HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Feilding Star, Volume XIV, Issue 15, 23 July 1892, Page 2

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Wellington July 21. Atque-ttion of privilege was 1 railed by Sir John Hall with "reference to akfurh which had been laid on the table and which Sir John Hall, contended wa* incorrect and inaccurate, but nlthongh tbe matter led to a long debate nothing came or it. •; i, j MrScobie Mackenzie, continuing the debate on the Financial Statement: said a more vicious or dangerous 'finance was never proposed to the House than that contained in the Statement. -Those who knew the Premier ..in public life wpuld recognise m him the Jubilee Planner of New Zealand. Referriag to' the proposal of the Government in regard tolocnl borrowing, he pointed but that when the'late Sir H, Atkinson had proposed to borrow from the Trast Funds of the colony, the present Premier bad^atlacked it stronfcly, and desirbed it as borrowing in, nn under* hand manner. He (Mr MackenrieLoriticiscd the .Colonial Treasurer's financial abilities, pointing out' that th^first 'time he left office there was a deficit of £1,---000,000, the next" there was a deficit of £500,000, : and be (Mr ' Mackenzie) /expected that when the Premier went: out of power,, after the next election; there would be a deficiency of £250,000^ 'As to the Labour Bureau, he asked' if that Department taxed the colony; to keep it going now in our tithe of prosperity, what would it be when the ; day of ad versily come. This was the first time in the history of the colony that only individuals of the right : colour were np« pointed to positions at. the disposal of the _ Goyerhment. • Mr I Mack*i»«LAaid the people at present -night /not see the impostures that were .fyjng practised upon them by the present Government, but they,, would in time see, that this Liberalism without freedom waVnp more than the body after" the , soul had left it. ! The Hon. W.. P. Reeves' .pointed but that Mr Mackenzie, when the late Sir Harry, Atkinson's/, proposals'' 46 ; (borrow Public Trust. Funds, came .. before 7 the Housed had supported them.; , Now, wh|n the. present Government was doing exactly the .same thing,, he condemned it yehemently. \ '. He had ;i beeq /accused of being a Socialist and Communist, but he was no Communist. . He "said members should take every proposed, change on its individual merits. If it , were a good change, they should accept it.*. but jf bad it should be rejected. , . „.', ''.'.:'*.[ ' .... ' Mr Rhodes spoke. against the. fJoyernment policy." '...".:. . '..', ', '"'',' ; „.;:, ■''" ■■"■ "" '..."July^ Replying to Mr Bruce, the j Hon. Post-master-General said he won|d, noake enquiries as to the necessity for providing a mail service to the newly Bettled country between Waituna .and pJ&Ffy. y „,.,,*, Mr Sandford resume^ the debafe j'jein £he Financial Statement. Die said one' striking feature in this debate had feeen the spirit of contradiction which wasjapparent in the ranks of the, Opposition.'' If there were any truth in the' old saying, that a divided House must fall, then the Opposition mu9t surely fall. ;•/, i' L Mr Fish admitted thai the Hon. Mr Reeves' Bpeech of the. previous night was brilliant in delivery, but after saying that he had said all tbat;cpu|j| rhe- said about the Hon. Mr Reeves' effort, As an instance of the terrorisffirpjractiised on _ civil servants by the present administration, he said^that in the previous session .the members' of the Civil ! Service 5 freely conversed with members ■of the House, but this year there was. a- marked change in that respect. > One of those gentlemen had actually stated that; it > : was not^safe for them to be seen, conversing w&hthe occupants of the Opposition benches. He fearlessly asserted that . unless something occurred to hurl _' Ministers 'from the benches financial , rum. wouM soon overtake the colony. ...; .; :. i f;iQ Mr Earnshaw continued the debate aha the House adjourned at 12.30. ., „.?-.-, ..