AS OTHERS SEE US.

Otago Witness, Issue 2809, 15 January 1908, Page 58

AS OTHERS SEE US.

YORKSHIRE POLrTICIAN'S^VIEWS.r . PROSPERITY _OP . THE -DOMINION «. - - FARMER.' i"v. - ♦' (From Oum OwR-CtoaßESPOirtiitP.) - vV - AUOKLAND^'JafiUary' 11.' ' According to Mr^ Richard ."Garnett, - ~tf ' -Yorkshire politician how in'-ATipkland, New ' Zealand is an earthly paradise~""for 'the "work- - ing man on the land. . Mr Garnett's general ' observations and cornparisdge as; furnished - *tp an interviewer contain father more than -thjr- ordinary amount of food for .thought.. He stated that on the whole he was very favourably impressed with New Zealand. The most;- striking, feature to him was the Dominion's amazing- vitality. He was filled with "wonder when he reflected .- ho\V: much had., been > accomplished iere in ..60 years. y " ;<~ '"*-- Z ~-z" ~ ~i~~l,. 't "A^great many- of the things 'you have • .done here, ' he went on, referring to New "" Zealand" legislation- more" .particularly; --" w £. look, upon -with more orless suspicionat Home, jf Ibot with" wonder;" whilst. many ' Hold- the .opinion that : these things are speculative. They' .must, ." bf~ course, " be ' j judged by results, and "so far your country ' 1 shows., striking prosperity." .'. • - - j -Have- you studied our "social conditions? ~ • '"Yes." The fest- thing that struck- me 1 about them . was' -the -very great' cost of _ living... in -Wellington. _ I -was really astounded at the -hjjgh price of every necessary of life,. 'with ..the possible exception of meat. - Clothes Were frightfully dear, whilst, -fruit , and. 4.* great- 1 many other things •that are- cheap" -at Horne f ' appeared only, to -be -within reach, of the* rich. I was speaking • to a tram" conductor in Wellington, who • L told me he was only just recently out from ■ i the "Old. 'Gauntry, where' he had been earning 28s_.per "week. 7, In Wellington his " wages were £3, but he was actually better off _at -Home/ * .How "far that indioates the general-- position of artisans in' New' "Zealand towns Is do -not.' know," fbu't it seems to me' it -is a < moot point "whether .the- workers in -your towns,, despite their increased wages, are much better" off than our artisans at - Home. As. to social conditions, in New Zealand,; generally speaking, 1 .believe the ' average- comfort, of!^ your" .'people is.'"better - than that of ours. "" I" think that where you a great advantage ie,in jour labouring population in the country districts. In • f comparison with the same class in England . they- are &s~ aristocrats, to paupers. Almost ! all farm" labourers in some- of the English rural counties -haye to. live, on *-mere pittance oonrjiaie'd with the" wages/ of- first' • class farming- men 'here. -There is no denying :it,r our farm labourers >air Home' would find" New.Zealand- an earthly- paradise.' An exceptionally* good -wage 'on "an • English rural- parish^farm is, £1 per- week; -whilst- - .the prospect' of-ever 'becoming a fanner is quite, out of-:"the--questionr Here there is . 6._-chanoe-;for-every> frugal man to become a _ -farmer." ' ;-' ~ - ' _* /Mr Garnett- went on to say that .lie -was J very" forcibly impressed by one thing. , Oh "leaving Home; -the .-day ' hie left he saw on St. 'Pancras station a couple of .hun1 d*ed Polish Jews, Austrians, "and Italians, who- had- just arrived in the Metropolis. They comprised, as starved, miserable,"* and dejected a lot of human beings as he had »ever seen. -There- they "stood huddled to- • gether, - with no~ hope, and - no" happiness. Then he on to -the boat to come to "New Zealand,:, and -found there a. couple o£ hundred smart" and happy young- men- up' to_4o years of" age: on the way* to this"Dominion. .He had noticed- sinee ~ arriving here ~ that the,; lonic and* Athenio had brought - but hundreds "more of the ' same type. - " Thus," you Bee," he remarked. . "whilst we -are sending out of England) ourstrong^ vigorous, and virile young men, we are ' taking in a type ihat must- inevitably lower'- the standard of artisans afcHorne — a "type that may also become- a burden on the " State. I was- talking to two! clergymen from country parishes -in England, who told me that this process of depopulation -was going on all over the. country, one saying that in some parti none but old "people and children were left. The others" "were fleeing as if from the plague.' -We shall have to do something" at Home for. our agricultural population. I was of that opinion -before I came here, but' am more .-than ever," convinced _of 'it now. -Something will- have to be done W keep our 'country people at home."" You are impressed,; then, with the prosperity of our ;farming community ?- " Your -farmers Auckland districthave ' been^ making ' money,- I am told; by selling ..milk ~afr\3£d" -per; gallon v -to,- the creameries/ \yell,"'at.v6d - per gallon wo could not manage to sell* millr at..Home at, aprofli Then I hearjthat your farmers are getting -3d per" -lb for mutton, and doing well at that price.- Twice that amount at Home, would Jbe. considered -ruinous by our farmers. "Yes/ I am' greatly impressed by the agricultural prosperity of New Zealand. I; think, it isi due, "in the .'first place, "to the ■virginity of your soil ' and climatic conditions,- and secondly to your, efficient system of co-operation and* centrUli&tion which is established all, over the .islands, and which would be -"an" eye-opener to many of our agriculturists" at Home." "To- my mind." added Mr Garnett, "the only thing New Zealand has got to fear'is.herself, hec legislation". / An. ordi- -• nary oountry — by which- 1- mean a. -country; with" - less natural resources — could' not' possibly- have withstood some" .of -the legislation that has been, passed Jfere..,Buch. for _ instance, as" the branch of it which "artificially fixes wages. It must follow that if you - raise the value of workman's wages beyond % natural line, everything" those workmen?- „ make or manipulate must increase in cost.'* On: the subject" .of "colonial preference" Mr, . Garnett expressed ?the" conviction thai when snce the-ypeqple of ;JEngland iad been appealed to on that issue alone-^when it "was" a6t/oonfused,'with>'any-i/other- issue — they : would- give-, a. far- more "favourable verdict ihan they did before.'. „—, — *" i -Garnett" stood -for the Stanstells,. Gornwall) seat" at the -last .election as~"a . Liibefal-Unionist, and was' defeated by.Mr tf'Arthur. The -latter's resignation leaves ;he seat unexpectedly- 1 vacant,, and, to 'Mr !xarnett's 'disajppointment,'' he cannot* stand! or it at" the in February.' ._, Miss Mary Money is ; at present followingr ;Ke occupation of a..jockey_in Paris. '.'ln America;" she said,_ "l have won 28 prizes' th'd 14^ silver "trophies." My specialty ia iteeplechasing. Everyone knows me is America. I ride dressed w a toy.' 6