THE GENERAL ELECTIONS.

Otaki Mail, Volume 27, 19 November 1919, Page 3

THE GENERAL ELECTIONS.

IHE otaki contest. LABOUR CANDIDATE AT OTAKI. Mr J. McKenzie, the official Labour candidate for the Otaki seat, addressed a well-attended meeting of electors at ■Brights’ Theatre, Otaki, on Monday night last. . Mr Byron Brown, who occupied the chair, introducing the candidate, said Mr McKenzie was a returned soldier, and a Scotchman. There had been only two parties in politics in New Zealand ■for a great time, but the Labour Party was gradually getting a following and j coining to tho front. This party had for its object the securing of the greatest good for the greatest number—a most laudable object. Mr Brown said that, whatever one might think of the Labour members of tho House, it bad I 1 to be conceded that they were close students of political economy, and knew their politics. Mr McKenzie thanked Mr Brown Brown for the flattering introduction he had given him, and said that if the Labour representatives in the House were better known they would have more public sympathy. In tho case of Messrs Semple, Fraser and Holland, it was largely the case of “give a dog a bad name.” Largely, owing to tho Vway these men had been misrepresented in the newspapers the public formed a totally wrong impression of them. The electors had been tola by Mr Field that the people of New Zealand had not much to complain of during the years of war. The speaker doubted if the people agreed with that opinion. Tho condition of affairs in the country was Very Far From Satisfactory. The cost of living had increased | enormously, and was still rising, whi e (j the housing of tho people was a most serious matter, both in the cities and country. The Labour Party claimed that it was tho duty of the Government to look after the welfare of the people. Many soldiers were returning to New Zealand to find that they could not I possibly secure a house, and the Gov- B eminent was largely responsible. Ccr-1 tainly they were designing schemes | to relievo the position, but they wero making very slow progress, and the j houses, when built, would bo very cxpensive, for building materials and I practically all other m I general use wero costly. j. FioStoering was Rampant. [i Yet the Government had made very j) little effort to meet the situation. As s far back as the days of the Mackenzie Government it had been realised that a combine known as the Merchants Association had been formod. Mr Me- . Kenzic explained the working of thisgj association, which, he said, had con- { trolled tho import of many common g ■ articles of every-day use and fixed tho L prices. Thus they had destroyed com- T 'petition and increased the cost of v living. _ _ a The Colonial Sugar Refining Co. was z another example of the working of a h powerful combine, said the speaker. This company had an original capital of only £105,000, which had now increased to three and a-quartcr millions, g ‘ -and this had been made up entire y g from' the huge profits. Between the years 1905 and 1913 the company had paid no less than three millions to Shareholders, and this had come out of people’s pockets. Competition was a thing of the past in this and m other C lines of business, and combines and h rings were getting a grip on nearly fe Every necessary of life. The U.S.S. Co. £ • Mr McKenzie said that in 1913 or n 1913 the U.S.S. Co.’s fleet was worth o about a million sterling, and the coun- J; try could have bought it out for that IL Sir Joseph Ward had for years advocated the State purchase of traw lers ana trading steamers, but d t; neglected the matter. The U.S.b. Co-, y with a capital of one milhon had re- g . ecived no less than six millions from n this country for transport, 1; etc. —six times the value of the whole t; outfit, and that only for the use of p part of it. That such a thing could d happon showed gross mismanagement, or something worse, and made won- j dcr whether private interests had not , some bearing on the matter. a j 3 s S. Co. was no longer a private concexh, but had been merged into the F- _ and O. Company, ana was now part of .. a gigantic shipping combine. The H S S Co. received £BO,OOO per annum for the carriage of coal, which accounted to a considerable extent ror the high price ruling for coal. It was signifi »■”; j was put on the ships at under £1 l they had to pay -rom £3 to *3 big shipping charges made were large y g on account of this company having a mnnooolv. Manv other articles of com »» L'«.e »ei»S c„t.»Uea Sy »»• « Viines said Mr McKenzie, and he Su 0.i.« ttond, ■»- SLd in P>'«. ■» J quencc of the monopoly. ' The Beef Trust was operating u> Hus t country, although Mr Massey denied c Si, »d tii. i». to an « r'» a “ e ”6 ia “i, - tod tte -» •“7““'“ £ I * EMring f WS n "t ofnioonco ot ftc ) J blame. . ._ T ._ d i Profiteering 111 Laaa 5 pumice land had been bonght at aero and sold at £3, and that by a man who had been exemptc ' th service. The Government hacked * i people in this kind of thxng, and then . claimed that they were returned soldiers well. ‘ j. IlMtf had been voted for settling *o ,

