CLEANING UP AUGEAN STABLE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 15212, 10 May 1920, Page 4

CLEANING UP AU GEAN STABLE

• -7 \ ...I. . ' '"• m . THE NEW LABOR CABINET AT ; //•.'.' .WOTtK:: ,- ,\. SYilNEll,. April 18.^-Tlie lively scenes which marked the opening of the new Now, South Wales Parlia_lent yesterday were 'in a ...sense a culmination. , of the cleaning-up process which tlie Labor Government; undertook when it assumed office a few weeks ago. The Holman Government, m the. last few months of office, . had gravely abused its powers and privileges, and m undoing these things the" -hew Labor Ministry had a task which it liked i yery much. Tyhft Labor Ministers first , of all put the. use of "State .-raptor cars upon: a hew basis, -£oy as to. ensure the reductioii of. , this- expense, aiid.thense.flf «th : e;.oars on State busiivess.pnJiy. I ,'TJie''Natiohai Ministers misused these - cars most shamefully, > gac^cd : the -2. 0f, them £ad an expensive car^ahd. chauffeur constantly at his ..disposal, and.; they, v and v ..their wives ; used, them .regularly for their private pui^ses.., One sporting Minister nsed,,,to.. j*o to., and return- from race meetings- m ohe >, and another always used • one . m , going; t0 ... his rweekrend : cottage., ...The. upkeep. ;p£ this .fleet -of exA pensiye..cars, and the garage and staff fe was" enormous. ~'~ ■. :,.■'■>■.}'.■ /•:, - ; w "■.•» Then the', Labor. Si" nistcrs recalled Mr.'D. Hall. . All,. Australia.; is chuckling over this. Mr. -Hall just- bef. re' the election was appointed .Agent-General in' London, .at , £1800;. a -t^ear..- He ''made his,,. getaway" just? before th> election* Labor .threatened -o bring hii.i back, if it s got into " poweivf^and ;it has done bo. At any ;; rate,at gotr-a cable to Miv Hall m. New. York, telling - him this his > appointment was. cancelled; But Mr. Hall only used some bitter language — he was a victim of 'the' Spleen of his political opponents- he said, and he- arwrays under- . stood that appointments of such a character were regarded aa sacre4-rand.con-tinued-Jiis journey to -London. There irill, probably, bo some ihterestihg de: velopiiieiits^ .for .Mty Hall : is certain to demand; compensation. Then the : 'Labor. Ministers, got busy with Mr. HolnvSh's recommendations to the- Colonial Office; m regard titles and similar honors, ' It appeared that Mr. Holman. had asked for .a, P.O. for himself; and wheh'-he w^is informed that only jthe/ Prime -Afinisters of . Dominions, and not ,_*remiers" of States j were admitted the Priyy Council, he said he wo'tdd ta-o nothing.. But' he used all his wonderful ' linguistic powers jn ask; ing for a baronetcy for his colleague, Sir George Fuller." Sir Georges—who is now the leader, nf the Nationalist, Par-tyi vice Mr. Holman— got his knighthood only the other .day,, but apparently ho . eager^ : for more.. , • However, " that baronetcy will not now bo, conferred. It is also reported, that Mr. Holman asked for a knighthood/ for Mr, Hugh D..Macintosh,: of the Tivoli Theatres and the Sunday), Tiniest ; And .there , are about, a dosteri other gentlemen whose fond, hopes of .titular; distinction are doomed now to disappointment... ..V;. .... Naturally, the ejected Nationalist Ministersyhave heen very .sore over. this ruthless cleaning, of the. Augean stable, and they gavOitheir feelings full vent/ yesterday, -when Parliament ' met. and the Labor .-Party proposed Mr. Daniel Levy as; Speaker. , Wheli the House assembled, 45' v Labor men faced 45 others — Nationalists, .Progressives,', . and Independents. If Labor had -to appoint < its own Speaker; it would bo in* a minority of oi;e; > if ; - it cpiildyget.a Speaker' from ,the other , ; side, rfc jwaulo" : hayo : a majority of ono-'a-hd'.' could carry on for a _while, at any ratei Mr. Daniel Levy; a prominent member of the Nationalist •' Tarty',, and Speaker during, the term , pf the .Nationalist Government's rule,. signjfied,his readiness "to accept tho. Speakership again, and .'. ;waV- duly/ proposed . .---.-". Tlien the' storm burst. Never did tlie iii'iioi'tuinate Nationalists appear m. gp airiJfavorable alight. They had been putgeneralled; but, instead;of behaving! m a dignified 1 way, ;they, shrieked., The young men. on tlio Labor benches opposite, ofc-ourscj t^upt^d them and jeered, and they seemed to logo control of themselves, They Ruined torrents of Trtuperation . upon .Mi\. Levy. Sir George Puller gave the note, and- Mr. Fitzpatrick (Treasurer m the Holman Government) followed him, aiid spoke for two '" hours.. - He :-called Mr. '. Levy a "traiter," "a recreant,'.' "it was ."a damnable piece of treachery,'' "despicable," "a dirty piece of tripkery," and co on. The Labor member^ laughed, Uie" Labor Premier (Mr. Storey) made a calni. quiet, dignified speech, and Mr. Levy »-at unperturbed.^ He simply said that he was Speaker m the last ParliajnonV that ho was- prpud of the.- high pfJlc*, and he sa& no reaeo_ why he

" ~ , c , ..., „- ... . , , . should be a party to'making the Speakership the plaything of party politics. Every newspaper-— even the Sydney Morning Herald— has condemned the Nationalists for their' undignified outburst, and declared that the battered Nationalist cause N has lost much by the incident.—^Post .• correspondent.