POLITICAL NOTES

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 466, 12 June 1890, Page 3

POLITICAL NOTES

GENERAL GOSSIP. The Wellington correspondent of the Christ church Press telegraphs:— There seems tn be a firmly fixed impression among those in a position to know and judge les: that Sir Harry Atkins >n will not attempt to go through the session, aud that his delivery of the Financial Statement will immediately precede his retirement. A new story is started by the Post. It alleges that Mr Fexgug met with a “ warm reception ” on his re u n to Wellington in consequence of his Queenstown speech, and that as the policy (outlined in that speech) has elicited almost umveisal condemnation, “ ihey now desire to escape bearing any portion of ihe blame, and seek to make Mr Fergus the scapegoat.” The Poftt goes on to assert that, according to report, Mr Fergus “ has been conspicuously absent from one or two Cabinet meetings held since his return, and that one leading member of the Executive makes no secret of his conviction that the common safety demands that Mr Fergus should be sacrificed.” The lime paper asserts that •• It is a positive fact that Ministers are considering anxiously how they can counteract the unfavorable impression created,” and that lha only question is, Who should be the Bptaker? Mr Richardson bring indicated as the most probable choice. The Post further asserts that it knows “ a suggestion to have been made that Sir Hairy Atkinson, while nominally retaining the Premiership, could be relieved of a severe Parliamentary work if Sir John Hall would join the Ministry without portfolio and lead the House.” It concludes as follows ;— •* An arrangement of this kind would possibly be acceptable to the Ministerial party, but it cannot bo made unless one of the present Ministers retires. The law only allows of eight, Ministers whether with or without office (Native members of the Executive being additional) and the number is now complete. Sir John Hall, therefore, however willing, cannot be taken in, even without a portfolio, unless someone else goes out. The retirement of Mr Fergus, consequently, Bpight not cause much mourning amongst the Wurvivors of the Cabinet, bus we very much F doubt whether Mr Fergus has any intention Of resigning, or will be content to be treated as a Jonah and thrown overboard. Time wi 1 show. One thing is quite certain, and that is that Ministers collectively are decidedly flurried, and feel somewhat in a quandary. There will almost certoinly besom*-. surprising Changes before Parliament meets on the 19:b inn. In their present position Ministers are by no means prepared to meet the House,”

SHAM RETRENCHMENT. The Wanganui Herald lets the GovernBant have the lash on the question of retrenchment, concerning which Ministerial Bupporters have made so much vain boasting. The Native Department (says our contemporary) has remained in evidence as a perfectly useless adjunct, requiring a large and unnecessary expenditure. There is no reason that we can sea why, when the present Ministry receive their dismission, the Native Department should not disappear at the same time. Then we were informed that the Public Works Department would also disappear. But the evidence has been all the other way, Mr Backe’t was appointed • inspector of material * in London just at a time when we were ceasing to import • material,* A great civil war broke out last year fa the Cabinet over the claims of two officers high in the service—Mr Blair aud Mr O’Conor. The caaut belli was, which should be Engineer in Chief ? Mr Fisher told us how furious was the strife, and it was only suspended upon the understanding that nothing should be done. Mr Hislop swore, like the troops fa Flanders, furiously at Mr O’Conor, while Mr Fisher as stoutly defended the descendant of the victor King of Cloniarf. And now we have a beautiful compromise Two splendid billets have been provided, and one is to be Engineer-in-Chief, while the Other is to be Marine Engineer. It may be observed here that these two offices, in the days when there was work to be done, were vested in the same person, Mr Blackett discharging both functions. But we are also informed that Mr Blackett is returning to the colony, and that Mr O'Conor will take his place in London as •inspector of material.’ The solution of ail this business ia—to fulfil the pledges given at the last election, and abolish the officers and the salaries, The money will be better applied in promoting settlement and making roads. Then we should like to know what services Sir James Hector is rendering for his handsome ■alary of £BOO a year. It was the peculiarity of the late retrenchment fit that all the big fish escaped, especially if they were intrenched behind a permanent act, while the smaller ones were passed under the yoke, and others, like telegraph clerks, were allowed to remain grinding away at starvation rates. The reform of the future will be to make a clean ■weep of all these highly paid mandarins who are idling away their time in offices which have ceased to have any reason for their existence. Everyone knows that much of retrenchment, about which so much noise was made two years since, was sham. Is there any reason why real retrenhement should not begin? A re-adjustment of salaries is absolutely demanded, and it seems pretty clear that the time has come when the working bees should have a larger share of the fruit of their industry. For some time the drones have had moat of the honey; and that is not fair.

