A GREAT MEETING.

Gisborne Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1595, 6 November 1905, Page 2

A GREAT MEETING.

POLICY SPEECH BY THE PREMIER.

.(Per Press Association.) Wellington, Mr Seddon find g ir j q a j. dressed a monster meeting at the Town Hall last night.

Long before tbs commencement of the meeting the building was packed, hundreds being seated on. the Btage. Many were turned away.

Dr Findlay, who presided, said New Zealand had become the envy of every progressive' nation.

THE PREMIER,

was wildly obeered when he rose to speak. He said he wanted nothing but the good-will and confidence of tho people of New Zealand, who believed iu fair play. He had not always bad fair play, but reformers must be prepared for attack. He waa as determined as ever. No one knew better than he did the calumny that bad been levelled against bia trnatwortb

lieutenant, Sir J. G. Ward, bat he wan there and full of fight. Referring to tho Young New Zealand parly, he said they started with eleven, and were now down to three, whioh number would be reduced after the Reneral election. There was also the Reform party, including Mr Duthio. Well, he contrasted the email meeting held bv that party with tho groat meeting that night. There were four big Reformers, and foor Now Liberals. Ho supposed Sir J. G. Ward and bimself must tfiko four eaoh. But the Reformers and NewLiborals had been killed by publio opinion. They had board the critioism of tho Heiorm party eo often repeated that they knew there was nothing in it. Tho greatest charge which Mr Massey, who spoke at Pukekobo the previous night, could mako against the Government was that Mr Beddon sported himself in a Windsor uniform. Not a charge mads against the Liberals daring 15 years bad been proved. Tho Opposition dare not submit a single line of polioy in oppoeition to the Government’s .measures. The Opposition’s polioy was a polioy of shreds and patches. The OPPOSITION DECEIVED THE . PEOPLE

by clamoring for farther audit. The only department in which tho system of audit hod been changed was the Lands Department, and that had been done because delay arose and settlers were being kept off tho land. The Auditor and ControllerGeneral had control over all tho departments under section 31 of the Public Revenues Act. Referring to tho Opposition’s urging tho establishment of a Civil Service Board, Mr Seddon said he would not hand over the Government of a self-go-verning colony to three or fonr nominees of a political party. The Premier went on to refer to the voucher affair. The space taken up in the Hansard over the voucher matter was 490 columns ; the time occupied was 34 hours 65 minutes, equal to about four sitting days ; the total coßt to the country was £3044. He felt considerably the manner in which the attack had been made on his family. The Opposition bad criticised the Government respecting the Mapouriki trip, but several members oi the Oppoeition bad gone on that trip and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. He inetanoed a trip made in the North by some members of the Opposition.’ Among other things, that party had a tin of insect powder. And now, when the Opposition threw the Mapourika trip at him, he threw the insect powder at them. (Great laughter.) Mr Lewis, the Opposition whip, had said he preferred to be in opposition, and his party would i V REMAIN IN OPPOSITION;

Under these oircnnistances, he (Mr Seddon) was in a very cheerful mood., He oomplained that the Opposition attacked the credit of tne oolony for party purposes. It had been done repeatedly, and there was a tendency foe such criticism to affoot the finances of the Colony in the London market. New Zealand, however, stood well in the Mother Country. Bn tit was unfair on the part of the opponents of tho Government to decry the credit of the colony for the purpose of getting on the Treasury benches. In reference to the legislation jnet passed to meet the (competition of the Harvester Trust, he said Now . Zealand was, threatened,,, and . the, matter bad to be dealt with.' New Zealand would have no such monopolies, under which they would be sending their money ,to America to make millionaires. He considered that the matter had been dealt with in a very intelligent way.. The Criminal Code Act recently passed did not mean the suppression of freedom of speeoh, and there was no slander in telling the troth. He had yet to learn that it was necessary in the interests of justice for a man to be assailed without redress, simply beoause his assailant was a man of straw. Parliament had improved the conditions of teachers throughout the oolony. Nothing was so important as the education of children, and he believed inputting education within the reach of all. After a reference to the Factories Act and tho Shops and Offices Act he dealt with the

MAORI LAND SETTLEMENT ACT, saying he could see that half a million acres of Maori land would soon be -open for settlement. He eaw jnstioe to the Maoris, together with a marked improvement in respect to Battlement in the North Island. The importance of this matter was shown by the faot that there was only about five million aores of Grown lands left, and the natives had abont six million aores. The time had oome when these lands most he settled, in the interests of both races. He then spoke of the Workers' Compensation Act and the Workers' Dwellings Act. The Government would be able to let the houses for -10 s or 12s a week, in comparison with 25s and 26s a week now being paid in Wellington. He regarded the measure as directly moreaßing workers’ wages thronghout the colony. One-third of some workers’ wages now went in rent. This was too mnoh, and made it impossible for some to pay their way. Passing on to the Meikie oaso, the Premier said the Government had submitted to Meikie the. points of reference for a commission of enquiry, and bad received a satisfactory reply. On the result of the inquiry, the Government and Parliament would do their duty. The

FINANCIAL OPERATIONS

of the’ Government had resulted in a saving of £13C,000 a year in interest, and the time .was coming when the colony would be able to live entirely within itself as a self-contained country. The Government were not driving capital away,, but people here who had borrowed from Home companies bad been able to pay off their mortgages, and thns reduce the. private indebtedness of the oountry. In view of the surplus of £761,000, the time had arrived to reduce indirect taxation. He was able to announce the next session it was intended to submit proposals to Par* liament reducing indirect taxation in tho direction of a free breakfast table, and also to reduce the duty on tobacco considerably. Reductions could be made without impairing the finances of the colony. In reference to direot taxation,: the aggros gation of large estates was going on. Landowners were evading the law, and if expenditure and revenue were found to be getting clobb together, additional graduated land taxation would be imposed. He believed the country was ready for it, and that large estates were blocking settlement. The old age pension had been increased, in ’ spite of the opposition of those' who wanted the money spent in the back-blocks instead. Other colonies had adopted.the New Zea-> land pension eoheme, and he looked forward to tho time when it would be adopted at Home. The Atkinson Government had tried to introduce a compulsory insurance scheme, but no suoh scheme wbb work-

able in a self-governing country. But be (Mr Seddon) and his colleagues would en« deavor to establish a national pension scheme applicable to every soul in the colony on the basis of annuities, the money to be paid by the people a little at a time and subsidised by the State. It was proposed to extend the system of oivii service annuities, whioh all tended towards the groat goal, namely, to have some provision made for every thrifty soul in the colony, and keep people from want in their old age. NATIONAL QUESTIONS. Referring briefly to larger questions, Mr Seddon said that in a Jsense America was friendly, but so far as trade was concerned she had no consideration for any country but herself. President' Roosevelt was wrong when he said the Stars and Stripes would dominate the Pacific. Only ono flag should dominate the Pacific, and that was the Union Jack. He supported Great Britain’s alliance with Japan, and eaid the 1 Japanese did not want tri come here, and would not be allowed to. If they did, the Opposition and the Government would stand together to retain pur constitution, and would refuse to be diotated to by anybody. Mr Seddon eat down amidst great applause. '

A resolution expressing uuabatei confidence in the Government was oarpied amid prolonged (sheering.