ADDRESS=IN=REPLY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1370, 22 February 1912, Page 3

ADDRESS=IN=REPLY.

DEBATE IN LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL,

KEFORM PKOPOSALS,

The Addross-in-Beply debate in the legislative Council was completed in th« Legislative Council on Tuesday afternoon. J- lie motion was moved by tho Hon. J. B. CALLAN (CJtago), who said be agreed with the statements made in his Excellency's Speech regarding tho continued prosperity of tho country, hut at n ? staU ; r i le . nt i l,at coiilc.ntiii(. n t'and Imp. pmess obtomed everywhere, he was indined to pause. Iα view of recent "C thT?hf' h ° r i(l not h(,, P t,lillkin S tluit this was too sweeping a. statement Referring to stnkcs, Mr. Calian remarked that, as a reasonable man, ho should always w.sh to sec Ixibonr compensated fairly and justly, hut. also a? a reason able man he loathed' strikes. (S IK-ar.) AY hen overy person over the age ot t'.venty-one years had a vote,- ha could not see how strikes were necessarr in tins country. If Labour onlv milled totional methods obtain everything that was jus and reasonable. He hoped that tiio system of strikes—a barbarous remMy—would come to an end. Tho Snc«ch indicated that there would be radical changes m. the Legislative Council. He was not opposed to change, and he thought the seven years' appointment was a mistake. The weakness in the present system was that there was a tendency S??Ka^ r of t 'iheTy linthellandS b.™ doni.» B - JenkiDSoD: "" hM not Hon. Oeo. Jones: "Evil-minded people may think so." ContiniiiEg, Mr. Calian referred to the portioni ot independence in which Judges »f tie hupremc- Court were placed, and Sol h \i mt » Se ° Why th ? .Gnmcil should not bo in the same position, if the prehnnlTl ' W ?- S f to t coatinut >- Tlie tenure ftoiild be a hfe tenure; with a proviso perhaps that on reaching a certain a»e members should retire. Ho believed tfowwp, that the nominative system Vas Roomed and that an elective system ffoiijd take its place. This, he thought, ftoulcl be an lniprovemnnt on the present ?rstejn. As constituted, the Council was noi. in favour with the countrv, and if the present system was continued that portion of the public which was crying »"t for the abolition of the Legislative Council would be extended. Ihe Hon. J BABE (Canterbury) «c----nded the motion. Th« reform of the Council v.-as a matter on whichthev were all at one. Reform ™s necessary, a, d the only question was how it should be earned out. B e f erring to wfo™ o f t£S toner House, he thought it VM time the Government ceased to be a roads and bridges Government. Our whole polite had become parochial, and anvthing that would remove this would be wefJ body which would take roads and bridges, etc.. from the Parliament of the ountry. Mr Barr spoke at some length an the necessity for preventing gambling in Crown leases, and proceeded to express his satisfaction at the suggested sctniLr" F a c ?» ,hlisB i°n of Industrial ivestigahon. The time was ripe for this. In the course of his remarks on his subject Jtr. Barr expressed tho beliet that the majority of the workers of New Zealand were in favour of the Arbitration Act If legislation was inf.rortuced suggesting -the abolition of the Act jt was then that the real feeling of Ho workers would bo expressed. The £st thins wo should listen to, added Mr.' Barr, is the voice of the advocate of the strike, whether it be a' general or a sec101ml strike The, worker forgot sometimes that the other side could combine >Iso. If it came to a tug-of-war, added Mr. Larr, who would win? Not the irorbcT, he was convinced. The Hon. J. PAUL characterised the Speech as one of the most remarkable .locuments ever put before any Parliamrnt in any part of the world., He held t proved that the radical thought of he country was havin-r a tremendous inluOTre on the authorities, and he beieved that many of the reforms fnreihadowcd would be accomplished before ••o very long A comprehensive scheme it larliamentary reform was required, but it would be useless to deal with out Jiambsv. and leave the other alone. The Lower House could not truthfully b« ermed representative, of tho■ people, and iajl not htin so for many years. The mh- remedy for tho troublfl" was a ?v 3 - *m ot proTinrtiqnnl representation. Tho .tovernment s nrouoral for reform of the .joniicil was abpolutely roactionarv, and ihoiild Ik utterly- condemned. There was nuch that could be said for the abolition of the Council altogether, if proper I. arliameniiry reform was brought in It could not be enu tended that the-iCoun-:il as a bo-jy >vr>s respected as it fhonlfl -je respee'ed. Ho believed that the nomnatu'f? system war. doomed. After the acting-lMdrr of the Council Hon. J. Jf Gowan) had spoken, the moyon was jnit and carried. The Council adjourned at 4.55 p.m.