PARLIAMENT.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVI, Issue 51, 5 July 1913, Page 2

PARLIAMENT.

FRIDAY, JULY 4

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

Wellington, July 4

The Council met at 2.30

Replying to Dr. Collins, Mr Bell «aid that the Government did not at present, intend to insist upon, the vaccination of school children as a precaution against the spread of small-pox.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

The House met at 2.30. Seven days' leave of absence were granted to Mr Clark.

The Commercial Trusts Amendment Bill -(Mr Payne) was read a first time.

CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEE

Mr Maasey moved that Mr Malcolm be appointed Chairman of Committee. Mr Malcolm, the Prime Minister said, had been a member of the House for eight years, and he was convinced that he possessed a very good knowledge of the forms of the House. Mr Okey seconded the motion. Mr Malcolm, in returning thanks, expressed his appreciation of the confidence bestowed in him by the members of both sides of the House. DETAINED TERRITORIALS. • Mr Russell quoted from a private letter received from Christchurch respecting the treatment of those men who rfused to comply with the Defence. Act. One lad wrote that he was confined in a cell and feci on rations which were insufficient for an ordinary man.

Mr Allen, replying, said that the law had to he enforced. It must he remembered that the administration of the Defence Act was purely in an experimental stage. If the men refused to serve in one Avay they must in another. The Department would correct errors of judgment committed by the officers of the Department.

ADDRESS-IN-REPLY.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

The debate on the Address-in-Keply was resumed by Mr Mills. He admitted the difficulty of solving the Jabor problem, and condemned, strikes. , {He thought that.laJborr, waa ill-advised tp resort to that method. The-.farm-ers had been greatly inconvenienced by- the slaughtermen's strike, and Jabpr had j not profited. He urged ; a reduction in the cost, of living. Jf reciprocity with. Australia would assist he'would welcome it. He asked the Government to investigate Captain Halsey's . recommendation . of , Queen C}iar|6tte! Sound as. a naval base,. .He also urged the Government not to starve the Advances to-Settlers Office, as no Department had done more "to develop the country. , Mr Anstey criticised the falling raihvay revenue in the South Island, which, he said, was due to the decline in grain-growing, to which the high price "of sheep and the unreasonable labor laws contributed. He proceeded to severely censure the administration of the Defence Act in country districts. The wanton carelesness and inefficiency of the officers was doing the system more harm than the resistere. He condemned large electorates and the Legislative Council, as they must promote machine politics. There was nothing much wrong with the present system. Aggregation was going on, for which Government officers were greatly to blame. The graduated land tax was not touching the aggregation of large leaseholds.

Mr Bell, in .reply to Mr Mills, said that no.new.loans within the limithad been refused by the Advances to Settlers officers. They had only, refused to-take up loans in the hands of private mortgagees. Eeplying to Mr Anstey, he promised investigation of the case© of alleged hardship under the Defence Act, but reminded him that the law must be maintained against organised defiance. ~_.,. , . The debate was adjourned till Tuesday, on the motion of Mr. Beehan.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. ,; Mr McCallum resumed the debate on the Address-in-Reply. He urged a prompt revision of the tariff ij«the. direction of lessening the cost or household commodities. Mr Allen's action in going Home without placing the portfolio of educationvin the hands of someone who would have paid the necessary attention to the matter, was, to his mind, to be deeply deplored. Agricultural education was a subject which had not received that attention which was due to it. The teaching of domestic science was a subject which would have to be worked out by the authorities. He urged the election of education boards by the people, thereby giving the boards a standing. He was convinced that members of the Government were not practical men. That fact was demonstrated by the Minister of Finance's efforts in connection with the three million loan. In that instance he had taken the loan at thirty years when money was fairly cheap, and baited the Opposition for having raised a shortdated loan when money was dear. Mr Hunter contended that the Government had given an excellent first instalment of their policy. He defended the Government's action in not bringing down a Local Government Bill too early in its career. To his mind the exception taken by Mr Russell to the appointment of public service commissioners was.quite unjustified. Dealing with defence matters, he thought that better arrangements at camps would lie to the advantage of the system. He advocated settling permanent camps and fitting them out in a thorough manner, with especial attention to the culinary department.

