MR F. LAWRY, M.H.R.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 470, 10 May 1890, Page 4

MR F. LAWRY, M.H.R.

ADDRESS AT MANGERE. Auckland, May 5. On Saturday evening Mr Frank Lawry, M.H.R. for the electoral district of Franklin North, addressed his constituents at the Mangere Hall. There was a small attendance. Mr J. Robertson presided. Mr Lawry confined his address mainly to his course of procedure in the House last session,and to the railway policy, education, and the property tax, though other subjects, such as the efficiency of the Civil Service, were touched upon. In starting his address he challenged any man bo say that he had violated his pledges, ' or that he had been elected to support the Stout-Vogel Government. He had pledged himself to his constituents to support any government whose policy contained drastic retrenchment and a reform in the administration, and he had kept his word. He had been asked why, if he were a qualified supporter of the Government, he had seconded the address - in - reply ? He was asked to fill the place of Mr Humphries, who was to have seconded the address, but was taken ill, and after some hesitation he did so, on the condition that he would freely and honestly criticise the speech, which he did. Speaking on the scramble for the public money which was the scandal of the House of Representatives, he said that if he did nob join in the scramble it was due to his constituents. They had nob asked him to do a thing which he could nob proclaim from the house-tops, and he was proud of them. Mr Lawry spoke briefly of the persistency with which he had kept at his post during the session. There were several things in the Governor's speech that he did nob like. He opposed the Ha>e electoral system. He was averse to the Charitable Aid Bill, and bada horror of seeing anything approaching to parochial or localised charitable aid introduced into this country. He had spoken strongly against the appointment of the Railway Commissioners and of Mr Maxwell, and he believed that in appointing Maxwell, the Government had grossly violated faith with the House and the country.

The Government deserved the best thanks of the colony for what it had done in placing the land at the disposal of the people, and if what they had done had been done fifty years ago, there would have been greater prosperity inNew Zealand now. Speaking on other topics, he said he was very much in favour of the measure introduced to abolish dual voting. He supported the primary system of education. He had nob a very great objection to the cumulative system of voting, bub it was open to abuse. They should maintain the education system absolutely free, secular, and compulsory. He strongly condemned the property tax. No young county could ever hope to prosper under so iniquitous a measuie. Speaking on the Civil Service, he said that there was not a man in the Civil Service at Wellington who did not earn his salary, bub he was convinced that the work was made for the officials, owing to the complex and expensive system of government.

He feared that during the coming session an attempt would be made to introduce the religious element into the schools, and he maintained that they must resist it to the very uttermost. He had no sympathy with those who said that the system was a godless one. He believed that the finest code of morals, outside the Bible, was taught in the schools. He never saw much good resulting from the reading of the Bible in the schools ; and so long as there was a State system of education, it must remain absolutely free, secular, and compulsory. Mr Lawry in condemning the property tax pointed out the special injury done by the tax owing to the taxation of unprofitable as well as profitable industries, and quoted an instance related to him in regard bo a company in England with £5,000,000 capital. This company had made very little profit for the first year, and in the second year it made no profit, and was relieved from the payment of income tax for that term. But had the property tax existed in England the company would have had to show a loss of over £40,000 for ib3 two years’ operations,or to have falsified its books, and in the end would probably have had to be wound up. Ths speaker denounced the principle of taxing a man for the improvements upon his property. This question was bound to be a great one in the coming session. It would not, he thought, be decided in a moribund Parliament, but it would certainly be fought out in the new Parliament. Some people suggested that the tax should be gradually reduced, and thus removed ; but it was the principle he objected to, and he would rather see the property tax fixed at 3Ad in the £ instead of Id, and all exemption wiped away, because there would then be such a howl of indignation from one end of the colony to the other that no Government could stand a day that did not at once remove the tax. He had lost faith in Mr Ballancewhen the latter changed his ground in regard to the property tax question in order to get certain votes. At the close, Mr Lawry was accorded a vote of thanks.