POLITICAL NEWS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 4113, 26 September 1884, Page 3

POLITICAL NEWS.

[by telegraph.]

(From our SrEciAL Correspondent.) Wellington, This day

The debate on the financial .statement came to an end at a late hour on Wednesday night, or rather Thursday morning. About 10 o'clock Mr Ormond rose to speak, and received a hearty round of applause. I have heard the member for Nnjiier on many occasions, but never heard him to better advantage. There was no hesitation in his delivery. While not agreeing -with some of the proposals of tho financial statement, he quite believed in the bond Jitle of the Government with respect to a land tax and local government, und would give them support. Ho travelled over much the same ground as in his speeches at Napier during the election, and though, consequently, the subject matter was not now to tho whole of his audience, it was received with strong marks of approval. The repeated applause throughout the speech, more especially from the Ministerial benches, showed that Mr Ormond had the House with him, and from the earnestness of the delivery all who heard him felt assured that he was speaking , on topics that had had his most serious consideration. On the conclusion of his speech, to use a common expression, he "sat down amidst a storm of applause." The House then adjourned for half an hour, and during refreshment one heard on all sides that it was the best speech during the debate. lam not telling your readers this because Mr Ormond is the member for Napier, or with a desire to give an inordinate impression of che prominence of the position that Mr Ormond occupies in the House, I am merely telling what I heard, and in the lobbies, and especially in the press room, candid opinions are freely exchanged. The result of the debate you already know. Yesterday in the Local Bills Committee of the Legislative Council the evidence of Mr Kinross was taken re our Harbor Bill. He laid some stress on the fact of being a delegate from the Napier Chamber of Commerce, and said that the petition against the Harbor Bill would have come down much more Humorously signed had many of the petitions that had been sent round the country not been stuck up by flooded rivers. As was pointed out by a correspondent writing in your columns some short time back, the Chamber of Commerce made a great mistake in electing Mr Kinross a delegate. The position most undoubtedly gives him a weight ho would not otherwise possess. Unlike tho House of Representatives, the Legislative Council is not to bo iniluciiced by what the electors regard as tho pressure of public opinion, such as monster meetings or even by burning an effigy. Anything of that kind is not likely to prejudge the bill with the Council. The bill was judged solely on its merits, and on tho effect it will have on the future of the district to which it attaches. Mr Kinross' opposition to the bill is based on that ground, and, taking that ground, ho brings an influence to bear on honorable councillors that gives all our Hawke's Bay members the greatest trouble to counteract, In reference to Harbor Bills, I may mention that Sir George Grey moved the second leading of the Gisborne Harbor Board Empowering Bill in the House yesterday. In doing so he said, in a country like Now Zealand, harbors were of much greater importance than defence. He had always regretted that when in office he had had to sanction the expenditure of £40,000 for the purchase of big guns, which were absolutely useless. New Zealand was bound to become a great maritime nation,

and therefore those who were promoting harbors at Napier and at Gisborne were great public benefactors. He went on to say that foreign nations would have much more cause to dread New Zealand privateers than this country would have reason to fear hostile visits from an enemy's licet. It was the duty, therefore, of the Houso to encourage the construction of harbors for the promotion of coastal trade, from which would be created a race of courageous sailors. Mr Rolleston, Mr Bryce, and Colonel Trimble opposed the Gisboriie Bill on the ground that it asked for an endowment, and it was necessary to grant public endowments on some well-defined principle. The bill, however, passed its second reading on the voices, being strongly supported by Sir Julius Vogel. In the course of the afternoon Sir Julius Vogol stated that the expression of opinion was so strong that the Government had come to the determination to withdraw their proposal to reduce the vote in aid of education. This brought Mr Turnbull to his feet who said, if the Government were to withdraw their proposals at every strong expression of opinion, the House would not know

to what, extent reliance could be placed on the statements of the Ministry. If tho withdrawal was an injustice to those who made use of the educational system, he would like to know what justice was to be nietcd out to the Catholics. He considered

it most selfish that this concession should be made iv tho direction intended, while

nothino- was proposed to be done to assist those in the colony who comprised oneseventh of the whole population. It was indicative of the character of the House that, though Mr Turnbull's little speech was most certainly in the interests of common justice, not a single " hear, hear," followed his remarks. Mr Ross was glad that the Premier had resolved to withdraw the proposal to reduce the grant. Sir Julius Vogel, replying to Mr Turnbull, said the whole matter was so small that it could not be considered a question of policy. Mr Shepherd then followed; and saw, if the reduction had been carried out, the loss of the grant would have fallen very severely on teachers and the lower class of those who were already most inadequately renumerated. Members are to have another _ holiday trip. The Hincmoa leaves to-night for New Plymouth and Kawhia returning on , Tuesday afternoon. This is an earnest of the kind of economy we are likely to have under the present Administration. At the evening sitting Mr. Levestam s bill for the amendment of the Adulteration Act came up for its second reading Capt. Russell objected to the bill on the ground that it was a measure so incomjrietc in itself as to be likely to only lead to confusion on the subject of adulteration rather than to clear it up. He thought it was a measure that should more properly bo dealt with comprehensively by the Government. He regarded it as a measure of protection, as it went in tho direction of protecting the imported article as against that which was locally manufactured. For instance, the proposed penalties applied only to wine, beer, and spirits manufactured in the colony, and exempted the imported stuff. In another point he thought the bill very deficient, for though it proposed to control the dealings in '' movable casks and bottles," whatever they might mean, the poisonous stuff retailed by the glass, such as was alleged had led to the fearful murders at Ormondville, was untouched by tho measure. I hear that Mr. Steward's Licensing Bill will be talked to death. It was on the order paper for last night, and a motion will probably be carried that it be read this day six months.