THE PARNELL BY-ELECTION.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 May 1930, Page 10

THE PARNELL BY-ELECTION.

Although the keen political partisans are probably either delighted or dejected to-day over the result of the by-elcction for the Parnell seat in the House of Representatives, the majority of the electors in New Zealand, are not at all likely to be disturbed either way. At the most they may think that the Reform Party is entitled to congratulate itself on having recaptured the seat from the United Party, and they will be cqptent to leave it at that. There is no reason to suppose that the result of the poll will make any difference in the House itself, for as long as the two -parties that are out of office refuse to help each other against the Goveinnmnt there can be no change in the occupancy of the Treasury Benches. Io the unbiased onlooker, however, the ciicumstanccs of the by-election have not been without interest. .Ur. 11. R. Jenkins, tvho was returned at the gcneial election as a supporter of the United Party, resigned the- seat on the ground that the time, had come for a fusion between the United Party and the Reform Party. He joined the Reform Party for the purpose of working the fusion, but it seems that when his new political friends selected another candidate to carry their banner they proceeded to forget the fusion issue which Mr. Jenkins had raised. Fusion certainly tvas not a practical issue during the Parnell campaign, so that- Mr. Jeiikins’ .sonie--

what heroic gesture appears to have been made in vain. It is questionable whether the election was fought on any great issue; at any rate the reports of the speeches-made by the leading men of the parties have revealed no outstanding differences save those which separate Labour from both Reform and United. Yet a quite dispassionate view of the political situation would seem to sn o ‘ r est that fusion must become practical politics. The three-party systent leads to great waste of effort, and as long as two parties whose views are not greatly dissimilar continue to expend their energies in fighting each other so long must there be a danger of Labour’s becoming dominant. It would certainly be better for the country that the parties which subscribe to - 'ieies of moderation should pool their resources rather than permit the control of the country's affairs to pass into the hands of the Labour' extremists.