THE KAWA KAWA RIDING.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 5, 9 November 1878, Page 2

THE KAWA KAWA RIDING.

A correspondent has furnished the following report to our Marton oontemporarary of the address of Mr M'Kenzie to the electors of the above riding. After enumerating a number of reasons why he came forward to oppose Mr G-ower, Mr M'Kenzle said that he had another aud a stronger objection to Mr. Gower as their representative : He thought the settlers should choose a bona fide settler, and not the agent ot an absentee or land speculator, such as Mr. Gower. Jk \ronla be eatsy fox such an agent to advocate a tax for the purpose of constructings a railway, and when they had got the railway and the tax on the land, to sell out at a woflt i but on whom would: the tax fall ? certainly not on the speculator or his agent, but m all [probability on ' the poor man who bought the land!. He then went on to speak of county matters, and gave some very interesting figures to show that the cost of local government was too great. Besides the County Council there is"/|he Palmerston Borough Council, Manchester Highway Board, Manawatu Highway Board, Otaki Highway Board and the Foxton Local Board, the combined working expenses of which- amount to over £2,192. He thought some of these local bodies coujdbe don^away with, an,d so curtail expense. With reference to the railway scheme, he said that though some of these local bodies could be done away with, and fdie eoU;noT-l will have but little, to do with it, he was supposed to state his views on it. The council will have to give its consent before the company can construct the line. Well, he thought the council should agree on this and leave, it with the ratepayers, themselves to say whether- they will be taxed for the^ railway or not. He had been accused of opposing it, but he denied this, and quoted from the. remarks made by him at a meeting at Sandon, to prove that it w,as not the railway but the false and impracticable schemes put forward by the promoters. He said we have had many such schemes before us. The first was for a tramway to cost £12,000, and we were asked to raise up specia, rate £700 towards paying the interest! This he opposed, because, as has since been proved, the scheme was bas^d on a fallacy ;. also, becau.se tl\e jsettlers were not m a position to bear such a. rate.. In a new district such as this, people cannot stand such taxation, and £700 would have pressed heavier on a thinly populated district, two years ago than twice that amount would now. The next thing we heard about the line was that a survey had been made, and that tlie line would cost £25;Q0Qi Then Mr Sanson earne up from Wellington with a fine .story. We were to have our railway at once. Mr Campbell was to do it, and all we had to do was to guarantee £5000 for five years. He (the speaker) said then that the matter had better stand over till the DistrictRailway Bill, which was then before Parliament, became law ; b,Utfc Mr Sanson would not hear of it. Mr Sanson said he had been assured it would pass without any alteration m the clause affecting us. Of course, Mr Sanson got great applause when he said this, while he himself got nothing but reproachful looks. But \ro have lived long enough to know,- that Mr Sanson isjnot infallible.