THE NEW PARTY.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4785, 5 December 1924, Page 2

THE NEW PARTY.

ADDRESS AT PAEBOA. 1 OHINEMURI TO BE CONTESTED. The advent of a new element into the Held of politics in the form of the Country Party was publicly made on Wednesday evening, when the leader of the party, Mr A. A. Ross, announced the policy of the party at the Soldiers’ Club Paeroa. Messrs W. S. Goosman and W. H. Allen, members ’of the executive of the Farmers’ Union, and Captain F. Colbeck, were also present. The attendance of th 3 public numbered eighteen, and Mr W. s D Keys, convener of the meeting, presided. In introducing Mr Ross the chairman said that the meeting had bee i ; called to give the public an opportunity to better understand the planks of the Country Party. In commencing his address, which hi the main was on lines similar to_ those given at Ngatea, and published in Monday's issue of the “Gazette.” Mr Ross detailed the reasons why the Country Party was necessary in New Zealand and pointed out that the primary producers were the people who always had to bear the burden. There were no means whereby the farmer could assure himself of any return foi his labour. Secondary producers were in a position to pass charges on, but when they reached the primary producer they rested there, and he shouldered tne burden. Even the wage-earners were able to make their views felt through their various unions, but the fannens had nothing of the kind. It had been said that with 37 farmers out of 80 members of Parliament the country was well represented, but it bad been proved that when a party matter ; arose in the House it W'as the partv that received consideration, very often to.the detriment of the primary producers. The Country Party was hoping to receive support from the residents of the country townships, and it was not necessary that only membens of the Farmers’ Union should be ardent supporters. Most country tradespeople would admit that the - prosperity of their businesses depended very materially on the prosperity of the farmer, and it was encumbent on such tradespeople to give every possible support to the Country Party. The speaker stressed the fact that if it came to a no-confidence, motion in the present Government tlie Country Party members would vote independently, and would not ally themselves to any party. AGRICULTURAL BANKS. Mr Ross dwelt at length on the advantages of establishing an agricultural bank, and stated that the first thing to aim for was the reduction of the burdens at present placed on the primary producer. His party believed that the establishment of agricultural banks was one of the foremost to be attained. . " INCOME TAX. Mr Ross said that the discrimination it. the income tax in favour & company and local body debentures was another cause which had acted very seriously against the expansion of the primary industries. This had cau.se\! large sums of money to be diverted to this form of investment, it had bee,, made easier for the local bodies and harder for the farmer to borrow, and this was partly the reason why such a large area of land had been abandoned. The narrow margin of profit had rendered rural securities less satisfactory to the Renders, while the high income tax had prevented them from lending except at a high rate of interest. Thus a great volume of tho available capital had been diverted to the cities, which have beemg growing at a phenomenal rate, while* the rural districts were stagnating and decaying. Protective duties and insurance were explained by the speaker, both of which items, he tsaid, were planks of the Country Party. ' LAND SETTLEMENT. Dealing with the land settlement question Mr Ross said thrt it had often been remarked that there was not much land left in the Dominion suitable for development Any thinking person would know that there were hundreds of thousands of acres of land lying idle simply because the burdens placed on the primary producers were so great as to make it a very unprofitable business to bring land under cultivation. Con-J scquently settlement, to a large extent, had ceased, but it was through no fault or wish of the average farmer. In conclusion the speaker said that it was not hard to see that the underlying cause was that primary producers were not getting their fair share in the distribution .of the wealth which they were producing. They saw all other sections strongly organisedX for their own protection, and each section took what it considered its fair share, and the natural result was that the unorganised primary producers had to take what was left. In actual practice he found that the ex- > change value of his produce had fallen, when measured with the which he had to buy, and in spite ofl M good prices he was working on the barest margin, and in some instances on no margin at all. He could see that this had been brought about largely by political means, and he was forced to the conclusion that he must follow the example set by other sections and make his weight felt in the political arena. Captain F. Colbeck 'was the next speaker. He said that he was an unofficial member of tlie Country Party and was not a candidate for Parliamentary honours. He contended that the farmer was in a very different position to any other class of the community. If the farmers had cheap money they would be able to under-_ sell their friends in London and increase production, but if money was dear for the fanner production lessened and. generally, the whole country was hard up against it. The duties were prohibitive at the present

time. The Government had killed the ineat trade and was slowljy stifling the whe.a; production, and he wondered , jvhert it would cease. The speaker enlarged on the remarks made by Mr Ross in connection r with production and advocated the establishment of bonuses .n connection with manufacturing and trading eonce.ms- He also gave a brief sketch on the deflation of prices, and said chat he was of the opinion that deflation was in £he interest of the money-lenders, and the money-lenders only. The farmers’ salvation, he said, lay in cheaper freights, greater production, and lessened tax paying. - m conclusion Captain. Colbeck urg- . ed the meeting to support the Country Party, which was now a Dominion Y movement, and ground was being gained in all directions. Mr Goosman endorsed the remarks of the previous speakers and said that ho was satisfied that the farmers - were working hard and were not get- . ting the recognition and help they ■ were entitled to. The economic position of the farmer to-day .was rot.ten, and it was time the people rose to the occasion and made something like a stand. Mr W. H. Allen spoke on the Agricultural Bank scheme, which he strongly advocated. At one time, he said, the Prime Minister was strongly in favour of the scheme, but nothing ft. had been heard of the scheme from Mr Massey lately. He firmly believed that the financial institutions held a tremendous sway over the Government, and it was time an independent party put in an appearance and made an honest endeavour to put matters on a more satisfactory footing for the primary producers, QUESTIONS. In reply to Mr C. Morgan Mr Ross briefly explained that the agricultural bank would be established by associations of farmers in the first instance. and a. certain amount of assistance would he asked from the Government. There being no further questions, a hearty vote of thanks was accorded the sjeakens by acclamation. Mr Ross, who proved himself a quiet and convincing speaker, returned thanks, and qsked all supporters of the Country Party to remain for the purpose of electing an electorate committee. The meeting then concluded. At the after meeting, which was held in committee, it was unanimously decided to contest the Ohinemuri electorate, but no announcement was made as to who the candidate would ' be. A :epresentative committee of , nine, with power to add, was set up.