EUSION QUESTION

Grey River Argus, 12 August 1925, Page 5

EUSION QUESTION

WILFORD’S REPLY To Coates’s Criticism WELLINGTON', August 11. Mr. \\ Ilford writes to the "Dornin ion” a s follows:—'Aou have g.ven space to the Prime- Minister's statement about our meetings. May I ask the same prominence for my reply. "Mr. Coates says I saw him on June sth, June 9 th, July ICtli (twice), July 12th, July 13th and July 11th. Those dates are accun-te. Will you notic • that between .lune 9th anti July 10th there is an interval of over a month? Then note that sn that interval of n month, namely, on June 18th, ths delegates first me’ and also in that interval of a month, on July 7th, Mr. Coates wrote me after the meetings of the delegate l :, stating that fusion was impractical y and? as I stated in my letter of Tf.lv 9th to him. he had on the 7th. barred the. door to fusion. “You will see that my first meeting with Mr. Coates after he said fusion was impracticable, on his statement, was on July 10th., throe days after his letter to me bolting the door, and the day after I wrote him saying he had bolted the door.

“I intended to convey, but perhaps did not clearly do so, that I did not sec Mr. Coates to discuss fusion tint-) after tlie correspondence clcelar'i’..’. fusion, impracticable, on July 7th, had been received by me, and alter I nad written him on the 9th. telling h a he had ended it. The two- first dates mentioned by Mr. Crates were hero e the confernce was held on June 18th, and were mentioned by me in Parliament in ntv speech on July 11th, ami are recorded in Hansard.'’