PARLIAMENT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1916, 27 October 1906, Page 3

PARLIAMENT.

AFTER MIDNIGHT.

PRESS ASSOCIATION Wellington, yesterday. The Scaffolding Bill passed its final stages with minor amendments. In Ocmmiitoo on tbo Town Districts 1 ”'" m ~''B!ll l Mr Ell moved a new clause, applying the priDoiplo of one man ono vote in elections of members of town boards. This was lost by 31 votes to 20. Tho Bill was road a third time. Tho following Bills were intn ducod by Governor’s message, and read a first time : r Public Works Act Amendment-, which °u Ilo nj^ 8 - things oonfera powers on the Minister as to tho utilisation of water power ; State Coat Mines Acoounf, to givo effoot to tho recommendations of the I üblio Aooounts Oommitteo regarding tho keeping of separnto aooounts for each ’ Jest'd and Income Tax, tbo annual Bill ; Hospitals and Charitable Institutions, an amending and consolidating measure for circulation only this session. Tho House rose at 12 45 e.m. :

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL,

PRESS ASSOCIATION Wellington, last night Tho Counoil resumed at 2 30 c.ro.

Tho fallowing Icoal B.lls passed all stages Onslow B.'rough Drainage Empowering, Titnaru Harhor Board, Napier Harbor Board Loon, Palmerston North Dairying Sobool, Peteno Borough Streets, and City of Dunedin Lauds V.sting Buis. The Waimate Agricultural Reserves Bill and Teaohers’ Superannuation Act Amendment Bill were reported from Corn mittee. The Habitual Drunkards Bill was committed.

Hon. Mr Feldwiok moved to make habitual drunkard to mean a person eonvioted three times in six months instead of nine months, but the amendment was lost by 19 to 8. Tho Oouooil rose at 5 p.m. UDtil 7.30.

£HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

The House resumed at 2 a.m. BTATE COAL MINE,

Mr A. McKmzie attacked the aoaount keeping of the State ooal mine, and oritioised Ibe management. The Premier said that he was tired of this perpetual outside interference with the management. He ooasidared the cundoes of the member for Motueka the best reason for olosmg up the State coal mines altogether. The Bill was read a second time. SAN FRANCISCO AND VANCOUVER MAIL SERVIOE.

