THE DILEMMA OF "REFORM."

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11028, 17 March 1914, Page 4

THE DILEMMA OF "REFORM."

Crooked dealing leads to humiliation. The 1 Reform Party is finding this to be the ease in the Bay of Islands electorate fte elsewhere. In response to certain negotiations, Mr Vernon Reed, after being elected as a Liberal at last electi6n went over to tho reactionaries, and according to the Reform organiser and converted Socialist, Mr Paapo, it Was ipninly due to Mr Reed's influence that fthers ratted at tho same time, thus giving' Mr his majority. The Government is faced with the dilemma ihat Mr Wilkinson, who has been a . f Reformer " all along, and who sup-jrtn-ted the pfcrty banner'at Idst elefc- , ti<m, irtflists on standing against nil iwiners in the Massey interest. The **rty, thus faced with -an embarrassment of richss, has now decided to turn down old True Blue, and support ihe political rat who helped to luro the g 1 'fiither political rats into tho trap. Mr Faape says the position is most uubut hopes it may yet bo One, way would be to out

cither MY Reed or Mr Wilkinson into tho Upper House! Tho Reform organiser, in the course of his peregrinations, had tho extremely bad luck to corao into Collision with a Mr Wrathall, who insisted on reminding the assembled electors that besides his trade in rats Mr Massey had done a little business A'ith tho Red Feds, helping Mr l ? ayne at Grey Lynn, and instructing his land owning friends at Otaki to burn their petrol, lor Mr Robertson in order to defeat that extremely wibbly-wobblv Literal, Mr W. H. Field. Now it seems that Mr I'iekl hns fallen over on tho Maseey side of tho fence, and the motets will merely fumigate Robertson as they pass him oii the roadside. And it was the " Reformers '' by your leave who camo into tho political arena t.o put a stop to the bargaining and degradation which were playing havoc with our public life!