HAWKE'S BAY CONTEST.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14236, 2 March 1917, Page 4

HAWKE'S BAY CONTEST.

i ._ ... m.... — : — ; — (Per Press Association. HASTINGS, this day. Mr Frasei; had *n exceptionally good meeting at Hastings last night. He deplored what he termed tlie intrigue which had J>rougfcj_ abo.ut the selection of Sir -John Findlay as Government nominee,. . He criticised at some length, the othev. candidates. Mr Simeon, he said, was a gentleman whose chief claim for support, was that be had m previous elections stood down for other caudidates, .and.. -Sir John Findlay presßed himself on the electorate with a testimonial -written by himself. Speaking i of. conscription, Che said that everything justiable should be done to iielp to win, the -war. Shipping should be conscripted' if there was no other way of controlling freights. Labor should be conscripted, so that there would be no idle persons while national work was waiting to be done. Land, native -and European, which owners were not working to reasonable productiveness should be conscripted, and money lying idle: should be turned into silver bullets. Regarding the clergy and the ballot he had no hesitation m saying that he would not support conscription of the clergy of any denomination. Ibe statement that special consideration was being given .to Catholics was untrue. The clergy wanted .to give consolation and Christian training without which we Mould have a Godless oouiitry.