IN THE SQUARE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1736, 29 April 1913, Page 8

IN THE SQUARE.

BUSY TIME FOR CANDIDATES, SOME BRISK DISPUTES, ASSOCIATION CANDIDATES AT WORK. Customhouse Square was a placo of much loud talk yesterday from shortly after noon until after two o'clock. In an express drawn up on one side of the tramway waiting shed Labour candidates held forth "0110 after another, and from an express on tho other side of tho sued Messrs. 11. A. Wright, A. K. Atkinson and A. Leigh Hunt successively delivered addresses. Tho listening crowd at this place fluctuated in numbers, but/averaged iiboul Lwo hundred. The members of the crowd were noisy, but not altogether unreasonable. Sir. Wright, who spoke first, was siibiecl.ed to a heavv tire of uu&tujlis and

interjections, but was never denied a hearing. Mr. Atkinson was listened to quietly, and Mr. Hunt spoke in «u atmosphere of calm that suggested a church meeting, Mr. D. M'Larcn watched the proceedings on behalf of. tho Labour party and other members of that organisation attended' from time, to time. ASSAILING LAIiOUK. Mr. Wright prefaced his speech by attacking the composition of the Labour ticket which ho said did not contain the name of a singlo bona-fide working man. . "That's a lie," said one bystander, and others named -Mi'. Memtt, Mr. Chapman, aud Mr. Bedford as working men. Sir. Wright stuck to his contention and declared .that several of the men on tho Labour ticket were small capitalists. Mr.. E..J, Carey challenged Mr. Wright to debiito the question for five minutes. Sir. Wright declined lo bo arrested in his speech, but said that he would have pleasure in obliging Mr. Carey at another time. He went on to criticise the attendance of Labour members at meetings of jccnl public bodies. Mr. llindmarsh, he Stated, had attended only 19 out of 15 Harbour Boi\rd and Committee meetings, and 19.0ut of 71 Hospital Hoard and Committee meetings. , These figures, Mr. Wright stated, referred to meetings which Mr. Hindmhrsh had been summoned to attend. . :

i Mr. M'Larei, at this stage, was permitted to mounv the platform to reply to what Mr. Wright hud said. He declared that Mr. Hindmarsh had been accused of not attending meetings of committees to .which he did not- belong and which he "could not have attended in any case.

.Mr. Wright .said that this was not so. '. -Mr. M'Laren mndo a similar-claim on his; Own account, and said that in addition, as Mayor of the city, he had dealt with many cases 'of relief 'without attending formal meetings. Mr. M'Laren also stateel, that the City Council Finance Committee and the Hospital Board met on,.the same day. He had endeavoured ,linsuccessfully, to have the date of tho .board meeting altered. Mr. Wright defended his statements about the bad attendance of Labour mem-bers-atJlarbour Board and Hospital Board meetings. In regard to the Harbour Board, he had quoted from a printed return issued by the board, which 6howcd tlmt'.Mr. llindmarsh had attended nineteen yout of forty-five meetings ho could have-'attended. Mr. AVright then criticised. tha'/gEanting of a tramway concession whiqli ;Jio said had benefited tho Kiibirnie Skating Rink. Asked ,w:hat,his policy was in regard to the Harbour Board, Mr. Wright snid that it "was'.ii, liappy family which would bo none tho worse for an infusion of now blood. Replying' to a question whether he favoured a forty-eight liour week for corporation 'drivofs. Mr. AVright said that ho believed in the forty-eight-liour week, and would-voto on- every occasion for what was' fair .and .just. Not knowing the conditions under which drivers worked, he would not pin himself down to a definite promise in their case." Criticising the recent alteration of tramway section's, Mr. AVright said that it looked as though someone had shut his eyes and twirled a pencil over a plan of the,city, making a section at each point wlie'ro, the pencil dropped. ; COUNCILLOR. A. R. ATKINSON. Councillor A. R. Atkinson, who followed Mr. .Wright,' emphasised what Mr. -Wright had said about the members of tho association ticket being absolutely free and unfettered men. Nobody had appTOrtchcd him. or asked for a pledge. An elector: Did you ever sign a pledge? Mr. Atkinson: "I never signed a political pledge and I am too old to learn now." In further,. proof..of his independence Mr. Atkinson said that he was opposed to the association on whose ticket he was standing, on some important points of policy, notably in regard to leasing portions of tho-.Town Belt'.to private clubs. He had no hesitation in saying tlint the Labour men in the council formed an exceedingly, valuable element. They had assisted to protect the, reserves against, encroachment, ..and had maintained respect for the city by-laws.' He had heard with regret one Labour, candidate mention "pickings" in connection witli candidature for the council. ' He could say for the'iproknt- Mayor and !l "councillors :tiiat none of-them had looked for "pickings," and there was not . a man in the council who would not have scorned-to take pickings if any had appeared. There had been no-trace of corruption in the council during his experience of it. Mr. M'Laren: Yon don't suggest that the Labour party makes tho charge, do you,., Councillor Atkinson? . -Mr. Atkinson: I suggr-st that flue, of your candidates made it from the cart over there. I heard liini..

Miv.'M'Laron said that an individual did not. necessarily speak for the parly. Mr. -Atkinson said that when the remark was made it was not repudiated by the Labour men standing around.

Mr M'Lareii: I will repudiate it now for tlie party.

Mr. Atkinson went on to point out that the 'Wellington City Council had J»one further than the law rcouired in preventing-its members from trading with the city. It. had refused to recognise a tender from a limited liability company iu which -any councillor was interested, although this was permissible under tlio law.

As to the Filbirnie tramway concession which' Mr. Wright. had mentioned. Mr. Atki'n?on said that h;; had attended the .meeting and could not understand why lib name did not appear on the division list. The question had been dealt with as one of policy and not of motive. The council had acted as it (lid on the recommendation of the Tramway Board of Management.' which considered that, it was better to make the concession thin' to have the cars running out empty. Mr. Atkinson claimed that the candidates on the association "ticket" were better qualified to represent tho varied interests of citizens than those upon tho Labour "ticket." Bo admitted t.hot Labour was entitled to representation, but contended Mint it would be against the interests of Labour party members themselves if they got the hundred per cent, monopoly of representation 011 tho council for which . thev were asking. . , Mr. M'Laren at this stage was permitted-. to mount tho express -airain to ;Tnitko"*an announcement. He said that several, questions had been raised which called for 1 a reply, ami ho would take the opportunity of furnishing the replies in tho same place 011 the morrow.

•MR. A. LEIGH HUNT. Mr. A. Leigh Hunt next spoke, in support of his candidature for the Harbour Board. He said that he had had twelve ■■yeais' business experience'in Wellington., jjnd" that" his business brouirlit him into coAacE'with the Harbour Board in such n way as to make him familiar ivith the inner -workings of that body. He described at length his connection with the movement which resulted in an amendment of the Crown .'Stlits Act making it possiblo for mi individual or, firm who had suffered wrong "to obtain redress against the Crown. Mr. 'M'Laven had said that he (Mr. Hunt)..liacl been, turned down by the Chamber of Commerce. In point of fact, his' failure- to seoure re-election to the council of the Chamber of Commerce was due to the fact that he had adopted and "had "adhered to a militant policy. He mentioned that the man who had topped the poll in the last Chamber of Commerco election was one of his nominators in the present contest. In tho latter part of his address, which was attentively listened to throughout, Mr. Hunt vigorously advocated the: development of tho To Aro railway.