MR. MASSEY'S CABINET.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17392, 12 February 1920, Page 4

MR. MASSEY'S CABINET.

COMING APPOINTMENTS, ,5 Ufa —- . . .■ ; CAUCUS OF ; BEFORE PARtfJT, '. vl —: > *. .j MEETING ON SATURDAY .:■;.>; t " The question of the appointment ol addi- ■$■& "i tional members-of the Ministry wiil be ■ •] discussed at & meeting of members of the ; {|s|£.j Reform Party to be held 'in Wellington \\'M H \ next Saturday V after'nodn. The Prime "% § \ Minister'has;invited'the members of the fgM party to meet! him on th.e occasion of the 'flf ; Withering of members, in Wellington for '||fj[ the purpose .ofileaving" by the eteamer f'.l: Mokoia for Samoa, i A large 'gathering oi i '■; members is-: expected. y;« .>;*:•'.' tjM I . There Vis some uncertainty as to the i-% number of new Ministers to be appointed. i S Mr* Massey's original Cabinet consisted ].. % of eight Ministers, exclusive of the Maori k'| Minister, who holds office without port. • folio, ,as representing the native race, [-& .When 'the,,. National , Government wag 'hC. formed 1915 'the. number of f; Ministers ;! was to twelve, M six being chosen by each of the It. two :_ parties.. ' The -present Reform k< Ministry.;; comprises nine Ministers, in ■If addition to Maori representative. Si*- U ; Willir.m Fraser, M.L.C., Minister for Pub- §{ lic Works, who iS;no:longer a member oi :<? the ."House of Representatives, will retire "; f as soon as a successor is annotated. it is understood that Sir- dames Allen will be '% appointed High Commissioner at an early 'j date, i:but: there no immediate prospect '^~% of his seat in the Cabinet becoming ■ vacant. The position! in regard to a' third Minister,: the Hon; J. B. Hine, who holds the, "portfolio of-Minister for Internal Affairs, is uncertain. Mr. Hine having lost his seat at the general election, p'aced - hie resignation in. the '.'hands of the Prime * Minister last month, but no: notificition '( of the acceptance of 'the resignation has yet appeared. A petition asking that the ;-.' : election of Mr. R. Masters, who defeated . .: Mr. Hine for the Stratford .seat, be declared void, has been lodged, and will be • heard shortly. /;»•'■. •-., -J Exclusive of Sir William Fraser and Mr. ' 1 ! Hine, the number of present Ministers is .seven.l'-.? Four, of these, ; Messrs. Massey, .' Guthrie, Coates, and Sir William Herries, -■■ ';■■} represent North; Island constituencies, and ■"'' S two;' Sir; James Allen and Mr. Nosworthy, .v; are South Island members.. In©' other _ ; Minister, Sir;; Francis Bell, is' a member of the Legislative Council. >i ■'-- V'i The Reform Party in the House 0f... ), ; Representatives' ; at present comprises 46 .'j members;; op ;44 members exclusive of two .; I ■Maori members. Thirty North i Island districts and '14 South Island dis- . '•'§ . tricts. Fifteen of 'the ': North; Island -J European members 'of.the.party represent , | , constituencies in the Auckland Provincial \' r M , district. :?_ The r Auckland Province' at pre- ■$ , sent has three representatives in the Cabinet. The two Maori members 'the W ' party j are also North Island representa- f 1 ' tives. , l ' ,'.''';.,; ;"-'-. ••.-■