The Waipa Post. Published on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. SATURDAY, MAY 26, 1923. CABINET VACANCIES.

Waipa Post, Volume XXIV, Issue 1397, 26 May 1923, Page 4

The Waipa Post. Published on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. SATURDAY, MAY 26, 1923. CABINET VACANCIES.

MORE or less haphazard guesses are j being made in all parts of the Domi- ! nion as to just what steps Mr Massey j will take to readjust the alienation of j portfolios in bis Cabinet. The Hon. | E. P. Lee was unsuccessful in the re- j cent election at Oamaru. and bis port- j folios Police, Prisons. Justice. Exter- ! mil Affairs, and Industries and Coni- ' nierce- -or. rather, administration of] those Departments- have been shared j by several of t.'he other Ministers. As i none .s a very exacting Department,; the burden will probably not incur much extra eifort on the part of Ministers. Dm lately t lie i lon. 1). H. Guthrie, who has been in ill health for some little past, has had to be relieved j of ins portfolios of Lands and Kail ways - two ver\ important Depart-! meats. Mr Massey himself has taken; over responsibility for kailwuys. thus adding it to his eight other Departments; while Sir Francis Dell adds Lands to his seven other Departments, j Surely this state of affairs cannot eon- j tinue for long The Prime Minister.! we believe, will he absent, from the I Dominion forlhree or four months! shortly, and of course his portfolios j will have to he temporarily transferred | to other shoulders. Put whose shoul- ' ders7 That is whal is causing the - keenest interest. It has been sug- 1 gested that a South Islander will sue- ' ceed to the Hon. Mr Lee's position, hut j .that is not considered likely, as the i Reform Government only has an army ■ there of nine declared supporters—the j Hons. Sir R. Heaton Rhodes, \V. Nos- | worthy, G. .J. Anderson, and VV. Downie i Stewart and Messrs Durnett, Kitchen- j er. Girling. Hudson, and Rolleston - j and two "friendly neutrals "-—Messrs G. Witty and L. M. Isitl. If will he j noticed that four oft'he South Island ! Reformers tire Cabinet Miiristers while i Sir Win. Eraser (who for many years | represented a South Island constitu- | ency in Parliament and is now a mem- j her of the Legislative Council) is a i member of the Executive without port- ' folio. Tile Executive by the way consists of ten members. Among the names of the North Islanders men- | lioned as "in the running" for the mantle of Cabinet membership are those of Messrs J. A. Young (Hamilton) F. F. I-lockly (Rotorua) J. A. Nash (Palmerston North) and Sir John Luke (Wellington). Of the four. Mr Young has the longest service, while j he has the additional advantage of j being chairman of the Native Affairs Committee, a position 'he has idled I very creditably. The Prime Minister j has in recent years shown a disposi- ; tion to use vigorous, progressive young j men as Iris lieutenants, and therefore Sir John Luke's prospects do not seem j extra bright. Mr Hockly may he con- , sidered by Mr Massey and his chief advisers as not yet sufficiently experi- j enced in Parliamentary aitairs. and , therefore Messrs Young and Nash j seem to have the best prospects. Neither, it may he noted, has been a blind ! follower of party, at times betraying j an independence of action and expres- I sion that may not commend them to j the older counsellors, but we do not j agree that this independence is a fault ; —rather the' reverse. That Air Young’s , inclusion in the Ministry would meet j with unanimous approval in Waikato j goes without saying. However, some ; definite pronouncement on the subject j of Cabinet reconstruction cannot long | he delayed. Parliament is to meet on j i-lth June, and it is to he hoped that! the appointments will have been made | before then. Mr Massey will.find the i next session a very full one, and it j will tax all his strength and ingenuity j without his being overburdened with . extra Ministerial work.