POLITICAL NOTES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 686, 15 July 1914, Page 6

POLITICAL NOTES.

WAITARA HARBOUR BOARD CASE A petition was presented to the House of Representatives last week., on behaif of Mr W. T. Jenningd, exmember for Taumaruuni. In April, 1913, the right of Mr Jennings to sit as a member of the Waitara Harbour Board, to which he had been appointed by the late Government, was challenged by members of the board, on the ground that be was not then on the Waitara Harbour Board roll. Later the Minister for Marine, . after inquiring into the facts and consulting with the Crown law officers, called upon Mr Jennings to resign. He did not resign, and in December, 1913, Mr Jennings was cited before the Supreme Court. Judgment went against him, and he had to pay all costs. He is now petitioning Parliament to be reimbursed for his expense. TAUMARUNUI VALUATIONS A statement in regard to the valuation of the township of Taumarunui was made in the House last; week by Mr C. K. Wilson, member for the district. He said that the unimproved valuation of the township a year ago was £66,000, but a few weeks ago a>aljer had placed .the value at x,ver £190,000, an increase of nearly 200 per cent. He had never heard of such a valuation before. PROGRESSIVE ROADING POLICY Mr C. K. Wilson in bis speech on the AddreßS-in-Reply said that the porposal for a progressive roading policy was. to his mind, the most important announcement in the Governor's Speech. In increasing the land tax they should taks the class of land into consideration. It was the rich land near the railway station which should be taxed. They wanted

to put the small man upon dairying land. Under Mr Maßßey'a administration Bettlament was going on apace, but there was more than settlement required. The people wanted proper access to their sections. Some settlers bad been paying road loading for as long as six years, and were still without roads. Where land was opened for settlement, roads should be made to give access to the holdingp. The development of the country was. demanded, he said, and they should come down with a bold policy and borrow enough money to carry them over five or Bix yoarß. The system of grants as most pernicious.