WELLINGTON EAST

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 68, 13 December 1919, Page 8

WELLINGTON EAST

DR. NBWMAN AT ST. MAHK'K. Mr. T. Herbert occupictf the ih:-.ir':it tUc meet ing addressed i>y Dr. A. K. Newman in St. Mark's Schoolroom last evening. The candidate reviewed what had taken place in Parliament during the la.-l five years. He thought that the Liberals might have stayed on in the National Government arid helped to clear up. But they did not, and the Koform' people carried on, and they had done very well indeed. Giving to domestic legislation having been neglected, purhiips necessarily so, and as people persisted in getting married, more homes were wanted, and they wero not lo "do liad, so that the houses in some districts had boec-ine unpleasantly overcrowded. Now the Government had taken up the problem sor.'ously, and intends.^to iipend 11 -iiullious in the project, YTithin the next two or three years th<: Government prcpnsetl to erect some. ICflO houses, and in order tu build them .is economically as pesibk , they wero purchasing the fitting.-, wholes-lie. Tho houses would cost eoiuctiii-ng like JJ7SO each (including the land), and woukl be- rented at froai .£1 to J.'l 'M. fill, a week. Th<it, he thought, was oven too much for a working man to pay, but the cost hail 'u be t:ik=n info consideration. That was one of tho things the Government; hail set its hanu to and meant to go through with. In Wolliiigicn they luid to n certain extent teen handicapped for want of building land. Wellington proper used to be contained v-iHiin'tho Town Tick, but now it extended far beyond, and means had to be taken qj getting the people, out to tho suburbs economically and speedily. Tiauiv.ays in some parts of the world •vwc- regarded us rinlequatod. No new tiamways were being built in London, and th-. . Mayor of New York was leading a cru-;adc 'against them in favour of motor buses. Those on good roads and ■with rubber tyres, provided good and rapid means of transit. They took 50 passengers, arid soon would take 100, and Sid not cost anything like the amount tramv/ays did. With Lower Hutt and ' Upper Hutt, Tawa Flat (through a tunne!), Johnsonville, lvhandailah, Karori. tiiiii 3liramar there ifas cnoiigli laii<l for 2,000,000 people. Ho strongly urged pushing on with the Mnngahao hydroelectric scheme as the chief means of lightening the burden of the people and niiikiuj; life happier. The work should bo done in thiw years. /There was no difficulty jn letting contracts, but Hie National Government had been dawdling over tho job. There" should be 700 or BCO men now on the work erecting the station at Shannon, building the dams mid tunnel, putting up the' poles ,-nd hanging up the wires. His idea, was that no time should bo lost in providing cheap power for trams, lighting, and heat, so that they could be independent of the miners. He also mentioned the fact that the .Minister had now decided not to orect <i prison for women at Point li'iilswell, but that it was to be built somewhere between UUiki and AVaikaoae, where it was sunnier and brighter and more out of the way. On i.'io motion of Mr. T. .lamieson, c-fcconded by Jlr. V. 11. Jlndeley, Dr. Ni wimin whs accorded a vole of thanks and confidence. Jlr. Jamieson added Hint Ik- hoped everyone would turn out (in Wednesday next anil record their voi-.'s. anil so place Dr. Newman at the head of the pull.

MR. M'KIOT.II! AT NEW CENTURY HALL. Mr. L. M'Xenzie, the Liberal candidate tor Wellington East, addu&ed the elcciors in the Weir Century Hail, JCent ■fvirace, last cvcuui^ , . Mr. \v. Wood pro.sided. iilr. M'Kcnziu referred to W.t cost of liring, and slid that in looking in tiie "Gazette" of October 2 he found that most ot the primary products such as wool, hides, meat, butler, cheese, etc., were to-day under requisition by the Government, but the (.lovernini , ;,!. r.iivc the iocal inaiiufactiirers the pru-iiiiptivc right to a pcrcentaga of the ]:raluct«. In thfl matter of hidi's tliere vens provision for local luanulacturcrs Iα lake if) per cent, and the whole of the calfskins if necessary.-■• Prior to the war Neiv /.ealnncl mamii'actuiers used lit) nor cent, of the hides and only 10 per cent, of the calfskins. To-day they ivero taking adviintiiiie of .their positian, and were buyins i'iie wliolo of the calfskins and f>!) per cent, of the hides of various grades. What remained »'it* of poor (iiialit.v, and -.ome of I lit* , hides had Ik en sold at auction and hud fetched more than tho j prices paid for the hides selected by I'ho

local manufacturers. The hides purchased in the open market had Ijsgh exported to America, where- they liiul ljce;i converted into leather and subsequently into hoots and shoes, which were being iniported into .New />i'ala.ml and sold itt slightiy higher pric , .-; than the locallymanufcclured goods, notwithstanding that the American Roods had to pay freight, iimmmce, anil Customs dutie.-. The local manufacturers were still pnVciiasing up to the limit, and it was reasonable lo suppu-c- that is- lot of these hides and eah.-kins were weiiis bought and held for spoculativ? purposes, to be placed on the market when the embargo was lifted. They knew as well as ho did what was the increased cost of repairs to boots and shoes. He wanted to know whether the general public were being treated fahly "iiiulcr such conditions, lie thought the Government should have ma<lo provision for regulating the prices of the locally-manufactured goods. Ho contended that the position was the same in respect to woollen clothing. The.rest of Mr. M'Kenzie's speech «s on the lines of addresses previously delivered by him. He particularly referred lo hifi record in the City Council, and detailed at some length the important matters for which h« was responsible in refutation of the statement that lie Usui no past record.

ME. A. W. CROSKKKY'S , CAMPAIGN Last evening Mr. A. W. Croskcry addressed u mestiag at" St. Hilda's Hall, Island Buy. Mr. P. J. O'iic-gan presided. The candidate dealt very fully with Hid housing question, .ind urged that the proposals wcro of very littlo vnlue to the great mass of. the people in view of the amount ut' rent necessary to ba paid under the scheme. ]ii the opiiion of the speaker no nci'.;o!i should pay more in rent than he could earn by on? day's Inborn, but under the Government sthenic this was impossible, and would 1)9 impossible until tiie Government entirely eliminated the rings and combines which worn operating in connection with materials required to build houses. That it was still possible to build houses at the present lime which would ba within iho roach of every person's pocket was evident from the tact that in Sydney today four-roomnl up-to-date brick houses were being built and being let at 12s. (id. per work. In conclusion, the candidate dealt with the question of education, and pointed out that this important ciusition had been entirely neglected during the past live years. Teachers wern leaving the profession owing to the inadequate- wages which were being paid, and going into mercantile cccupationr, where the remuneration was much better. The class-rooms were shockingly overcrowded, and ihe"cdiicationnl system wan in a complete state of elincn. The questions of profiteering, widows' pensions, etc., was also gone into, and at the conclusion of his addiv-ss the candidate was accorded a unanimous vote of confidence.