ELECTION CAMPAIGN.

King Country Chronicle, Volume II, Issue 105, 29 October 1908, Page 5

ELECTION CAMPAIGN.

Mr Jennings at Te

On Saturday evening last, Mr W. T. Jennings delivered a political speech at Te Kuiti. Mr J. Tammadge, J.P., occupied the chair. Despite the inclement weather there was a large audience, though the attendance of ladies was affected by the rain. The candidate spoke for an hour and gave a capital address, which was well punctuated with applause. In opening, Mr Jennings apologised for the short notice he had given, and explained that he had intended to go from Waitara to Kawhia by steamer and work "back to the Southern portion of the electorate. Unfortunately, the steamer was bar bound at Raglan and he was obliged to re-arrange his itinerary at a moment's notice and work through overland from Waitara. With regard to his opponent he trusted the contest would be conducted in a straightforward manner, free from personalities. Though there might be hard hitting in the heat of campaign, there was no necessity to hit below the belt and he was sure his supporters would act in a manly and creditable manner.

Speaking with reference to the district Mr Jennings said when the controversy as to the Main Trunk line was attracting attention he rode through in company with Messrs Crowther, Lang and Adams to Karioi. Te Kuiti was then a proper "kainga" Maori, and even six years ago, when he was first returned as member for Egmont, there had not been much progress made. The contrast today was marvellous, and anyone who reasonably weighed progress must admit that notwithstanding the disabilities under which the district, laboured tremendous advance hd been made. It was natural to suppose that henceforth the march of progress would, be much more rapid. Ke had stated in the House that the Rohe Potae was the most progressive district in the Dominion and considering how much there was yet to be done the district would astonish even its friends before many years. The future prospects were of the brightest nature. Everything rest?d with the people themselves, and with the vigorous opening of the land and the more progressive roading policy which had been adopted, the Rohe Potae would develop into the most prosperous portion of the Dominion. In contrasting the progress of the North with that of the South he did so in no parochial spirit, but he held that, in addition to better representation in the House, which the North was receiving, it was entitled also to better representation on the Executive. The speaker quoted figures from the Year Book to show the exceptional progress ■of the North Island during the past ten years as regards both exports and imports. —Social Legislation. —

In dealing vtith the legisation of the Liberal"Gove'rnment since it accession to power Mr Jennings referred to the years 1888 and 1889, when wages for single men were 2s 6d a day and for married men 3s 6d. Men were leaving rue country i*j. distress was felt throughout the lana. Since the present Government took office there hajd been financial setbacks and periods ol depression in other countries, and ive were experiencing a financial stringency at present. Still, the progress of the country was unimpeded and we had weathered the gale without serious effects, while in other countries the results were very marked and depression was widespread. This showed the benefits of able administration and wise, laws. Regarding the measures Which once were considered objectionable by the Opposition, such as .the Old Age Pensions, Advances to Settlers, Factory Act, and other labour laws, their opponents now said they would not have them repealed. Still they had to remember that the late Premier sat in his chair in Parliament for forty eight hours in order to have the ' Old Age Pension scheme made law. It was gratifying to hear the Opposition members admit, even before an election, that these laws were good, but personally he did not like deathbed repentance. As to the labour laws, he had as great an abhorrence to agitators as anyone, and the great majority had little sympathy with extremists. The necessity for labour legislation had been realised by Sir Harry Atkinson, who set up a Royal Commission to enquire into the conditions under which girls and women in the cities had to work. The finding of the Commission thoroughly justified its existence and we now had laws enacted which prevented abuses of the kind. The question was being dealt with not only in New Zealand but throughout the world, and by exercising a wise supervision over the interests cf the workers the Government was actuated by the desire to conserve industrial peace and prosperity.— (Applause).

