PARLIAMENT

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXII, Issue 200, 27 September 1900, Page 2

PARLIAMENT

run PttESJ ABBOCIATIOM. v LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, Wednesday, Ueptembtr 26, Tb« (Jouncil mot at 2 30 p.m. Tho Law Amendment Bill 1900 (lion. H. Feldwii k) and Cycle Board* Bill (Hon. W. C. Walker) wore reed a first time. Tho lion. R, H. J. Reeves moved " that in the opinion of this Council, in viow of tbe inability of tbe Governors of Victoria College to obtain 1 suitable site for the institution In tho city of Wellington, one should be BCDcured in the city of Nelson, that locality being in every way more suitable and convenient for student!; tod that tho Government be requested to introduce a bill to amend clause 2 of tbe Victoria College Act 1887, with a view to striking out the word « Wellington " imd inserting in lieu thereof the word " .Nelson." Aficr some debate, the motion wm carried by 21 votes to 13. Tins Criminal Code Act 1893 Amendment Bill was recommitted, and iho inter prelntion clause amended. The Hi 1 ' thou passed, 'lie Family Maintenance Bill wan li'.wl a third lima and passed. .ilre Council proceeding with the Shop and unices Bill in Committee, clause 2S wiin amended to provide for oilic( r " and wholesale houses" observing a half-holiday on Saturday, provided that when the occupier of amy office has given notice under section 23 if he elects to close on the statutory closiog day tho half-holiday shall bo on that day, anything in this section notwithstanding." The Ceuncil adjourned at 5 pjn, EVENING SITTING. Iho Council rosumed in Committee on the Shops and Offices Bill. Clause 28, sub-section 5, was amended, by 11 votes to 10, to exempt a&jt-'uiilsi in hotels from the operation oi the weekly half-holiday >lmm. Assistants in eating bouses and restaurants, whether connected with a hotel or not, come within the "itriwinf of the clause. " A new sub section was added providing that all assistants in hotel ban shall have one half-holiday each week, on suah working day as the ""cmr may think fit. On the motion of the Hon. J. Bigg, a clause was added providing that in the event of another day than Saturday being appointed as the closing day by the local authority, any shopkeeper shall be entitled to cloee on Saturday in lieu thereof on giving notice to the Inspector of bis desire so to do, The Bill was reported as amended. 1 ho Post Ollico Bill nnd Government Railways Bill passed their first reading. The Council rose at 9.45. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. Wednesday, September 26. Tho House met at 2.30 p.m. An additional week's leave of absence was granted to Messrs. Allen and MuKsoy. Tho Counties Act Amendment, Electoral Act Amendment, and Worker* Right of Appeal Bills were road a first time. QUESTIONS. f >,ju..Mtions, Ministers said t.lia; t, 1 ■, o (lovci ••iriejit would, as soon as |wk'A», .-im.'l tin* Government Geolo- ' report a,s to tire advisability of .'•'''"ii; a prospecting bore for i*o.l lit l)jli.sytl. *•. ** ! *!• 1 '! ii'iiion of amending the ! -Lurr.! ! *'_ tenants may re.-,.rye tl- url'.ng timber on their a.4 nut havo la fell it to do their iinpiovoments, Mr. Dunetn said it wa. competent for a settler to 'Pi'ly to the Land Boatxi, and ,f the circumstances warranted they had pawer to authonte sink reservation; that the Pest Office Bill would contain provision to enable trustees to mike a deposit on behalf of benefici tries in the Post Offioe Savings Bmk; thit the decline in the birth mtt from 91 to 99 was not peculiar to this colony, but according to statistics was general in several parts of tbe world. Ministers had ne theory to account for the e'esline and had no suggestion to mike to c-oinbit tbe evil; that Minittoi'i had every reison to believe that ft !'. Ismsttt School 11-11 woul Ibe pissed ti-rs ■ .;..sion, and that it was proposed i*> plrtce a sum on the Publio Works lMtiirute i for the purpose of buildings for such schoJs; with regard to the question whether the Government would communicate with the Goternments of the various dependencies of the Empire and the Secretary of State for the oolonios with the view of establishing an Imperial trade Zollverein, the Premier replied that next session he would introduce a measure dealing with the subjeot which 1» thoroughly approved of; that the

amount of claims under the Old Agt Pension Act this yexr would amount to £200,000, and in view of that hot a projjoial to increaeo the psniion to tan slii! ii)|if; could uot be adopted; while Mr. Hoddon l.elioved that then ma moro (ling;i to the well-being of the youug of tho colony from gambling than trom drink, tho Government could not introduce a meissniu to suppress gambling tliis session, but hoped to dell with the ovil next Ko&mon. Tho Government iUilways Bill wu : uri;ht*r considered in Committee, :'hu...( 3 w:i« utuecd'.d on the motion a ")« VVcid is tho effect that all in. j: ti now iu Uio sorvice of the Danrtm.ut, and were in tht< service imno liutoly bcioro iho 28th January,

