The Otago Witness. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE SOUTHERN MERCURY. (TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 1928.) THE WEEK.

Otago Witness, Issue 3897, 20 November 1928, Page 47

The Otago Witness. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE SOUTHERN MERCURY. (TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 1928.) THE WEEK.

“Nunquam allud natura, allud sapientia dixit.” —Juvbxal. “Good nature and good sense must ever join.”— POPE.

The voice of the people as expressed at Wednesday’s polls was

Tha Elections.

a confused voice, and the result is a House divided against itself. Neverthe-

less, it is all very interesting even if the ultimate outcome is uncertain. The surprise of the election is undoubtedly the triumph of Sir Joseph Ward. It is given to few political leaders to experience the thrill of such a victory, for, under the circumstances, it can onlv fairly he counted as such. Sir Joseph Ward was a lone figure in the expired Parliament—“ the last of the Liberals.” To-day he is distinctly in the line of the Prime Ministership with a substantia] party following and considerable goodwill in the country. He has achieved a personal triumph which ranks as one of the most dramatic episodes in our island political history. The election results clearly reveal three things—the dissatisfaction in regard to the Reform Party, the rising tide of fortune for the United Party, and the definite disapproval of the policy of the Labour Party With the swing of the political pendulum against the Reform Party came the chance of other parties. The Labour Party, as the official Opposition, firmly established and well organised, should have swept the polls. For years it has preached the cause of Labour, and taken every advantage of political propaganda, even to using Parliament itself as a means to success. There can only be one reason for its failure—its policy appeals to a class instead of to the nation, and its leaders are too often antinational in outlook and sentiment. So it remained for the newly-organised United Party to reap the political harvest of dissatisfaction. Mr Holland may delude himself by referring to “ the magnificent victory which we have secured on this occasion,” but he should remember that at the polls six years ago his party won 17 seats. His followers may well ask him how many more "magnificent victories” will be necessary before they reach even the total of seats won on -Wednesday by the infant party in the State.

The composition of the new House

The Next Government

creates an interesting and somewhat perplexing political problem. If

public opinion may be gauged from the measure of support given to the various parties it may be safely assumed that the country wants a safe and progressive policy. It has not helped to bring about a stable Government, but that was probably due to the political confusion created by the parties which wooed the electors. The Reform Party suffered losses for various reasons, the chief being that it has held office for so lengthy a period. The United

Party has not had sufficient ’ time to fully place its proposals before the electors, and the Labour Party is not in wide favour. In these circumstances the popular verdict _ould not be otherwise. It therefore devolves on the two dominant parties to secure a representative Government. That can only be accomplished by a mutually satisfactory working arrangement between two of the parties. An alliance between Labour and either the United or Reform parties is impossible because of the wide divergence of policy and the Ishmaelite attitude of the Labour leaders. Therefore, a basis of agreement must be found by the Reform and United parties. That may mean either a fusion or support upon an agreed policy. Whatever may be said to the contrary—and the future will clarify opinion on the point—the Reform Government was neither reactionary nor was it unprogressive. It had the misfortune to face the electors when times were comparatively dull and a number of people were having a struggle to make ends meet. Any Government in office during such a period must necessarily lose favour, though the causes of depression may be quite beyond its power to remedy. Fairly considered there is not much serious divergence in fundamental policy between the parties, and that is proved by the oft-repeated contention that the two parties should unite. This idea is therefore not novel, and is certainly not something which arises out of the confusion created by the polling last week. It is in line with the natural sequence of events and in harmony with political development. Only those whose vision is obscured by prejudice can say, in view of the Reform Government's record, that it was a Conservative Government. The way for a progressive and safe Government representative of the chief parties is therefore clear, and though there may be some obstacles to surmount prior to its accomplishment the course suggested appears to be wise and sensible. Adjustments will, of course, be necessary and modifications will have to be made.. Sir Joseph Ward’s .borrowing proposals will doubtless be revised, as they certainly would have been had he received a clear majority. But the essence of successful political Government lies in doing that which is possible, leaving visionary ideals to those who dream dreams. The alternative is another election, and that is the most unlikely contingency in the realm of probabilities.

