POLITICAL AFFAIRS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 26 May 1925, Page 5

POLITICAL AFFAIRS.

FRANKLIN BY-ELECTION. WRIT ON SATURDAY. REFORM CANDIDATE CHOSEN. tBY TELEGRAPH PRESS ASSOCIATION WELLINGTON, May 26. The writ for the Franklin election will probably lie issued on Saturday. ' AUCKLAND, May 25. Mr E.. D. McLennan has been elected the official Reform candidate for the Franklin seat. The Rev. W. C. Wood, whose claims were also considered, will By arrangement now retire from the contest. CAMPAIGN OPENED. AUCKLAND, May 25. Mr J. S. Montgomerie, the Labour candidate for the Franklin seat, opened his campaign-by addressing a meeting at Oj-ahuhu to-night. In opening, Mr Montgomefie said that if one of Mr Massey’s sons had stood Labour won't! not have contested the seat. Ho had known Mr Massey for forty years, and had the highest opinion of him. He expressed deep symapthy with the family in their bereavement. Farmers generally throughout the country were very dissatisfied, nearly all cases being preventable. The freehold system lent itself to land speculation and other abuses. The only remedy was Labour’s land policy, including “useholcl” tenure, which assured the farmer of the full fruits of his labour and the value of improvements,, and ensured him security of occupation, besides promoting land settlement. He denied that Labour was revolutionary. It was seeking to accomplish its ends entirely by constitutional means, and even if no Labour Party existed the trend of public opinion would be in the same direction, as was shown by the growth of co-operation and the export control scheme intro-ducedby-the Conservative Government. Personally be -had been all his life on the land. He did not always belong to the Labour Party, but he did not make any sudden change. He had been going that- wav for some time, giving that party his support for the past five or six years. What he asked was: What was’the Conservative Party doing far the peop'e? They had been humbugged too long bv tiie old party cries, but he believed politics could be made of real benefit to all classes of people. Votes of thanks and confidence were carried. REFORM PARTY. CAUCUS ON WEDNESDAY.' WELLINGTON, May 26. The Reform Party’s caucus to consider the political situation and select a leader takes place on Wednesday. After the caucus a conference of delegates from the Reform associations throughout the country will be held, at which various prospective candidates o.f the partv will he present. This will take p'nce on Thursday, and is exciting a good deal of interest in view of the suggestions now current for a fusion of the'Reform and Libera] pal-ties.