“A MOST EXTRAORDINARY THING ”

Gisborne Times, Volume XXX, Issue 3464, 2 March 1912, Page 7

“A MOST EXTRAORDINARY THING ”

THE DOMINION ON THE WARDISTS’ ATTITUDE. “BRUSHING ASIDE THE PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT.” (From our Parliamentary Reporter). WELLINGTON, Mar. 1. The Dominion said this morning in reference to the Premier’s determination not to introduce the new Ministry to Parliament before prorogation: It is a most extraordinary thing that any Government in a country such as this should, in its dying hours, attempt in this way to brush aside the principles of democratic Government and place in office as its successors a set of men whose policy is absolutely unknown and whose ability to command a majority is to all appearances quite as remote as that of the men forced to abdicate . by a hostile public opinion. The impropriety of the proposed procedure is of course, aggravated in view of the fact that Parliament was specially summoned to the question of whether any party was in a position to carry ( on the Government of the country ' and also by the circumstances that members are still here for that purpose. The proper course—the only course a truly democratic Government could take in such circumstar ces would have been to have given members an opportunity before dispersing of learning the personnel of the “new Government and to afford that Government a chance of placing a general outline of its policy before the eouutry. The new Government may be anything. It may do anything—no one can tell. Parliament and the public are asked to take it absolutely on trust at a most critical time in the country’s affairs. There is not a soundly-conducted business establishment in the _ Dominion that would dare to run its business on such preposterous lines, and yet the large ana, in some. cases, vitally important interests involved in the Government of the country are to be treated in this reckless and undemocratic fashion. There is not the least doubt that a reasonable adjournment as proposed by the Reform party would commend itself to the general public as the proper course to pursue, and neither the Government nor the Labor members can find any good excuse to put forward against it. At the time of writing the matter is still under discussion and the question is open to doubt, but whatever the. result of the division may be, the improper attempt of the Ministerialists to squeeze a new Ministry in on trust in the manner

proposed must damage the credit of the party still further in the eyes of the country.