PARLIAMENT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2633, 15 October 1909, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. THE ADDRESS-1 N-REPLY. I JVlt PuICHH ASSOCIATION-! WELLINGTON, October 14. In tbo Legislative Council this afternoon the usual sessional committees were set up. . , , The I Lon. J. It. Sinclair resumed the debate on the Address-m-Itep.y. Ho dealt solely with the labor problem, and contended that great care should be taken that no Jaw should go onThe Statute Book that would have a tendency to dry up the natural sources oi industry, and that we should keep emr employment lor our own people, and not depend upon other countries. Ho went on to speak of the industrial emeieney, and the attitude adopted by Germany in the matter, and said that if our work was to be kept lor our own workers it must be under conditions that will enable it to compete with other countries. His point was tli at there should be no levelling down process, such as our present system must impose, and that good workers should be enabled to receive good wages. This could not be done by arbitration further reducing the hours of labor and increasing wages. He pointed out that llie laws behind production were not the laws of Parliament. What was wanted was greater energy and greater production. The labor laws were responsible for forcing importations of articles which should be manufactured here. He was satisfied that it was necessary to amend these laws so that there should be no tendency to make the minimum wage the standard wage, and so that every encouragement should bo given to exertion. It was hopeless to look for prosperity unless capital was encouraged to a reasonable extent.

The Hon. J. Rigg, referring to the decision of the Defence Conference, said that it caused an enormous expenditure to which the country is pledged, and for which it gains nothing. They would get seven small vessels, which would be taken away in time of war, and we would bo left as defenceless in the future as we were in the past. Britain’s navy was primarily for the defence of Britain. The annual charge for our Dreadnought would be £125,000, in addition to our subsidy of £IOO,OOO. It seemed to him that this would necessitate further taxation. In addition to a naval scheme we were promised an internal defence scheme, which would probably cost another quarter of a million, and how was the money to be raised? He contended that we should combine with the Australian navy. The Hon. J. Anstey congratulated the Premier upon the way he had represented the Dominion at the Imperial Conference. He did not agree with the idea of joining the Australian navy. In reference to the labor problem. he was an upholder of the Arbitration Act, but it had been prostituted in South Canterbury in a most unworthy way. He urged that the law should he amended. He blamed labor agitators for being responsible to a large extent for the accentuation of the unemployed difficulty. The debate was adjourned at 4.40 p.m. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. THE ADDRESS-IN-REPLY. After midnight on 'Wednesday, Mr. Lauronson continued the debate, replying to the remarks of Opposition members. The Hon. A. T. Ngata moved the adjournment of the debate, and the House rose at 1.20 a.m This afternoon the debate on tbo Address-in-Reply was resumed by the Hon. A. T. Ngata, who said that Mr. Massey had stated that the result of the Native Land Commission’s work was disgusting. He (Mr. Ngata) said that the cost of the Commission was £9076. and that this expense was fully justified. The Leader of the Opposition should recognise that valuable work had been done which would affect not only our legislation, but our whole system of land settlement. The Opposition had stated that no effect would lie given to the recommendations of the Commission, but already several sections, amounting to nearly a quarter of a million acres, were being dealt with under that recommendation. The total area dealt with by Order-in-Council was 991.889 acres, which went to show that the Commission’s work bad not been fruitless. Mr. Ngata stated that the Alain Trunk line proper went chiefly through European lands. The timber royalties on the timber in the Waimarama block would pay for the line. The Maoris got lialf-a-crown per acre for over 300.000 acres sold to •the Crown. It had been said bv the member for Manawatu that no Alaori should be in charge of Alaori. affairs. Any slur cast on the Native Alinister was a slur on the Europeans who elected him to the House.