Mr Robertson said that he did not agree with the basis of fixing the limitation of areas at present in vogue. In some instances the high price of land at present existing militated against a successful carrying out of the Government's programme. , ; He was puzzled to see how the Government could differentiate between the poor man and the rich man when they came to the lower cost of living. The Government had stated that they proposed to lower the cost of commodities of men of small income. He would watch their operation with interest. On the subject of defence, he held that where a youth was twice imprisoned for non-compliance with the provisions of the Act he was a bona fide conscientious objector. He was surprised at' the Government assuming the role of peacemaker in connection with industrial peace. He dealt with the .trouble at Waihi, reviewing the position from the outset. He also criticised the action of the Government in sending between 30 and 50 policemen to Huntly for a month, when there was absolutely no necessity for such ii step. ,He predicted that Waihi and Huntly were not at the end, of industrial strife. The workers had lost all confidence in the Government and the police.

Dr. Newman dealt with the cost of living. He felt that his subject was the most important before the country. The cost of living Iwas mounting up every year, pound by pound. They heard of the setting up of boards for scientific purposes all over the conntry, but he .thought that the energy dovoted thereto, was misdirected.- It should bo directed in the direction or the alleviation of- poverty.

Mr Witty said that the Government had not answered Mr Robertson's indictment with, regard to the Waihi and Huntly strikes. The Opposition were not in favor of shortdated loans, except under special circumstances. The short-dated debentures of the late Government were just as profitable as the late loan. He -reviewed the work done by the Government during the recess, and contended that the majority of the measures for which the Government I claimed credit had emanated from the Liberal Party. He contended that the Civil Service Commissioners had stirred up more strife than,.enough, and the machines. they were introducing were being scrapped in other countries. Dealing with the Defence Act, he said'that the method of enforcing it was bringing it into the greatest contempt. '.Children were being penalised because of the opinions of their parents, and the jingoistic spirit was being rapidly engineered by the importation of polo-playing' officers. We wanted'military'training, not niitltarism. ' We'would, also have to take care 'that the' system' was, not; 'IU/led by its cost. The Minister of'Finanee had not made a coup over the three million loan, The loan was not a cheap, one, and the Mackenzie Government had done better. South Africa had done better, and New South Wales

and Tasmania had made better•'WWh's.: Where was the policy 'rif the; Govern-, ment? There was not one word in the! Speech about '"'education. the revision of the tariff ? What 'were they going to do about, the',''cost'of living? Had local bodies reform been dropped, and where was the Widows' Pension Bill to reduce the age to sixty ?

Mr Fisher said that the trouble ot the Opposition was not with the politics of the Government, but the fact that they (the Opposition) were out and they were only out because dry rot had set in. Disintegration and internal jealousies had mado it impossible for them to survive!" The present Government had found, when it came into power, colossal expenditure going on in all directions. Superannuation funds had been established but on an unsound basisj Instead of railway employees getting the benefit of the improved reyeuue, concessions w,ere given to the public to make the Government popular. The railway men had stood it till they could stand it no longer. All these matters the Government had to put right, and not one member of the Opposition had voted against their proposals, and yet* they protested that there was wasteful expenditure going on ! Mr Wilford said the Speech before the House was the best proof that the time had arrived when the formality of the Address-in-Reply should lie abolished. The Speech was clever because- there was nothing in it. The alleged increase of the Graduated Tax was the greatest fake ever introduced into the House, because side by side with that increase, the Valuation Act had been introduced which allowed the valuation of land to be reduced. The Premier had said that additional revenue had been obtained from the tax to the extent of £BI,OOO. Had there been no increase, he might have thought the tax had effected its purpose and broken up estates, but as revenue had come that was proof that estates were not broken up. If the Government was sincere in their land policy they must alter their graduated tax and they must prevent aggregation. What was wanted was the scientific treatment of our poorer lands. He contrasted the attitude of the members of the.Government.to the attitude adopted .by them when in Opposition. If the Government proposed to bring down a scheme of a local navy they would strike a rock which would surprise them. He held that what was killing the Defence Act in Xew Zealand was the fact that the Minister in charge was a Colonel of Volunteers. Parliament and country would l>e better pleased if the General in charge of defences line! to go to any other than a colonel of volunteers. Mr Sykes moved the adjournment of the debate, and the House rose at 11.30.