THE SECOND BALLOT BILL.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XL, Issue 5574, 23 September 1908, Page 3

THE SECOND BALLOT BILL.

(Otago Daily Times' Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 21. There is a good deal of speculation as to what will be the fate of the Second Ballot Bill. It is generally admitted that in this matter the Government has blundered, and a hope is openly expressed by sevex-al of its supporters that the Bill will yut bo, dropped, The present House, however, is so utterly subservient that if the Government says the word the Bill will be agreed to by a considerable majority. Of course, the Prime Minister has a good excuse at hand should he wish to drop the Bill. He himself put in the 500 majority clause, and the Council knocked it out. There is therefore room for "disagreement," and that is often an effective method of jettisoning' political goods marked, "dangex'ous." It must not, however, be forgotten that though the Prime Minister put in the clause in question his Minister in the Upper ITouse agreed to strike it out. We must therefore cast about for the reason for this sudden and somewhat strange change of front. Two possible reasons for the change ocaur to one. The first is that the Govex*nment wi-shed to abandon the Bill, and promptod the amendments in fhe Council with that object in view. The second reason that suggests itself is that on going over the list of candidates the Government found that the 500 majority clause would act prejudicially in its intei'ests at the coming election, and that it still wishes to pass the Bill, but minus this clause. Politicians within the party »alio ought to know believe that the Bill will be proceeded with and pas^'d. In that ease the second hypothesis is the one that must, for the want of any other valid explanation, be adopted. In addition, there is, of course, the ii'ouble aVo-wi the "gag" CIiIUSC, and a further trouble has arisen in connection with the seamen's vote. The intervention of only a week between the two elections will mean that many seamen will be disfranchised at the second ballot. The more one tihinks about the Bill the more unjustifiable it seems to be, and the "gag" proposal is the worst feature of all. Prominent Liberals admit that it would be sufficient to wreck a Ministry in any case where parties wore nearly evenly balanced. They also point out that the Council's attitude in x-egard to it is another strong argument in favour of an elected Upper House. However, in a few days row we may be in a better position to judge what the fate of the Bill aiII be. ,„__«__