POLITICAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 948, 31 January 1911, Page 4

POLITICAL.

THE PREMIER AT STRATFORD.

The Premier addressed a crowded audience in the Town Hall last Thursday, the Mayor presiding. Sir Joseph was very heartily received. He mentioned that it was fourteen years since last he had spoken in Stratford, but though he had not been in the district he had heard about it, and they had doubtless heard of him. He recognised the enormous developments which had taken place in the district of late years. When he realised that the population had increased by 15,000, and that the value of the output of butter and cheese had increased by £743,000 and that these increases were characteristic of the whole of the Dominion, he recognised that there was very little to find fault with in the affairs of the country.

Only in December last had the Dominion reached the million mark, so to speak, in white population. In December the population, exclusive of Maoris, totalled 1,003,046. During the past ten years the population had increased by 232,000 or over 3 per cent, lor each year. There was not another State in Australasia which had increased its population as the Dominion had done. He also desired to calljattention to the fact chat the deposits in the Post Office Savings Bank last December totalled over £40,000,000. THE COUNTRY PROSPEROUS.

The actual position he had just placed before them did not agree with the statements that the present Government was driving capital and population out of the country. All the elements that went to make a country prosperous and people contented were to be found here. During the five years ended March 31, 1910, out of the Public Works Fund and other loan accounts, the expenditure had amounted to, in the North Island on railways, £4,451,053, South Island £2,829,813 ; on roads and bridges, £i,373.923 £637,259; on public buildings, £735,73 1 and and £435,278 ; and on other works, £711,103 and £398,683; making a grand total of £11,572,786. The Government had always been anxious to meet the requirements of those who wanted roads as early as possible, if authority for expenditure had been voted by Parliament. RECORD REVENUE. F'or the nine months of the year they had had a record revenue, which had amounted to £7,149,000, and the expenditure to £4,034,000. During that period they had spent on public works £1,281,000. More was being spent this year, because they were pushing on more vigorously the building of railways in some parts of the country. Sir Joseph then gave figures, showing the details of the proposed expenditure of the five millions loan. There was nothing more to be regretted than the attempt within the country to discredit its finance. Sir Joseph briefly compared the position of the loan ol last year with the loan of this year, and deprecated the action of the critics who seized upon anything which seemed to reflect against the Government. The future of the country regarding loans could be put in a nutshell. He would tell them what the alternatives were : To go on borrowing for the development of the country by making necessary roads and railways, or they had to obtain £1,500,000 or £2,000,000 more every year by taxation ; unless they adopted a policy of stagnation. The premier reviewed the work of last session briefly, and said that while it was referred to as the “long session.” there had been more good work done in it than in any other session in his experience. On the motion of Mr N. J. King, seconded by Mr S. Ward, it was

resolved by acclamation, “that this meeting accords the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Ward hearty thanks for hi.s statesmanlike address, and exresscs its continued confidence in the Liberal Party and in the Government of which he is the distinguished head.”