SECOND CHAMBERS

Marlborough Express, Volume XLV, Issue 55, 6 March 1911, Page 4

SECOND CHAMBERS

An"thfnr which oono nr"<s th^ manner in vrT'ifh ». sf*eond 0K"-mnpr is is of inf.p'-est to the* evw'ncren.cin.f; r>nmbor of neortle in tl^e DominioT) v/ho sh®re> tho opinion, so freoufntly expressed in thesecolnmns. that the time is rapidly approaching when some sweeping change must he made in the constitution of tho Legislative Council. A few people may

hold the- view that second Chambers i of any kind are costly excrescences, and that one Chamber, elected upon a purely democratic basis, is sufficient. The great majority of Englishmen, however, whilst objecJngiM^, Upper House composed of hereditaiy legislators, do not share th? opinions of Messrs Keir Hardie Philip Sno»den, and the handful of extreme Radicals who clamour for Singie Chamber government and we believe that here in New Zealand public sentiment is strorgly in favor of a revising Chamber, although we are equally convinced that there is. a widespread and serioun dissatisfaction with the present system of nomination by the government of the day- In America a movement is on foot for reform ot the Senate. Mr Roosevelt, during his last electioneering campaign, warmly favored some system of direct election of the Senators by the people f ut the Senate, «s at present constituted, does not desire a reform ot this tina, and a mction embodying direct election has been rejected. Many of our readers may be unacquainted with-che manner in which the United' States Semata is at present constituted, it. consists'of two members from each State, chosen by the State Legislatures for six "years. Senators must ! not b<* less than thirty years of age, 1 must have been citizens of the United States for nine years, and be residents in the States for which they are chosen. The Senate possesses most important and far-reaching powers, for beside? 'its legislative functions it is entrusted with the power of ratifying or rejecting all treaties made oy the President with foreign Powers, a two^thirds majority of Senators present being required for ratification. The Senate, too, is invested with the power of confirming or rejecting all appointments to office made by the President, and its members constitute a High Court of Impeachment. As ■th© Members or* the House of Representatives- aue elected every two years whereas tho Senators hold' office for six years, it will be seen that the latter exercise what is practically a predominant power. It is contended by the reformers who favor direct election by the people—a® is the case m the Commonwealth of Australia—that the system by which the State Legislatures elect the Senators is open to very grav<? abjise, and that very frequently the exigencies and; prejudices of p^^y party politics result in the selection of inferior men. ' The reformers argue that direct election by the people affords the only safe check against party wire-pulling and corruption Of course, the people are nominally responsible for the selection of Senators, for they elect the Members of the State : Legislatures, which, in their turn, select the Senators. But it is contended that this indirect responsibility is notcouisidered: so carefully as it might be* find', that.many men, for purely local and1 sectional reason®, are elected to the State Legislatures—men to whom, did the people only look ahead a little more, they would be chary of giving the ; right to elect Senators. -The movement in favor of direct election of Members of. a revising Chamber is growing very fast in the United States, and although the Senate has rejected a Bill, embodying the principle, it must not be thought that; this settles the question. The United: State-v has her second Chamber problem just .as Great Britain has her House of Lords1 problem, and in both oases, before many years are over, there must come about a sweeping change in the composition of th c Upper House. Here in New Zealand, the question of second Chamber reform has not yet been considered -o seriously by the people as it might have been; but we hope that at the next election a goodly number of candidates wi11... be found ready and vAilling te support some project of second Chamber reform. The nominative system .may have done well enough a few years ago, but it is manifestly out of touch with thos-V broad and' democratic principles by I which the community as a whole is inspired, and should be replaced by some other method more in accordance with latter-day conditions and ■'sentiment'"■' .