THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES MONDAY, MAY 26, 1919. POLITICAL PARTIES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17634, 26 May 1919, Page 4

THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES MONDAY, MAY 26, 1919. POLITICAL PARTIES.

The resolution of the Liberal Party to contest the forthcoming general election as a distinct party represents a re-affirmation of the decision at which it arrived last session when a proposal was made by the Reform Pa,rty that the political alliance of the 1 - past four years should be maintained during the period of delicate after-war reconstruction. Decidedly cogent are the arguments in support of the existence of a National Party until such, time as the problems arising out of the warproblems that really require the cooperation of all classes in the community—have been settled. The twiceaffirmed determination, however, of the Liberals to go to the country as a separate political organisation may be treated as a final rejection of any suggestion that the not very serious differences between the two principal parties should be allowed to remain in abeyance and that a coalition of the two parties, not subject to the conditions which governed the formation of the National Ministry, should be maintained until the difficult issues that constitute a legacy from the war .should have been settled. It seems to follow from this decision that the National Ministry will be dissolved as speedily as possible after the return, at no very certain date, of Mr Massey and Sir Joseph Ward to the dominion, so that the members of the Ministry itself, who have co-operated with every outward show of mutual good-feeling, will be thrown into opposite political camps. And the interval between the dissolution of the National Government and the general election cannot be' of long duration. The Reform Government, which will resume office when the National Government will go out of existence, will be in the unfortunate position that having been hurriedly brought back into life, it will not be prepared with any policy for submission to Parliament. Even, however, if it were prepared for a policy, it would experience a great difficulty in securing that effect should be given to any feature of that policy daring what will almost certainly be a short session of Parliament. The majority which a re-constituted Reform Government will possess over any possible combination against it in the House of Representatives will, in the most favourable circumstances, be too small to give the Ministers any assurance of the support from Parliament which they will desire. Moreover, an important section of members of the Reform Party, holding opinions more radical than are credited by them to some of their present leaders, has planned the formation of a new political organisation under the title of the Progressive Party. To what extent the proposals for the establishment of this party may be carried may be somewhat doubtful. $he members who- have been most active in the prosecution of the proposals are probably a good deal hampered through the absence of the Prime Minister from the dominion. They were returned • at last election to support Mr Massey, and they are bound. by their pledges of 1914 as long as the present Parliament lasts. Their pledges of support will not, however, limit their freedom of speech as soon as the National Government goes out of office and the Reform Government- returns to power, and Reems reasonably certain that they will freely claim the right of criticism which was waived by them in a spirit of patriotism during the war. Over and above all this is the circumstance that now that the war is, for all practical ; purposes, at an end there is no legiti-

niato reason why the general election should be delayed, i It will bo a general ' election which will be profoundly intbresting and upon which the Labour Party will enter with a distinct advantage oyer all the other parties. That will be a circumstance that will involve no discredit to these other parties. Far from it. The Labour Party, not restrained by the considerations which have prevented political activity by any other party in the country, has been busily engaged for some months past in organising its forces for the contest. It is with a sound recognition of the fact that a Labour Party which rejoices in its representation in Parliament by men who hold such views as are expressed by Messrs Semple, Holland, and Fraser does not command the confidence of the most thoughtful members of the industrial classes that the Liberal Party has apparently decided to appeal to Labour for its support. And it is likely enough that the members of the present Reform Party, whether they appear before the electors as Progressives or as Reformers, will be found to have a policy not less radical than that which the Liberals will present. For the timo being, however, an honourable observance of the political truce deters the members of the parties from which the National Government was constituted from undertaking any party activities. The Labour Party has .a temporary monopoly of the political field. The public may be trusted to perceive why this is so and also to form its own judgment upon the manner in which the Labour Party is exercising its monopoly.

A BENEFICENT CRUSADE The fact that the Society for the' Health of Women and Children is making preparations for increased efforts in the interests of the community was indicated in various ways at the annual meeting last week. During the war period many of the most zealous supporters and assistants of the society will have had their time and energy largely occupied by war work, and if the society's labours hare suffered no curtailment owing to the attention demanded by the war and its obligations, the time can hardly have been favourable for their expansion or for the educational propaganda which is one of the most valuable features of the society's programme. Henceforward we may expect the society to give unabated evidence of development as a beneficent influence in our midst. Since it was inaugurated in a modest way some thirteen years ago the society has made great headway in a movement which, it is no exaggeration to say, promises to become world wide. In other countries the need of counteracting the wastage of infant life has been recognised, and tlfe problem has been tackled in various ways, many of them but tentative. But it is th 3 achievement of the society which the enthusiasm of Dr Truby King so successfully vitalised in this part of New Zealand, whence its helpful ramifications have extended far afield, that it set a great practical example in the manner of carrying out its avowed objects—an example the value of which other States a,re freely recognising. The society can point to a reduction in the rate of infantile mortality in the dominion as a result of its activities, and the relatively low death rate among children in New Zealand is one of the finest advertisements the country could have. Even, however, in a sparsely populated country like New Zealand the task of promoting the, health of women and children along the lines which • the society pursues is a colossal one. Ignorance, apathy, and indifference are ever the obstruction. It is extremely difficult to enlighten a people in matters pertaining to health when it is reluctant to be interested. Admonitions that fall upon deaf ears serve little purpose. But if the Society for the Health of Women and Children had permitted itself to be discouraged in the past by the difficulty of awakening the public conscience in our midst we should have been the' poorer to-day as a community. By perseverance the society has been able really to influence and educate the community—however wide the field yet to be covered in that direction may be—and its practical labours have been attended with admirable results. It becomes therefore a. genuine pleasure to be able once more to congratulate the society on the close of another year's successful work, and" on the prospects which the future offers it. /The return of Dr Truby King from the Old Country, which is expected this year, will be signalised no doubt by increased activities on the society's part. An indefatigable crusader himself, Dr King has the faculty of inspiring others with enthusiasm for the cause* to which he has devoted so much of . his skill and energy, and we may take it for granted that his experiences abroad will be made to contribute to the value of his renewed labours in New Zealand. At annual meetings of the society in the past many valuable addresses pertaining to the health of the community have been delivered, and to the number has now been added Dr Drennan's important utterance on the prevalence of goitre among the women of New Zealand. The conditions ■•to which Dr Drennan calls attention, and of which, as a community, we appear to have been too little observant, constitute a matter of national moment. The interest of the subject to a society the object of which is "to help the mothers and save the babies" requires no demonstration. Dr Drennan's plea for generosity on the part of the State in fostering medical research, so that our School of Medicine may become a centre of original investigation into the particular New Zealand problems of health and disease, is forcible and well-timed.