LOBBY GOSSIP

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2203, 16 July 1914, Page 7

LOBBY GOSSIP

AND POINTS FROM DEBATES

DAILY' SUMMARY - The afternoon proceedings an. the House of Representatives yesterday ■were quiet,' and the attendance was thin. From a somewhat extended discussion on swamp drainage (based upon the'report on the Hauraki Plains.operatioiis), .members turned to the usual Wednesday afternoon debate on Ministerial replies to questions. In the early afternoon the Customs Amendment Bill, standing in the name of Mr. Fisher, was read a first time. | The evening sitting was devoted to private members' Bills. Attention was ■first paid to a small Bill introduced' by Mr. Hindmarsh to amend the law relating to imprisonment far debt, which, was eventually read a second_ time, and referred to the Statutes Revision Committee Incidentally an interesting discussion aroso' upon the question of, the credit system in retail trading. The next Bill considered also stood in the name of the member for Wellington South. It proposes to bring servants employed in chartered clubs within the scope of the Arbitration Act, but this question was side-tracked' by a. big debate on tho'subject of the' control of trades union funds. The Opposition made common .cause with the-Labour and Socialist members in contending i'that union funds should be at the disposal of a majority for' political and other purposes, a. view of the matter that was strongly opposed by the Prime Minister, and several of his colleagues, and a number of other Government supporters. : '••■. :''':. Mr. Hindmarsh calmly left for home before the discussion came to an end, and just after midnight the' Bill was read . a second time.. Mr.'. Robertson (on behalf of the absent .member \ in charge) moved that it be referred'to the Labour Bills Committee. This was agreed to, and; the House rose at 0.6 a.m. ' ' .--. ' Tho Legislative Council met yesterday, .after, an adjournment of ten days. Four of the eleven 'newly-appointed 1 members were sworn in,.and the Council then adjourned till to-morrow afternoon. WHOSE THE/CREDIT? The member for Avon is ever ready to 'try arid ■ discredit. ,the! Government and _to. glorify its predecessors if ho possibly can', and he sometimes tries to do it when he can,not. Yesterday. ho seized tho opportunity afforded by tho.' presentation of a report on the Hauraki Drainage Wdrks' to declare that this great enterprise, so magnificently successful was'dtie to the "enterprise of the late Government. Ho pointed with some triumph to the fact that the present Government had not spent nearly so miich money on the works as tho late Government. : ; This point Mr. Massey. was able,to answer at once. Speaking with an intimate knowledge of tho Hauraki Plains country and of tho works' he showed , how, when the work was commenced, a heavy expenditure was necessary and possible, and. that much of this'early expenditure '-was on the purchase . of plant,. butHhat now, owing to the fact that peat swamps were being drained, ■the'.work' coulo) be advanced only gradually and that it was impossible to expend. profitably more than £35,000 a year. Replying to' the boast' of Mr. Russell that the present Government had no claim to credit for the suqeess of the Hauraki Plains Drainage Works, Mr. ;Massey spoke of other drainage schemes the, present Government had undertaken, and proposed to undertake'. "I hope, during the rfext'' ; teh'^yeiirs," , he/said, "to'make available very large areas lying idle .and unoccupied at the present'time.".•'.'.:. -' ;/,.'".'■" -•.'Mr.'.''Allen: Why. are they idle?': '~ • .Mr: Massey: Because the' Government in office prior to us didn't do their duty. I want to, say 'that from my point of view the political outlook is perfectly .satisfactory.' T am perfectly confident that if tho election took place next week the Reform party would come back with a thumping majority. ',■'"'; NEW \COUNCILLORS. Pour out-of the eleven newly-appoint-ed 1 members of ithe Legislative Council, were present yesterday afternoon, when the-Xegislative Council assembled, and were sworn'..in.." The first of the new members to- take oatk of office was the Hon. J. G.- W. ,Aitken, still hearing the marks, of his recent serious illness. The Leader of the Council (tho Hon. H. D. Bell) and' the Hon. J. "Duthie stood pponsor to the new member, and also for tho Hon. Gilbert Carson, who was the next member l sworn in. Tho Hoii. Dr. Collins was supported by the Son. Captain Baillie, the 6enior .member of the Council, and'thoHon. T, Thompson.■■ Tho Hon. A. T. Maginnity was supported by the Hon. H- D. Bell and tho| Hon.. C; A. G. Hardy. The remaining members will probably be sworn in at the next sitting of tho Council to-mor-row, afternoon. . . . ABSENT PENSIONERS. • In' tho 'Legislative' Council yesterday afternoon the Hon. W. Carncrpss ask-, cd the Government' whether they would, this'sessioni '« ' amend the Military Pensions Act, that a pensioner should not be deprived of his pension during a temporary absence from tho Dominion? His attention>had boon,drawn ti the matter,. he said, owing to the fact that a military pensioner who left the country for a short time,'expecting that his wifo could draw his pension, while-he was away, found that he was deprived of ; it. Since giving notice of, the question he had,received"correspondence expressing satisfaction at his having brought the' matter before ' Parliament.' Tho Hon H. ; D. Bell said that the matter would bo considered with the: next amendment of the Pensions Act. ■ "BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION." Some ton days ago Mr. John Payne incurred the displeasure of the House, and was subjected to tho penalty of suspension' fdr a sitting for using the words "Ho sits there by bribery and corruption," and applying them to the Prime Minister.' Very soon after ho again resumed his_ seat in ■tlio House. After his suspension ho asked tho Prime Minister to move to have the Standing Orders so amended as to almember of the House to make a direct charge of bribery and corruption against a Minister or Ministers, 'or.against the Government as a wholo without being liable, to 'ho censure of tho House. Mr. Massey replied to this question yesterday: "The Government does not intend -to ask Parliament to amend the Standing Orders." A STRANGE ALLIANCE. During tho discussion on the second reading of tho Imprisonment' for Debt Limitation Amendment Bill in the House of Representatives- last night, two members, Mr. J. Payne (Grey Lynn) and Mr. C. A. - "Wilkinson (ikjmont),' whose views on politics are usually widely different, found themselves in agreement on a proposal to place a restriction on credit to the workers, and'to provciit .traders recovering on small accounts. This led! Sir Joseph Ward to niako a laughing comment on the position. Ho supposed they would see, lie said, a declaration on .the following day that tho member for Egmont had become a Red Fed. (Laughter.) Mr. Wilkinson: There ti no danger of that. Sir Joseph Ward: He is in a dangerous position. Mr. Massey: Yon monopolise it. Sir Joseph Ward: You aro always getting slorios down like that. EDUCATION SOARD CHAIRMEN. It was indicated by the Minister of Education (tho Hon. J. Allen) in the

House of Representatives yesterday, that the Education Bill may mako provision for payment of chairmen of Education Boards. Ho did not commit himself to any definite statement, hut said that tho Government would acquiesce .in anything the House might do in this direction. REFORM LEAGUE CONFERENCE. The annual conference of tho New Zealand Reform Leaguo will open in Wellington to-day. Thoro will bo a very largo, and; representative attendance, some two hundred and fifty delegates having come from all parts of the Dominion. Indeed, the delegates are so numerous that some difficulty has been experienced in providing them all with accommodation,