The lessons of the licensing poll are writ large that he who

Lessons from the Licensing Poll.

runs may read. Three years ago the vote cast for National Prohibition

totalled 319,450; as a result of last week’s poll that total has shrunk to 274,904 votes, a decrease of 44,546 votes. On the other hand, the Continuance vote, which three years ago stood at 299,590, has swollen to 347,486, an increase of 44,296 on the polling of three years ago and a majority of 72,582 over the latest Prohibition vote without counting the vote cast for State Purchase and Control. If these be added to the Continuance vote, it reveals the supporters of Prohibition in a minority of 132,128 on a total poll of 681,936 valid votes —a sufficiently decisive result. Whatever the reasons for this decline in Prohibition support the fact must be accepted that by a large majority the people of New Zealand are in no mood to experiment in the doubtful scheme for the abolition of the licensed traffic in alcoholic beverages. Three years ago it was claimed on the figures that with a two-issue ballot paper National Prohibition would have been carried —a claim which renders last Wednesday’s voting all the more significant. To a very large extent the Prohibition agitation throve on the irregularities which marked the conduct of a certain type of hotel—irregularities which the powers that be have striven with more or less success to correct. With the improvement of the conduct of the licensed houses the Prohibition advocate has been robbed of one of his most powerful arguments. It should also be borne in mind that the Prohibition movement began by moral suasion as its most effective weapon, and it had large and enthusiastic support from the churches. Of recent years the Prohibitionists have shown a tendency to enter the arena of politics, and consequently the enthusiasm of the churches has perceptibly declined. With the gradual disappearance of National Prohibition as a live issue from the situation, the churches may now give undivided attention to the inculcation of the principles of temperance, whilst those responsible for the control of the licensed traffic must see to it that defeat of Prohibition is not the signal for lessened restrictions.

The Federal elections in the Common-

Tha Federal Elections.

wealth of Australia have not been marked by the element of surprise which punctuated the

general elections in this Dominion. The polling in the Commonwealth, while compulsory, was marked by no excitement; indeed, the comment has been made that the election as a whole will go down to history as one of the quietest on record. Generally speaking, the return of the Bruce-Page Coalition Government was looked upon as a foregone conclusion —and while the Labour Party has succeeded in winning back several seats which had been lost at the previous election it is anticipated that on the complete returns Mr Bruce will have a good working majority. The outstanding moral of the polling is that the

people of Australia., with all their Labour leanings, have not sufficient confidence in the leaders of Labour to entrust the conduct of the affairs of the Commonwealth to their direction. In the new Parliament Labour promises to be stronger to the extent of some 10 or 11 seats, and the Government majority will be lessened to that extent. It is surmised that a large number of voters, certain of the return of the Government candidates, neglected to go to the poll, and that they will be called upon to give reasons for their abstention. On the whole, the election results will be regarded as satisfactory.

An unbiased perusal of Mr Baldwin’s

Great Britain and World Peace.

speech at the Mansion House banquet can scarcely fail to carry conviction as to the cf-

forts which Great Britain is making towards the maintenance and preservation of world peace. Mr Baldwin drew a striking contrast between the situation to-day and four years ago. “ Enmities have disappeared or are disappearing; war wounds have healed or are healing; currencies have been stabilised, and though there are grave economic problems still to be solved their solution is being approached in a new spirit of goodwill.” And Mr Baldwin insisted upon the importance of the nations getting closer and closer together. President Coolidge has made" a deliverance on the subject, in which he alluded to the difficulty of the United States understanding the European standpoint and vice versa, illustrating his argument by a reference to the Naval Limitation Conference and giving reasons why America could not accept the Anglo-French agreement. But as Mr Baldwin pointed out in the House of Commons in reply to criticism, the Anglo-French compromise was no more than a perfectly honest and straightforward attempt to get out of the deadlock which had occurred at Geneva. Mr Baldwin emphasised the importance of British parliamentarians studying the political system of the United States, which was so different from that of any European system, and he concluded with an eloquent appeal for the perpetual peace and friendship of America and Great Britain.

The dangerous illness of Mr Bramwell

General of the Salvation Army.

Booth has brought into prominence the question of his successor in the leadership of the Salva-

tion Army, a position which entails not only the direction of a world organisation which appeals continually to the public for funds with which to carry on its various operations, but which carries the trusteeship of properties and monies totalling several millions. William Booth, the founder and first General, was an absolute autocrat, and when he appointed his eldest sonBramwell to succeed him there was no cavil as to the selection. Bramwell had during his father’s lifetime taken a leading part in the direction of the Salvation Army affairs, and it was generally felt that as General he was the right man in the right place. Bramwell Booth has seven children—sons and daughters —all of whom hold positions in the Salvation Army, but none of whom has evidenced any special qualifications for leadership. Since it is within the power of each General to nominate his successor, the question of hereditary succession becomes a burning one, and there is much conjecture as to the future of tne Salvation Army. Since there appears little hope of Mr Bramwell Booth’s recovery the matter is one which urgently calls for settlement, seeing that important financial issues are involved.