On the motion to go into Committee of the whole to consider tho ’.Frisco resolutions, Mr J. Allen moved the addition to the ’Frisoo resolution of a provision ' against the granting of any subsidy during the present oonditioa of Ibe American navigation laws. As a former supporter of the ’Frisoo service, he explained that the passing of these navigation laws had learned him against the service. Moreover, the service had failed in every respeoi lo oome up to promise. Is was slow, irregular, and unable to bear oomparison with any up-to-date service. He favored the route as the best, but he would not support an inferior eervioa under a ocmmercially hostile flag. The postal union rate whiob the oolony pays to Britishowned vessels was 2s 4d per lb, whereas the poundage paid to the ’Frisoo servioe was 7s 6d, while the Australian payment to the same company was 2t. Regarding the proposal for a Vancouver service, ha was afraid after the repeated failures of attempts (a letter or two here and there) to inaugurate this servioe, it was useless to think of it. He preferred the Suez ser vice. The cost had been given at £48,000 a year of a weekly service which would further the best interests of our own people and our own trade. 1 Tho Premier : Lasoars are employed. 1 Mr Allen was referring to the Federal j service. a The Premier : It is not running. 1 Mr Allen : But it is certain to run ’ shortly. , The Premier wondered what the member for Bruoe would do if Mr Massey were 6 called upon to form a Qoverncnant. B The ’Frisoo servioe was shorn of all sentimental considerations; it was the quickest 8 and best possible. As for the navigation laws of Ameriea, there was a reprisal on our Statute Book at the present moment, f Was the country to out off its nose to spite its face ? The Americans subsidised 1 the service with L 59,000, and tbs total " paid by New Zealand last year was 8 L 20.618 (less than the maximum of u L20.0Q0 for 18 voyages) ; but the postages 11 here and Fiji reduced that amount to L 3500. The lino advocated by Mr Allen n eould not compare with that, and more aver it carried Lascars. He had made a mistake on that point, and had shnnted himself when he was 11 twitted ” with it. [Mr Allen ; *’ Ne.”) It had been aaid £ that a line via Mexico would have secured the same advantages as the ’Frisco service, but inquiries prove that to be wrong. ( j ft was wrong to speak of the United States as a hostile people. They vetre a friendly ally, as ell their unions have proved of late years, j as he had said in that House n words he quoted, He defended the service from the aspersions of its opponents. The last year’s record gave an iverago of 31 days Auckland to London, and 30 to 29 days London to Auckland. STo other service could compete with thatVancouver would certainly come nearest]; nut though every effort was made it had lot been possible to establish a service on ihat line. He denied that the attempts lad been confined to a letter or two, A 8f subsidy was offered and the matter placed 81 n capable hands. He recapitulated the w ;erms of the resolutions They contem- u ilated a special service with obligations of ** many kinds to offer postal Union rates, n :or that would be an insult to any Company, The Australian Government paid for their service (fornightly) £125,000 H to the P. and O. ana Orient and further w substantial sums to German and other ® Companies. The only postal Union rates “ paid were to the intercolonial boats. He D admitted the ’Frisco steamers were not a what they ought to be, hence .the provision t] for betterment, but were better than the 6 instruction of tho House had provided, j 1 To establish a Vancouver Service tho *' Union Company must bo prepared with 8 more reasonable terms. In that case the v colony could establish tho best weekly service in tho world by ’Frisco and Van- 8 couver. For his part he had opposed the - ’Frisco Service when it was too costly. Mr Aitken: £31,000. f The Premier said that was ,£11,003 0 more than the maximum now proposed, 'j and that was a big sum. Continuing ho * reviewed the terms of the contract, 1 and summed up its advantages. He . urged it was right to givo tho Company 1 a reasonable time to imprpvc their ships, - and moved the resolutions. Mr T. McKenzie spoke of changes ; made in private members’ sentiment on 1 office lie proceeded to point out that c the commercial hostility of America was ! much worse than Mr Allan bi>d do- 1 scribed. In the Philippines and Cuba they 1 were now not only enforcing the naviga- ' tion laws, but imposing duties on pro- 1 ducts exported in British bottoms More- 1 over, no concession of any kind were given to British interests, The member for Bruce hud been very consistent in this matter Tho ’Frisco service had dc- j

velopeil ljo trade The Vancouver service would have beep established long ago if *-fcho Govenimenfc had been prepared to give reasonable terms, Sir JE." Davyes Hie had his authority for the statement) would have built a suitable lino of steamers and inaugurated the service. Mr Wilford said it was too late to substitute anything else for the service, and therefore quite useless to oppose or try to amend the resolutions. The ships had been pronounced by a commission to bo tubs built by scab labor in Philadelphia, Nothing bettor could be done in America. The terms of the contract would not enable them to supply boats, The running of the boats could not bo stopped at the end of tho two years, therefore the , provision for building was a farce. The gotten tubs that had exploited the colony Vypuld go on doing it The contract so far •as-this colony is concerned was an all to ■pothing contract He was sick of tho f saut yf American friendUne^ t He coulcl

not forgot navigation laws and tho Harper ease. The Aneklaiul members were mortally afraid of the whip of (he New Zealand Herald : they were taught to fear the loss of Auckland as the port of call, but geographically Auckland must be the port of call. Patriotism and business required the refusal of these resolutions, hut they would have to be accepted as there was nothing else, Mr Hogg did net think Me Wdford’s speech would have boon made in Amot'ioa, There was no need for this soldi country to rousi national jealousies, Tho MTisoo steamers were deficient. but they would bo improved. Ho urged the Hover tune lit not ta forgot that ce>‘ si d froights here required I obrnponiog also. Snco tho inauguration of the 'Frisco sorvien the import American Snide luul inuroisud by i 11,405,000, Voici’s : Tho oust ooass triido, Mr Hogg said ho ttiout t-ho impart trade.

