THE GREY SEAT.

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12889, 24 July 1913, Page 4

THE GREY SEAT.

LATEST FORECAST.

(By Teiegraph.) (From our Parliamentary Representa-* tivA.) WELLINGTON, July 23. Tho' special correspondent of the". "Post" at Greymouth, telegraphing this afternoon, says :-^- .. "The barometer appears to be rising1, and tlie number of people in Greymouth who will cast a political vote eeems to be increasing. This, of course, improves ■the changes of the Government candidate." ■"■■'■ At his meeting at Greymouth last levelling Mr. Michel remarked that MrArmstrong, a member of the "executive of the Federation of Labour, had chal- > lenged his statement about the lack "of , an itemised balance sheet of the £37,000 contributed in strike levies.. It was true that a balance sheet had been audited and published, but'the stems were in globo, and unions had been unable. to obtain detailed information. „ Mr Armstrong stated that a balancesheet had been sent to every union or association in Australasia that had contributed to the. fund, and no.complaint had been received from la. singlo nioiribor. ' '■ Mr Michel repeated that there were presidents of unions who were dissatisfied with the meagre particulars given. He asked why the Federation,'instead of keeping the men idle, did not spend the £37,000 in opening a iboal mine to keep them employed1. Were they afraid that that would mean work? _. . Mr Armstrong replied that the strike was forced on the workers, and. that they raised the money to support the women andl children. As tto raiding money for enterprises, the workers in Australasia 'had hundreds of thousand* invested in co-operative undertakings. • Mi:.Michel:'"A largo portion of the £37,000 must have been used to teep the agitators and the executive going. A Voice: Prove it. Mir Michel: -Whiat is keeping you? (Applause.) What is keeping Webb and Semple and Mills, and all of them? (Ap-

plause.) ' , '~' '. . ' Mr Armstrong: Semple, Mills and: others are elected by thousands of men w,ho> would not employ Mr Michel to clean their boots! (Much hooting.) ■-,:-. A : Who pays Jones P. (reform organiser in the South Island) Is it iXfassey? ' ' ■'~■; ' Mr Michel: Mr Jones is a fawner at • Ikjamiatua^. (Much cheering.) ' '-.■ i- -. ■'. In reply to another question Mr iKchel said that he had never been a meml»er. of an Orange lodge, in his life.'":_ Au inaudible duestioh was.asked-■cribon.'E

the Dean Carew story. - '-~ ■••■*. Mr Michel stated that the statement implied by the questioner was absolutely untrue. During the campaign he had never spoken to,any clergman of a Christian church and had not aeked any-r one 'ejse to do so. ■ •_.; ;. • t | Mr JVfichel said that IJare^ly owing to the Reef ton strike the Consolidated Goklfields Company of Reef ton, in whicfe probably nuany.widows ;hadl shares,' had notpa id a dividend for two. years. A ; "Voice: Quite, right, too. • Hi'f;Michel.i^Xe!?. that's, th« spirit ,of the Federation.'. Neyer mmd1 .-tte widowsr.. ■■'■• ' ■" " ''..":' "' ■■• ■-/. ■■■." '■■.'•■■ '■■