WELLINGTON TOPICS

Greymouth Evening Star, 24 September 1917, Page 6

WELLINGTON TOPICS

SIX O’CLOCK CLOSING. ACC Li* 1 ED is V I iIK liOl'SK. liapecial Cm icspoiuleiil. ) WELLINGTON, September '2l. Euny-mur lo twenty-six: -MA Um* mo.vL sanguine of me "six o’clocneis. ' m ilie house expected tlie.r proposal lor Hie lean ietiuu of betel Jiouiri u> he carried by such a thumping majority as tins. A tew ul tlienq not mure than Un ee or tour, hud hopes of it getting through by a mu row m.ugin, but they were the extreme optimists. of Un; party and their fellows looked for nothing better than a compromise at seven o’clock. On the other side quiet confidence prevailed. The fact that eight o'clock appeared in the Government's Bill and the knowledge that it would be supported by seven of the ten Ministers now sitting in the representative chamber were relied upon to keep the waverers In line and on Wednesday night the popular prediction wasi a majority of two or three for the less drastic proposal. A CHANGE IN THE BAI’OMETEIL There are conflicting stories as to just what happened between NVednesdav night and Thursday morning, but it was obvious, when the House reassembled yesterday afternoon that the prospects of the ‘‘six o'elockers” had materially improved. Among other things it was whispered about lliat if eight o’clock were deleted Horn the Bill, Mr. Massey would take up six o’clock a w the Government proposal and push it through with all ilie influence, he could command short of exercising personal or party pressure. Whether this was intended as -. threat to the one party or as an encouragement to the other was not quite plain, but in the end it certainly had the effect of bringing a, clear-cut issue to a speedy settlement. There wa« no superfluous talking and no disposition to delay the passage of the measure. Members all seemed anxious to get it out of the way m ( lie shape or another as quickly as possible. EIGHT O’CLOCK GOES. Directly the, short title of Hie Hill had been passed, Mr. G. J. An del sou moved that eight o’clock, specified as the closing hour of hotel bars, should lie struck out of the body of the measure. There was no debate on the question, and on going to a division the motion of the member for Mata lira, was carried by forty-one to twenty-eight, Mr, Jennings pairing for the retention of eight o’clock and Sir John Findlay against, thus bringing the voting strength of the House up to seventy-one, within nine of its full number. The absentees from the. division list were Sir F. W. Lang

(the Speaker), Mr. Malcolm, the Chairman of Committee, Mr. Hino, Mr. Coates', and Mr. Seddon, a-way at the front, Mr. Wilford. engaged in an important law case, Mr. AN. D. Stewart. undergoing hospital treatment, and Mr. Ngata, suffering from indisposition. A fuller vote has, rarely been recorded in the House. SIX O’CLOCK COMES. It was expected by several of the members who voted against eight, o’clock that they would have tin opportunity to choose between Ox o’clock and some later hour, but directly the result of the division was announced Mr. Massey justified the rumors that had beer,, in circulation earlier in the day by proposing ‘mu behalf of Hie Government” that sax o’clock should lie the closing hour. At the same time the Prime Minister Mated he was ‘'firmly impressed with 'the idea" that something must bedone on the line proposed by Hie Efficiency Board, meaning, it was suiißsf that the question of prohibition during the war, with compensation, would have to be submitted to the electors. Tbisi settled the matter. After Sir Joseph Ward had expressed hi s; agreement with the proposals <>l the Efficiency Board and directed the attention of the House to the. gravity of the financial questionsi involved, the amendment to- six o'clock was carried by forty-one to twenty-six, with Sir John Findlay and Mr. Jenningsi again pairing, and the Bill encountered no further opposition. PUBLIC OPINION. Of course there are honest differences of opinion as to the wisdom of the experiment to which Hie House ha.si practically committed the country but speaking generally Hie public is well disposed towards the earlier •dosing of (he hotels. Whether eight 'clock would have been a. better ’ ii" than six o’clock is still a moot question, and whether the intention of Hie law can lie enforced is another, but it is: something for Parliament L, have faced Hie problem free from party ties and with the broad outlook which concerns itself only with the welfare of the people of Hr Dominion and the special duty they owe just now to the vastly wider and bigger community of the Empire.