POLITICAL NOTES.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11635, 12 August 1905, Page 6

POLITICAL NOTES.

(From our .Parliamentary Special) • (By -Telegraph). , PARLIAMENTARY EXTRAVAGANCE. August- ; 11. ; ... The latest instance of Extravagance" in connection with Parliament is the, minutes of tho Land Commission. . -When the re-, jport of "the Commission *waslaid on the €able a request was made- that the minutes also should, be presented, and it is understood that onereajson for the request was the assumption/ -that if ..they' were, a fair statement of -the '.proceedings of the Commission, they would,naturalLy include some reference to the .-'Correspondence which must have taken place between the Government and ';the Commission as to the protracted natureiof its proceedings and; the necessity for haste., The fact that some' such correspondence' took place is a matter of common knowledge, and it is well known that as- a- result the CommissioH divided itself «intd two parts and 'hurried along through slips and mud, and rain and flood, and' snow and hail, with a speed that was in vivid contrast to the leisurely pace that characterised its movements during the earlier -part of its career. Singularly enough, not a word is to be found in the minutes as to the reason- for that new-born energy. AU that can be learned from a perusal of that most uninteresting document is that the Commission .met on certain days, that certain members were present, that so and so .were examined, that "the. day was devoted to the consideration of the report," and that votes of thanks were passed to various officials. To record these facts tw-enty-one pages of type are filled, and the^ cost of printing1100 copies is put down at £73 — not a very large amount, certainly but an amount which could have been easily expended in a more profitable direction. MR FISHER'S ALLEGATIONS. The Audtior-General (Mr J. K. Warburton) received his instructions this morning to hold an inquiry Into the - allegations made by Mr Fisher, M.H.R., regarding a certain payment said to have been made to Captain Seddon, and it is possible that it may be opened to-morrow. At any rate, the Auditor-General will begin his investigations not later than Monday next. The inquiry will be conducted strictly on Departmental lines, and it is understood that representatives of the Press -will not be permitted to attend. The position now arrived, at in connection with the charges made by. Mr ' Fisher concerning an alleged payment to Captain. . Seddon is . not altogether satisfactory to the New Liberal Party. They desired a full and public inquiry, and Mr Fisher states that while he has accepted the investigation offered as better than -nothing at all, he, regrets that the Premier would not take the proper course in the matter and allow " the. public the fullest opportanity of judging the JHejdifcs ofuthe case, as some of the charges brought by the' New Liberal Party against the administration of- the Government have been.) obscured hi the. mass of talki that has followed on their utterance. The party at its meeting in the Town Hal] on Monday promises to ma^ke its position perfectly clear. -Both- Mr Taylor and Mr Fisher will review the circumstances leading up to the present state of affairs.