta ,' n very material relief even It the board do venture to challenge the Sacred law of supply and demand, and the Sther shibboleths of the strictly orthodox School of economy. PUBLIC FINANCE. The statement of the Dominion’s finance <»ibUshed on Saturday bears further evidence the continued prosperity of the country. Jn spite of the war, and of all the waste and ■Extravagance and trouble the war brums in Its train. The revenue for the ten months January 31 is shown to have been £924,260 better than the revenue for the torrospending ten months of the previous liH 130 . 1 ?* year, and tho expenditure only £370,480 greater. Of course, the figures do Jot include the war expenditure, and till it js known exactly what this is it is imposnble to speak with any precision of the outlook for tho future. Nor is the public works Expenditure given in the figures supplied to Jhe Press by Sir Joseph Ward, and this is inqwn to have been running on at much the |sual rate during the financial year. Sir Joseph describes the results disclosed by his Statement as “extremely satisfactory,’’ and so they are, as far as they go; yet the Minister liimself again emphasises the need for economy in words which cannot be too frequently repeated at the present juncture. * The fact remains,” he says, “that it is Essential, in times made prosperous (anomalous though it may seem to say so) by the Var, that the ordinary expenditure should he ®iatenally reduced, so as to make provision for the time when normal conditions arise St the end of the war. We want them to Snore than balance our revenue and expenditure.” It was only during the last few months of the period that the war taxation »egan to make any substantial contribution towards the revenue, but the Minister is Satis fled with the result, as ho seems to have Xeason to bo, and this makes his plea for (further economy all tho more impressive. WAR FUNDS. It was reported at a meeting of the Wellington War Funds Association last week Shat the association had £72,897 in hand, Bnd that they wore receiving very few applications from soldiers or their dependents for ielief. During tho discussion which followed quite a number of suggestions were Snado for putting the money to its intended Sse, one speaker going to the length of Surging that forms of application should he jßistiibuted among the men. likely to require ielp, and finally it was decided to send setters to the local newspapers drawing the attention of soldiers and dependents to the fact that the association existed for the purpose of relieving their necessities. All this |s just as it should he, and the public will ®e as much gratified as tho soldiers themSelves are to know that the funds are to be administered in the same generous spirit as B were given; but unless there is cystic co-operation between the various associations there will be some danger Sf their good intentions being defeated. The limster of Internal Affairs has realised this Peru, and is now seeking to guard against *>■ 1 but unfortunately the Ministerial mind, whatever its party color, has a trick of running too persistently in the direction of saving State expenditure at the cost of tho patriotic pocket The war funds were no? Subscribed with the idea that private phiianihropy should relieve the State of any part fif its plain duty towards soldiers and dependents, but in the belief that the men j* 616 entitled to something more than their Sate rights, and that it was the privilege of Ihe public te supply the additional comforts Jnd assistance as a freewill offering. This Jppears to he the spirit by which the WelJ association are very properly ani-