Mi- Laurnnson regretted the law level of tin' sporoh“s of the members fat' Waikotriiti aml l lu»t. Tims style of roforenoo to a <;;e .6 lu-ouMio was tho best argument fov tho 'I'M-e i so.viee. Patriotism did not consist in of other nations. lie hud not always supported tho ’Frisco service, but cosmopolitan oousiderntißiu and the speed of this service in tho absence of any alternative had iuduoad him to chaugo his mind. Mr Paolo had nover allowed himself to bo intimidatod by any scribe who ourrieo a facile pon, It had always bcon tho prac t'oo of tbo Bi'itMi raoo to utilise conveniences os they oamo to hand, From his own knowledge damage had coma of the burry with which tho b’pteckies’ boats had brill built and ooiniijissioncJ. Mr Fish or could not go into raptures over tho friendliness of a nation which absolutely debarred freo trade with Nctv Zealand, imprisoned Mr Harptr, and drove tho Union Company out oi tho ’Frisoo t.ade. The objection of tho South is that the ’Frisco service is not Rritish and is irregular, Tho Union Company was prepared to establish a first class dependable British service, though its time would bo some four days loogor, Ho would greatly prefer it. Mr Massey denied that there was anything in the American shipping laws to prevent British ships from trading to ’Frisco direct, and he pointed out that the navigation laws of New Zealand were far more drastic than tho AmorioaD. He soouted tho idea that Auckland members were whipped into lioo by a nowspapsr. They were sensible business man, understanding the position. The trade with America, costing fIO.OOO a year, was ten times the trade with South Africa, whioh had coit JE9O.OOQ. He oomplimeuSed tho oonverts on the other side who had listened to reason, and ho stigmatised as backsliders those who had turned their backs on ’Frisco, and among these was tho member for Bruce. Like the oonverts, be was prepared when the time ctma to support a better service, and he would do it more willingly than ho supported the ’Frisco servieo then. That servios had only been irregular since the great earthquake. There was no possibility of establiihiog any other service. Canada 1 and Australia had united iu preventing aoy diversion of the Vancouver boats to New Zealand ; Austiada had in faot shown a eartain amount of unfairness. When better things asms he would be prepared to support Vancouver, and is might be possible then to have both the Vancouver and ’Frisco services—both throe-weekly with mails going out and ooming every ten days. At present, however, the main fact was that wo had only the ’Frisco service. He felt strongly that it would be a mistake to give up its benefits simply because it was at present impossible to get all wo required. Mr W. Fraser deprecated localism. He was not concerned with Auckland, but with the best way in which oor mails are going to bo carried. He blamed the Government for having allowed tho Vancouver ssrvioo to drop ; but hs would not oritioiso them for not being able to bring about a restoration whioh ho was beginning to think impo3sibls. If we connected with Australia the service would be sis or seven days longer. There was no means of enforcing the betterment clauses of oontraot. Ho wondered when he read the terms whelhtr the Minister was serious. The service was irregular, and the boas now due was three days behind time. Hs was afraid that she thing was hopeless. Mr Buddo thought the adoption of the ’Frisco servios against business principles and contrary to Imperial interests. An average of four days greater length of voyage was worth the advantages it secured.

Mr Aitken had always felt kindly towards the ’Frisoo service, but that servios had become disorganised long before the ’Frisoo earibgu ;ka. Now business pecplc require reliabiliiy, and he preferred reliability with a four or five days more sieamiog to a shorter service which came up to time once a menth, Moreover, a three weeks’ service was net enough for this colony, and a ten days’ service was not in any way workable. The House rose at 5.30. EVE SING. SITTING. The Council resumed at 7.80, The fallowing Bills passed: Habitual Drunkarla, £c;nery Preservation Aot Amendment, Apiaries, Soaflaldicg, Mining Aca Amendment, Teachers Superannuation Aot Amendment, and Waimate Agricultural Reserves. Toe House resumed at 7 30. The ’Frisco debate was resumed at con* giderabje length.