fjapect to their right to Euperannua- c tion or compensation allowance as if i 3of section 4of the Govern- [ Bent Railways Act, 1894, were not 1 repealed. t . The Bill was reported with amend- ( wente, read a third time and passed. 4 The Poet Office Bill was committed c and reperted with amendments, read a f third time, and passed. . i The House adjourned at 5.30, i EVENING BITTING. , The House met again at 7.30 p.m. \ PBIVATH INDUSTRIAL BCHOOLB. f Mr. Seddon moved the second read- i jng of the Private Industrial Schools Act Amendment Bill. He said he hoped the question would be discussed in a calm and judicial spirit, and that, doe care would be taken to conserve the ' interests of the waifs ind strays that had been committed to the care of the State. It should be borne in mind • • that the Roman Catholics of the colony were mortified to an extreme extent at what had happened in connection with the school, ond in anything that might . be said during the debate the tradi- ( tioDS of the race for fair play would be exhibited, and nothing said that would reflect upon their creed. o doubt the Government wculd be blamed for what had happened, and they were prepared to accept all the responsibility, but he s looped no blame would b9- attached to Is any officer who was blameless, If wrong had been done the law was to blame, and every one who had been a member of the House for years should j accept their share of the blame in connection with the manner in which the 1 school had been conducted. Jt had 1 been stated that the Hon, W. P. a Beeves visited the Stoke school in 1895, ' nod that he had then reported that if certain irregularities which were al- ; leged to exist were not remedied het mold discontinue the subsidy. A ] wthla had been sent Mr. Beeves for in- ; formation on that subject, as there was no record of his ever having made . such a statement. Mr. Seddon read the cable reply to the effeet that Mr. Beeves had no recollection of having expressed any such dissatisfaction with, the management of the Stoke school, and that the only suggestion he had made was that there was a tendency to keep the inmates in the school too long. As to the system of inspection which obtained, be asserted that since 1895 font had been much more efficient than ' daring any previous period since the 1 establishment of the school in 1871, so \ that the Government was not to blame is that respect. If any one was to blame it was the Nelson Charitable Aid 1 Board, who had the school under its < , Bo«e,and yet had permitted a state of things to continue that was new complained of. As to the charges that had been made against the management of the schoo 1 , he asked, the House to remember that similar charges had ' been made against-State industrial and primary schools, and that in the case of the latter the scandals had been hushed up. He cried shame upon the Charitable Aid Board for having allowed such a state of things to continue without having made an attempt to remedy them. As to the charge that there had been tampering with the earnings of the inmatts, he asserted that was impossible. He agreed, howiever, that wherever State money was given there should be State supervision and control, and in that respect it was intended that all p-ivate Industrial Schools should come under the Bill. It should ba borne in wind that Boman Catholics had, for conscience sake, charged themselves with the education of their own children st a saving to the State of not less than '.£30,000 a year, and in face of that fact it was paltry to object to an expenditure of only J63000 a year on the Stoke j School. There were 400 inmates of Boman Catholic Industrial Schools in j the colony, and what was to be done j with the children if these schools were dosed i Than were only two courses opeoin which these schools could be dealt i with, one was to continue them under a t proper system of inspection and con- ■ trd, and that there should be no foreign control, and the other was that there should be no private industrial schools and that the inmates should be committed to State schools. In the

latter r«"» be did not believe that there would bo any improvement. Mr. G. W. Russell referred to the extraordinary arguments used by the Premier in support of the Stoke school. The of the Stoke school at any rate had seen very little of the bright side of life, which, he said, was characteristic of private industrial schools. Why had the Premier introduced the question of undenominational education to break the fall of the management of the Stoke school? As to the charge made by the Premier that Parliament itself was to blame for the condition of the Stoke School, he personally declined to accept any such responsibility. The action of the Government in connection frith the affair all through had been weak and vaccila*bg, and there had I not been a proper inspection of the school the Government was to blame, 1 as the Inspector-General's report to the Minister proved he had no desire to k raise the question of sectarianism, neither would he refer to the nameless crimes charged against the brothers. He defended the action of the Nelson Charitable Aid Hoard in connection with the* enquiry, contending that instead of censuring the members of that body as the Premier bail done . they had earned the gratitude of the whole colony. Mr. Pi rani complained c-f the Premier occupying fifty-6even lniiiuUn in lauding the Roman oit holies and besmirching public ssnoolp, whik' hdayoted only three minuUs to tiifl I'iil' itself. He was not surprint at tin Premier's attitude w? iiu ...ir. a m-. nominationaiist at u«i- 1 • • - his (M r. Pir.mi} in. »■ ■ n .... ..- the manajjemeni oi .t.t , but the Bill -I. ■ * the prcsfcutiou giiou) llt ft ■ n , ;! bofoiv the c-K'itii>y I; v,u- : ! ; and t. '.t v!■. i ' •• • ■-■■■ ' • private iiidni".!i. 1 h'.:.'.' .a " properly used. is : : J . ; might baiuacU) «a iuaasiriui «:• -o»> commended tfco i.i'iii'- sr-'oai producicgibo i.tsi. r«:ial'Joa tbo paife <.i ti«. J' v -n-'«t public echo : *■ school, cmWr'.n ?r<-'■ '• ■ <; v.. • r: Hjure f. m •; »■■. * ?'o : - . iu a

of Industrials Schools. The Government had bean endeavouring to improve Industrial Schools, and he believed that of all systems the cottage home was-.the most suitable, and the Government was working in the direction of establishing that system. He condemned the Charitable Aid Board for their laxity in supervision over the [Stoke School, and quoted from the [recorded testimony of official visitors [ four years ago, showing that the school was well conducted and the children j well tended. The school had been open I for inspection by anyone at all times | and at all hours. Tha House adjourned at 10 o'clock.