THE “WASTE” LANDS. The Auckland Star makes the following comments on the recent meeting at Napier, in regard to land and immigration “ No, Mr Ormond ; you are an old an clever politician, and the object you and your Chamber of Commerce are so anxious to attain can be achieved, as you will no doubt at once with your long experience see, not by purchasing your and other Hawke’s Bay estates at a Itholouß price per acre, and not by purchasthe Maori lands at the value they may BKoose to put on them, but by q..ie ly assess "ng all lands European and native, at their full unimproved value, and dapping on a moderate tax of, let ua say, one per cent, upon them. This tax would be found to be no greater npon the ’waste aid unproductive land ’ of the Maoris than it would be upon you and your fellow landowners—• waste ’ but productive land which you hold still in a state cf nature, But the effect of such a tax would be this: It would cause you and your friends to utilise your land to its full taxable value, and if you could not do thia, you would find it convenient to part with it, do doubt to those who could and would use it. But alas 1 by that time the lands would have absolutely lost their speculative value, and you would not receive from the purchaser more than its real value for occupation and working. This no doubt is a painful matter to contemplate, but if it were done, population would flock to us, and the present New Zealand wilderness would be made to blossom like the rose. There is no necessity whatever for borrowing more millions to purchase either from the present European landowners or from the natives. A simple tax on the unimproved value of all land will very soon put the matter straight in both cases.

K- |A LITTLE COMPARISON. We may be talked to about oun debts, derided for our extravagance, abused for all kinds of faults, public and private, BnUthe great solid fact cannot be hidden, that we arc better governed than the people who furnish our erjtias. We have not run out country Into such * stale that parent, bare to Mud their children without breakfast to school. As Lord Ooelow gently hinted, the pennle pro tn thia prosperous etale, even though they pay tuah high duties tor their goods, and p ..see, a Government which kindly undertakes to do so very much that elsewhere la left to private enterprise, and not only socoeade is its undertaking but ha. a aorplus (ino’nding the primage duty) of £llB,OOO at the end of the operat on. Hera we have the great truth in full relief, that high wages are a sign ot national prosperity; moat desirably have they proved their power of Berrying the people Ahroogh a gnat variety of experiences, all terrifying io tbe-.ry to the dwellers in old lards whore labour is poorly paid and rotten theories of political economy are extravagantly worshipped,—Lyttelton Times. ▲ PRB SESSIONAL ADDRESS. , J In addressing his Constituents at IBalmentob North, Mr Macarthnr said he Referred Mr Bryce to Sir John Hall as rrtaiief, sheald Su M, Atkinson retire,

Hi' objected to the principle in the Hospital Bill of last session in reference to bodies which controlled the expenditure, and condemned the proposal of the Government to introduce it again this session for the purpose of having it " licked into shape” by a Committee. Hia arguments as to the fallacy of the surplus said to exist last yoar applied equally to the £115,000 this year, as there really was no surplus if the ordinary deb’s of the country were paid. They first had to deduct the socalled surplus of last year, £27,000; then time was £55.000 of primage duty—really trust money—rai-ed for the special object of paying off the deficits of the Stow Vogel Government, and then they had a land fund deficit which, exclusive of last year’s deficit of £ll,OOO, showed a deficit of *£34.000. The colony had, in fact, just about held its own during the year and very little more, the revenue having benefi ed to the extent of from £20,000 to £30,000 through several rich men dying. He blamed the Railway Commissioners for the present trouble with the employs. Speaking in condemnation of the village homestead system, he expieased the opinion, from personal observation, that much more than th? £60,000 stated to have been spent in connection wiih these se.dements had been expended.

JOTTINGS. Messrs J. Carroll and Sydney Taiwhsnga leave to-morrow for Wellington to attend to their Pi r iamentary duties. Mr Arthur expects to get away by Fii lay week, but those who ought to know think that he will be detained longer in Gisborne on account of the Tokomaru case being before the Commission.

