THE LABOUR CONFERENCE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXXIII, Issue 15902, 13 April 1912, Page 10

THE LABOUR CONFERENCE.

The congratulations which the delegates attending the Labour Conference in Wellington exchanged yesterday appear to have been a good deal more than the/idle compliments of the hour. The Conference seems to have made some real progress during the past week towards the “unification” of Labour, which is the crying political need of the workers, and if th© conciliatory spirit it has displayed is carried into the country-, the good things predicted by Mr J. A. Al’Cullough will be brought appreciably nearer. Wo have no fault at all to find with the delegates’ determination to keep the Labour Party free from any alliance with either of the other political parties. It would be ridiculous, indeed, to expect this growing force in the public life of the country to place any restrictions upon its own development and its legitimate aspirations. In the past it has found its natural allies in the Liberals, and no doubt it will continue to do so; but with its increasing strength and reviving enthusiasm it will refuse to accept a subordinate position in any partnership. There is plenty of good work for the party to do. We have just seen what three of its representatives can accomplish in Parliament, for good or for evil, and w© can easily understand what fifteen or twenty of them could achieve. During the recent-political crisis the friends of progress were little alarmed at the prospect of the Opposition taking office simply because they knew that Mr Massey and his friends would be entirely dependent upon the votes of the Labour members, and that these gentlemen would prevent them introducing any flagrantly retrogressive measures. It is reported that Mr Yeitch’s single vote was sufficient to obtain a promise from Mr Massey that the national endowments would be maintained intact A dozen members of the same mind standing for principles and not for men would be able to exercise almost as much influence on the legislation of the country as they could if they were actually in office themselves.