—Land Legislation. —

With regard to the land policy, in the first place he must state that he was a firm believer in the optional tenure. (Applause). If a man went into the backblocks and by industry and years of toil brought land into productiveness he should have the option of making it his own at the original value. He came from eight generations of tenant farmers in the Old Country and knew full well the conditions of leasehold. The more a man improved his place, the more he had to pay for it. The result in the old land was that many of the best men went to new countries, where conditions were more favourable, and made new homes for themselves. He had always held that with reasonable restrictions of area the freehold was the right tenure. The land was there for taxation and could not be taken' away. The speaker drew a comparison between a freehold country like - Denmark and a land nationalising one like China, and declared he would give his 'vote every time for freehold, irrespective of party or other conditions. (Applause). Settlement in the electorate was going ahead very fast on the right lines. If the policy of the optional tenure and small areas was pursued it would be for the benefit of the district and of the Dominion. Regarding the Native lands he would like to see all the unoccupied lands brought to the producing stage. If the Natives fell into line with such a policy it would be better for themselves and better for all of us, and progress would be accelerated in every respect. .The deputations which had waited upon the Premier and the Na-

tive Minister during the session had done good service. Under the new Native Land Biii many disabilities had been removed and townships were now in a position of equality with other European communities. He believed the improvement would go on and that the acquisition of the freehold on reasonable and just lines would follow as a matter of course. The speaker instanced the Paeroa sections, which after being Native leasehold for many years were now being converted to freehold. The sooner this happened in our district the better it would be for all. (Applause).

The question of education was one in which every individual w r as interested and the Government had done good work in this respect. The Bill passed last session placed matters in a much more satisfactory position as far as the bac.kblock teachers and pupils were concerned, and the system of penalising people for living in the backblocks was done away with. The first duty of the State was to provide primary education for every child in New Zealand. The Dominion could not go too far in the matter of education. The history of education was the -history of progress, and the nation tnat lagged behind in educational matters was doomed.

With regard to the finances of the colony there was a popular cry with the Opposition that we were going too fast; another favorite complaint was that we are doing too little. No doubt the National debt had increased and was increasing, but we had to remember that our assets were increasing at a greater rate in proportion, and the position was eminently sound, despite the increased debt. In a country such as ours great developmental works were necessary in order to keep pace with progress in other countries, and make the most of our resources. At the end ot March, IS9I, the country's indebtedness was £38,830,350. In 1907 it was £64,179,040, an increase of over £25,000,000. As a set off to that increase we had to consider that over £27,000,000 was represented by reproductive works and was interest bearing. As long as the moneys borrowed were administered in this manner the country could not go wrong. The speaker paid a high tribute to the administrative ability of the Executive, and said it was due to the forethought and ability of the Government that the present financial stringency, bad as it was, had not been more severly felt. In connection with the present tightness of the money market, he predicted that a month or two would see the burden lightened, and more buoyant tone in the market generally. The revenue for the half year ending September last showed an increase over that of the previous period and this showed that the Government was going on satisfactorily. This year there was an increase in sheep in the Dominion of one million and a half, and this to some extent would compensate for the drop in 'he price of wool. Butter had more than maintained its price, and this season promised to be a record one for the drairymen. Altogether the - 1 --«•» cheerful and he claimed reneweu , aiiadmin _ istration whicn had proved s<*w in the past. In asking the electors. * a continuance of support for himself he did so in the knowledge that he had ever striven to advance the claims of the district, and in attending to the wants of all from the humblest to the highest he had the satisfaction of having done his best. The issue he would leave with the people. Te Kuiti had given him a majority at every election, and he felt confident of greater support than ever at the ensuing poll. —Questions. —

In reply to a question as to whether he was in favour of the railways being placed uner the control of Commissioners, Mr Jennings stated he considered such a step would be a retrograde one, and was not in favour of it. A query as to Whether the candidate would like to see the land in the possession of a few and whether he would vote the Government out of office on the freehold question brought the reply that there was no danger of either happening, the present restrictions of area was sufficient to cope wtih the danger of land monoply. As to whether he was in favour of a duty on Oregon pine, Mr Jennings replied at some length, detailing what had been done by Parliament in the matter. The o'"°stion had been fought out and they hau lost in the division by two votes. The greatest menace to our industry would eventually be the Siberian and Manchurian timber worked by cheap Asiatic labour. The Dominion's industries should be protected, and he was in favour of taking steps to do so. With regard to the opening of the Urewera Country for prospecting, Mr Jennings said he did not know what was the intention of the Government, but would place the matter before the Premier.

Regarding the establishment of a State Land Agency, he thought a better plan would be the establishing of a branch of the Lands Office in the district. He had advocated this in the House, and also the setting up of a separate Education Board for the district.

Mr C. H. Phillips proposed and Mr Chilcott seconded a vote of thanks for the address and confidence in Mr Jennings as past and future representative for the district, The vote was carried by acclamation and three cheers were also given for the candidate.