We are informed that Mr is likely to get a large support from Opotiki and Tauranga at next general election. It is thought to be hardly probable that Mr Carroll will stand again for the Maori seat, the spread of Hauh&uhm being a great point in favor of Wi Pere. Tuta Nihoniho has been mentioned as a probable candidate for the East Coast Maori seat, but the “stunner” he got over the Waipiro block case will very likely make him red qnish any desire he had to strive for Parliamentary honors.

The Bruce Herald would be glad to see Sir Robert S out returned to the House at next election, aud should he, it hopes he will go up to Wellington wi h the revolution of kcal government as his trump o .rd. The Otago Daisy Times says:—“ On the whole we do not think that the Ministerial jolicy is likely to meet with approval, but as t can evidently be altered to ‘suit the times,’ this is after all no such important consideration.”

Mr T. Pratt, member for the Southern Maori electorate, will be again a candidate for that seat. The Dunedin Star asserts that there is no truth in the report that Sir Hany Atkinson intends to resign office immediately after the delivery of the Financial statement. It also states that Sir R. Stout emphatically declares tbaj he has no intention of re entering the political arena. The Wanganui Herald says that if Si Julius Vogel were to assume the editorship of the Wellington Times it would create new life in the Empire City—a fine independent ring, and no more servility and fetching and carrying from Government Building?. It is reported that Mr Izard will be a candidate for the Fox'on electorate.

The Napier Teb graph Parliamentary reporter wires as follows :—“ It is understood that with relief from all departmental work and early hours, the Premier will be able to continue in office during the coming session, which is expected to be a short one.” “ When will the Ormonds come to realise the truth ? ” asks the Wanganui Herald. Very soon (reply we), when they find that, the people cf the colony refuse to allow it to be a “ paradise ” of greedy landlordism and monopoly.

The Wanganui Chronicle passss off as something new an old joke that it was rumored Te Kooti is to be called to the Legislative Council. There was something more genuine like in the report that the former outlaw intended to contest the Eastern Maori district, io which the Hauhaus would be bound to a man to vote for him.

A London paper, speaking of Sir Robert Stout, says that he is a man of conspicuous tact and ability, and beyond doubt he would hold a more exalted position in Australasian politics were it not for his unfortunate preclivi'ies in the direction of Atheism. Io this particular branch of thought ha out Bradlaughs Bradlaugh both in extravagance of doctrine aud in his methods of giving expression to it.

Mr Roberts is mentioned as a candidate for Dunedin city. Messrs CarncroiS and Barron will contest the Taiei.

The resignation of the Hon. G. M. Water house reduces the number of members of the Legislative Council to 39.

The FeildingStar says :—There is one thing certain that any scheme, system, or proposal however good it may be, which is suspected of emanating from the present Minister of Lands, will be looked upon with suspicion, because, even if he were capable of suggesting a wise land policy, he is incapable of carrying it out. Mr W. A. Fifzherbert is to be a candidate for the Hutt seat, for which Mr Kirk will probably retire in his favor. For the Waimea Picton seat already five candidates are in the field, namely, Messrs Kerr, Seymour, Mills,Frunklyn, and Phillip?. The medical attendant of Sir Harry Atkinson advises his colleagues that Sir Harry’s retention of office may lead to an apoplectic attack or paralysis.

THE “MINISTER AGAINST LANDS.”

[special to this standard.] Christchurch, last night. The Hon. G. F. Richardson addressed a meeting at Wyndham last night, when he exhaustively dealt with the administration of lands, defending the Government and letting out his hardest knocks upon the adamantine head of Sir Robert Stout. He said that gentleman had tried to start a mortgage and agency company, and had also, he was informed, a leading part in the formation of the New Zealand Pine Company. Next year, Mr Richardson boastfully asserted, the results of the Government’s land policy would be unSrecedented iu the history of the colony. lr Richardson gently evaded any disclosure of the general policy of the Government, since Mr Fergus’ speech is now made out to ba only a bit of his own “ gag.” All he would let out was in effect that it was a policy of settlement and progress, and one that can be pursued wihnut further borrowing — this being sufficient to show that, considering the speech made by Mr Fergus, the Government are for the present at sixea and sevens, and have yet to acquire a mind of their own.