Jdiers on the land, but if they were put on at a cost of from £2500 each upwards, this huge sum would only pro. vide for some 6000 men out of 100,000. The soldiers were expected to provide , sinking fund and interest on these record price lands in order to pay those r who advanced their money at 4} per 1 cent free of income tax, which was t equivalent to 6i per cent on broad f acres. Dealings like this were a gigantic gamble, and if there were a drop in t the prices for produce there would bo 1 wholesale bankruptcy in the country. > I A State Bank. ' The speaker said the banks of New Zealand had liabilities in excess of | their assets to the tune of seven or eight millions, paper money having been issued without backing. The Labour Party urged that a State Bank be set up, as had been done in the Australian 1 Commonwealth a few years ago, without any capital at all. The Australian experiment had been most successful. We had some 34 millions of post office savings bank money which could be loaned at 41 per cent, and thus provide the people with cheap money and prevent the profiteering being clone by the banks. Mr McKenzie said tho Commonwealth had also embarked in a State shipping venture, which had already paid for itself and shown a profit of £15,000. If this were done in New. Zealand it would reduce the cost of living materially. Our Position in Samoa. The speaker said we should seriously consider our position with regard to Samoa. Tho Government had declared its intention to introduce indentured | labour in Samoa —probably Kanakas or Chinese. Ho spoke of wlrnt had happened when this sort of thing had been done in South Africa after the war ; § there, and said these indentured labour- | ors would bo slaves, or tho next thing 1 |to it, and a disgrace to New Zealand - |Mr McKenzie said the employment of ’ [coloured labour had meant the sweat- [ ing of tho poor people in Britain, and if 1 New Zealand consented to this kind of ; thing in Samoa it might load to the ’ same state of affairs here. It was a I real danger, and if persisted in would J result in the mandate becoming a curse | to New Zealand. ’ ' s Education. I The candidate said the Labour Party I claimed that education was being t I starved in New Zealand. The schools t I were overcrowded, the classes too big, and buildings altogether unsuitable, } {while the teachers were underpaid. The f {Labour Party advocated modem j j schools being erected, and the teachers being better paid. ; Defence. t 'Plic speaker said that Sir James k Allen was in favour of training our o boys for four months of the year, and v though Mr Massey was opposed to this, g some modified scheme of the kind would t probably be adopted if the Reformers I went back to office. If our country n was ever invaded, it would be by a T modern army, against which our New u Zealand defence scheme would be abso- p lately useless. What good would boys n be. with rifles, and not a factory in the h country, to provide ammunition? (Ap- S plausc.) If they went in for a defence ii scheme, they, should have something effective; at present the huge cxpendi- w ture on defenco was absolutely, wasted. £ (Hear, hear!). d Government Discredited. P

In conclusion, Mr McKenzie said the Government was not pushing on the housing scheme as they should. Bricks, timber, iron, etc., were being controlled by combines, and the Government calmly, looked on. If they really intended to erect houses, why did they not import the necessary materials and erect them themselves, with their own labour. They were trifling with this question, and that was their record all through. Yet Mr Massey said there was no profiteering! He declared that the Government, on its past record, was utterly discredited, and any man who supported the present Government was not a friend to the people of New Zealand! He urged the electors to support the Labour Party, claiming that their policy was the only one calculated to do what was required, and the only party that was sincere in its efiorts tor the welfare of the people. He urged them not to take notice of all Lie cry about extremists —all who did not side with the Government wero extremists —but to support the party that had the interests of the people at heart. (Applause.) Questions. In reply to questions, Mr McKenzie said the Labour Party stood for free, compulsory and secular education, and he thought if the schools were properly equipped and. staffed there would be ■ little room for denominational schools, grants for which he did not favour; it was impossible for the Labour Parly, to be returned to power at the elections, even if they won every seat contested by them, therefore he could not say who would be Ministers if Labour came into power; the main solution of industrial unrest was to better the conditions of the workers—if coal miners had better .conditions they would be tented: he had no connection whatever, with the P.P.A.; he was the mcst imprejudicea person regarding religion, he had no leanings toward Bolshevism,. they had no acknowledged leaders ia the* Labour Party, and the majority o members - contracted the J* couia not expect to deal with the b g British combines, but the British Labour' Party could and would, as soon ns it had sufficient power; He was in favour of adoptiig the most up-to-date means of poshing on with the railways, hc was. not in favour of compulsory military training, because the training we had given our men in the pari had proved expensive and useless. Vo£a of Thanks.

Mr F. J- Ryder a-vote of confidence in the speaker, but, at MrtoKenzie’s suggestion the “thanks” was substituted for confidence.’.' This was seconded by Mr yo.kift and carried with applause-