Mr. Malcolm said that when the House* asked for a policy on Native affairs, they got a. speech. He reviewed the history of the Ward Administration, which, he contended, had) been barren of any legislative results worthy of admiration. The Cabinet was out of touch with* the people, as was shown by the fact that the majority of the members in the House favored the. freehold ; yet the Government had no land policy to put before the country. Mr Malcolm referred in severe terms to the educational policy, and affirmed that the whole system was regarded with contempt by parents throughout the country. Mr. MacDonald followed, and dealt chiefly with the financial depression, which he attributed to the lall in the price of mutton and wool, and not to any maladministration of the party in power. Mr. Anderson, referring to Mr. Lauren son’s remarks on the Mataura election, stated that he (Mr Anderson) would never liavo opposed Mr. Mcrsab but for the fact that the Minister for Lands had gone back on his freehold principles. He (Mr. Anderson) would not accept the member for Lyttelton’s challenge to debate the land question at Gore, but he would bo glad to stand against him for Mataura at the next election. He hoped that the Hon. A. T. Ngata’s forecast regarding the settlement of Native lands would be carried out. He regretted the absence of reference to local government legislation in the Governor’s Speech. The House rose at 5.30 p.m. SPEECH BY SIR JOSEPH WARD. In the evening Mr. Anderson concluded his remarks on the Address-in-Reply. . .. , . , The Prime Minister > said he had never hoard anything! like the speech of Mr. Allen for wilful misrepresentation. He had been invited to givo specific instances of attempts made to injure the credit of the country. Statements made by public men, though perhaps not intended to have a bad effect, had undoubtedly damaged the reputation of the Dominion. The Lea-

dor of the Opposition, speaking in the House last year, said that if the Government did not feel inclined to put the brake on he hoped the moneylenders would bold their band. The Sydney Bulletin” had stated that the bottom had been knocked out of Maori- {■,, n ' J -.. Jll ,« member for Bruce bad said r at the Dominion had drifted into down V ,OSI + On . tll,lt a linam ' ial breaks t 1)0 k ' iuv<i - All these the do H suffici ent proof that New / lKK ' n disseminated that “ v non at the Mirplus aiK l the provision ror a sinking fund. ;j.| !e methods pursued by the Opposition. f or the purpose of attaining political ascendancy were absolutely unjustifiable. Jlcal’. ing with Air. J. Allen’s speech on tbo Add ress-i n-Reply, Sir Joseph Ward accused the member for Jlruce of inaccurate statements in regard to finance. Much bad been said of the Government’s borrowing money in the Dominion, but the- iact was that only £3760 had been so borrowed. It had been stated that £729,000 of the Post Office Savings Bank money had been appropriated by the Government, but £IOO,000 of this sum consisted of r J rcasury bills. A portion of this sum bad been also devoted to advances to settlers. The member for Bruce was one of those financial cormorants who had approached the Treasury for funds and had publicly said that if any plunder was going he would have his share. Sir Joseph Ward defended the Government’s action in connection with the Midland railway, saying that it was the only possible course open to it. As to depression, for the six months ending 30th September, the total revenue was £3,865,000, and the balance for the same period £59,880, which compared very favorably with the corresponding period of last year. On the same date the Government had £280,000 available for lands for settlement. Regarding borrowing from the A.M.P. Society, it was said that the Government had taken large sums of money, which would otherwise have been available for ordinary purposes, but the fact was that the money had come from the Australian office of the Society. He was getting tired of the cry about driving capital out of the country. The only people who were taking money out of the Dominion were those who had made fortunes in New Zealand. The same men who reaped the reward of the public policy in this country were those who took capital away to earn larger profits elsewhere. The member for Wairarapa had urged the Government to buy a large estate which only supported half-a-dozen men. This was not good policy. The Government would have the whole land question threshed out this session, but the Government had no intention of buying •"’dates at enormous prices, which would moan ruin to the unfortunate settler. The Premier defended the expenditure in connection with the visit of the American fleet.

Mr. Allen denied that he had stated that the Dominion was on the verge of bankruptcy. What he had said was that under certain conditions we must make default ; that was to say. unless the Government raised another loan to carry on the [Midland railway. [Mr. Massey complained that the Premier was quoting part of his ([Mr. [Massey’s) speech, without reference to the context, and defended his remarks on the Government’s borrowing policy. MR. T. E. TAYLOR’S REMARKS. Mr. T. E. Taylor (Christchurch) congratulated the Premier on his speech, especially on the statement as to the land question. This was a more important announcement than any t-o be found in the Governor’s Speech. _lt the Premier settled the land question he would deserve better of the country than any man who had ever occupied his position. Parliament had no right to endeavor to discharge duties which ought to be performed bv local bodies. An immense saving could be effected by reform in public works administration, in the direction of creating local boards. Public works should be, paid for out of local taxation. This would reduce the number of demands for expenditure. He suggested a referendum being taken on the land tenure question and advocated constitutional reform in the direction of an elective Executive and Legislative Council. Mr Fraser spoke on the financial position traversing the Premier s remarks on the Opposition's attitude. Mr Reid continued the debate and the House rose at 11.30 p.m.