ADDRESS BY MR. HOGG, M.P.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1029, 19 January 1911, Page 6

ADDRESS BY MR. HOGG, M.P.

(By Telesraph.—Special Correspondent.) Mastorton, January 18. ■ Mr. -A.'W.'Hogg,'- M.P., addressed a large gathering of elector's at tho. Town Hall this evening, the Mayor (Mr. J.:M. Coradine) 'presiding; , ."'ln liis ojpening 'remarks, Mr. Hogg ■ apologised . for. having been ■ prevented, through illness, from; meeting his con-stituents-last year. He' claimed . that though he .had been .denominated an Independent or "free lance" member, lie Had isucceeded in getting .'a,"'number .of votes for? the district, including those for the new Courthouse ahd'public buildings. He'then referred to'the , value to the district of-'.the. Waingawa , Meat .Work's, which" had. recently been'erected. . Dealing with tho Wairarapa train service, Mr. Hogg stated that he did not" know'who was responsible' for the existing arrangements.- The. Minister , for. Railways' had got 'the credit- for certain new arrangements, but'lie (Mr., Hogg) was surprised that lie had not been burnt in effigy in the Wairarapa.' Mr. Hogg'then criticised the blunders of the Public Works Department, particularly. referring to the ißimutaka railway, and the Otago Central. He declared that self-reliancc was beiug • abandoned, and they wero living' chiefly on borrowed money! .Ho did not agree with Sir Joseph "Ward that the fivo million loan" had been a success. It would cost the taxpayers .£200,000 a year. Mr. Hogg also expressed the opinion that, if the bookmaker was to be abolished, the ' totalisator should also go. Ho criticised the v retrenchment policy of the Government, and pointed out that the Departmental expenditure had trebled in fifteen years, and that,, last year, it was a million more than; was the case two years ago. ■ Dealing with the land question, .ho stated ■thafthe freehold versus leasehold question had been argued threadbare. A terrible blunder had been made by allowing a small -army of dummies to pick tho eyes of tho King. Country, in order 'to create a spurious aristocracy of Maori landlords. Ho advocated the establishment of a paper currency in ' New Zealand, and said that. New Zealand would would not always be ruled "by "stick-in-the-muds" with a policy consisting of borrowing and' brag, ilo was strongly opposed to. the defence scheme, because it meant oompulsory training, and a stepping-stone to conscription.. Ho 'was opposed to duties being placed on the necessaries of life, and said that if ho-were again returned to tho House ho ' would once more endeavour to get the duty removed from flour. In conclusion, he'said that, as between-Mr. Jfassey and Sir- Joseph "Ward thero was very little difference. There was, in the House,, the material for a new party, and it .was coming io tho front. The country demanded it, and tho demand must not be resisted. ' It was tho party of progress, and lie did not care by what name it -Was known. There wtro members. of the House well fitted to lead such" a party, but ■ the workers, must be brave and • unyielding, and there must be no dissensions in the trades unions. The Government had a fighting fund: in hand, and. if lie was not mistaken, the Opposition had the same. ' On leading p.sihoiples they.;.stood virtually united,. , and tho workers must regard them as a common adversary. - ' : , • At tlio conclusion of- hi? address, Mr. Hogg-was accM»d a <-nt P of-thank?, on tho motion of the Mayor.