ESTABLISHED 1866. The Marlborough Express PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 1913. THE FEDERAL POLITICAL CRISIS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVII, Issue 143, 19 June 1913, Page 4

ESTABLISHED 1866. The Marlborough Express PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 1913. THE FEDERAL POLITICAL CRISIS.

Mr Andrew Fisher is not the man we take him to be if 'he attempts, by any trickery, to remain one hour longer in office after the iact is established that his party is in a minority. In New South Wales the .Labor GoVernment, it will be remembered, successfully retained office by what we shall always consider very unworthy means* .namely, by giving tlfe Speakership...to a gentleman ■ who. had hitherto been a leading member of the Opposition party. The Willis ''deal reflected no credit upon Mr McGowen, and has had, Are believe, not a little "to do with the greatly decreased popularity of his Government ,m the country. Mr-Fisher, it is clear, will not condescend even to try to win over one Member fejom the Liberal camp, and is taking-a.course which is at once both wise and honorable. It remains to be seen what will be the result of Ms resignation. A Liberal Ministry, headed by Mr Joseph. Cook, and that tough old Australian Tory, Sir John Forrest, might be able barely to hold its own in the Lower House, but with the overwhelming superiority of Labor in the Senate, it would be practically hopeless to attempt any legislation of more than' a merely formal character. It seems to us that within a very few months from now there must be a dissolution and another election. Whether an elimination of the Referenda proposials might mean the return to the Labor party's side of many electors whose opposition to Mr Fisher and his colleagues a month ago was mainly based upon a dislike of those proposals, is a debatable point. ' Where the Liberal party is weak is in the fact of its political : policy being so largely of a negative nature, and also in the equally important fact, that in tihe fiscal question the various.members of the party hold such divergent views. Mr Cook himself is a, strong Freetrader; but his party includes, especially among the Victorian, representatives, several . men who are just as strongly wedded to a "highi-wall" Protection >policy as are the majority of Mr Fisher's followers. On the important question of defence there is a greater unanimity of opinion, and it may be taken for granted that, as a whole, the Fisher Government'sl defence policy .wiE..be adhered to by its successor.

One matter. calls for urgent and careful attention by the new...Federal Parliament, and that is the muchneeded reform of the existing electoral system. .What is taking place in the Hume electorate, and what has taken place, in a minor degree, kit other electorates, namely, a gross and, mii deed, to a New Zealander, quite incomprehensible delay in the counting of the votas, clearly proves the necessity lor the present electoral system of the Commonwealth to be carefully overhauled. Such delay might, under certain easily arising circumstances, be put to very evil use by political tricksters. No wonder that all over the States - newspaper • opinion is strongly in favor of "an overhaul and amendment of the Electoral Law in Australia"; and the new Federal Parliament will be grossly neglecting its duty should it fail to tackle the much-demanded reform with the utmost promptitude. Until this duty is discharged, there should be no movement in either political camp towards a dissolution and a new election, and we fully expect Mr Fisher to be as favorable to a complete and searching investigation of the allegedl faults in the electoral system ias his political opponents in . the Sydney and Melbourne press J } profess to be. New Zealand politics; promise to become increasingly interesting as the session proceeds; but unless we are much mistaken those New Zealanders who are students of general political progress in Australasia will find not a little in Commonwealth politics which will repay attention. The composition, present and future, of the Senate, and the bearing ■of this upon such proposals for Legislative Council reform as may be put forward by the Massey <jrovemment will, we think, be specially deserving of careful study by New Zealanders. '