EXTRACTS FROM HANSARD.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2231, 20 September 1889, Page 2

EXTRACTS FROM HANSARD.

THE ADMINIS. RATION OF JUSTICE*.' Mr Taylor.— -We all know that Judges, unless they are above suspicion, are liable sometimes to be i'ldined to the environments which surround them ; they are prejudiced — I admit, sometimes unconsciously — m consequence of their sun oundings. I c reuse them upon those grounds ; but, under ordinary circumstances, we find that the richer the man the more law he gets, and the poor man can be shuffled off from day to d»y and worried absolutely to death : the law as it is ad* ministered m this country at the present time is not at his disposal. Therefore, I say, we must have— — Mr Speaker.— l think the honorable gentle* man is exceeding the latitude allowed m debate m referring to the Judges of the land as he is doing. If the honorable gentleman has charges tp bring against the Judges which he thinks be can substantiate, the law prescribes the coune to be followed. Mr Taylor. — I did not make any definite charge. What I said did not apply to the present Judges, or to any Judge. I indicated that it was possible for a Judge to be influenced by his surroundings, md unknowingly m. fluenced. Mr Speaker. — You alluded to the administration of justice m a very unmistakable way, and m a way m which it should not be referred to unless the imputations were intended to be substantiated, Mr Taylor.— l submit to. your ruling, Sir with the greatest pleasure. "* THE CREDIT OF THB COLONY. Mr Ballance. — Then, we are told m the Financial Statement that the credit of the colony has been greatly improved. I take it that some improvement has been due to the fact that there have not been so many people at Home and m the colony running down ttie credit of the colony as ihere wpre I remember the time when colonial statesmen were not ashamed to represent the colony as m a state almost approaching insolvency . We had at that time, two or three years ago, at Home a number of gentlemen, a colony of gentlemen, an absentee colony, a New Zealand colony, m London who were contributing letters to the newspapers serious y affecting the credit of the colony. That has ceased. TAXATION. Mr Saunders,— l did my utmost ten years ago, when the Property tax Bill was being Eassed, to get tha amendment now proposed royght about, and therefore it is with very great pleasure that I see the Colonial Treasurer has so far advanced m his views of i Preetrade and liberality as to see that machinery is one of those things that ou & ht not to be taxed whilst we pretend to be so desirous to encourage manufacture. I trust that m the course of the next ten years he will have so far advanced as to see that the food and the clothing and the necessariss of life of the mechanics are still things which ought not to be taxed. I think, too, that the oppor* tunity should be given to persons to have their land taxed at a lower value who hay*:, unfortunately, found that It has become of less value. Nothing can be more arbitrary than that we have not been allowed by the operation or the Property tax Act to reduce the i charge on property which has been materially reduced m value.