THE PREMIER IN THE NORTH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 47, 14 February 1908, Page 2

THE PREMIER IN THE NORTH.

Pcr Press 'Association. Auckland, Thursday. In a speech delivered at Karangahake Sir Joseph Ward referred to the Arbitration Act. ft could, he -said, be im- I proved; but it had done # away with : the old system of tlie strength of men against the strength of money. Uiid !, r that system only one class had sulVereJ —the workers, their wives, and their children. A similar state of things would be our lot here if in future \v> repealed from out Statute Books that, important piece of work which had enabled disputes to be set tied by the process of law and provided in the meantime against any loss oi' production in the particular industry affected. Only within the last"tew days he said, this country had been asked to help'the men who had si ruck in the shipping trade in Sunderland. Thirty thousand of th"m wviv out of work and nearly starving. Those men and their wives could have been ruved it the\ had had ill the Old Country such a law as uur Arbitration Act. The old system was barbarous, cruel, and cowardly." In -every country where it existed the got the wor-t of it. It was impossible to compare the conditions in the Old Land with those in New Zealand.

I Sir .losfejih Ward, speaking at Paeroa, 1 retoire.l to deloiice. matters. Jle said ihe people wanted to eusure for themselves a white race. They wanted to prevent mixture, particularly with the Eastern races. Vet what were the facts? Within a lew days' sail of New Zealand were millions of Chinese and •Japanese. It was the former we had to look to. Chinese were being educated in the arts ami sciences, and were being trained in warfare by men who wanted them in the future for their own aggrandisement. Suppose the time should come in future years when educated Chinese would he able to shoulder the gun and take their position in the field on equal terms with other nations. Could we expect a handful of people in .New Zealand to eliecUuilly defend our I <hx»res against them? This he said, ■ was one of the dangers on the hori/.on, and there were evidences that it might come. Ucrinanv's policy for a long time had been to build ships of war to be able to take part against Croat Britain should occasion ariise. For this reason Britain refused to reduce the naval estimates. \Ve should never have a naval engagement on the New Zealand coast. It would be in the Mediterranean, perhaps, or in the liasl, oil' India, if Cerinany should win, it would mean that not only Creat Britain but every portion oi the British Empire would be beaten. The increased payment under the naval agreement was not being made on sentimental grounds. They were bound to insure the people against the possibility of any Power taking auay their personal property. The British Navy was our iirst line of defence. livery man in the Dominion in the event of a British licet being beaten, would light on to preserve his country. Waihi, L.kst Night.

.Sir Joseph and Lady Ward to-day motored from I'acrou to Waihi, accompanied by iicssrs. 11. Poland and 11, J. (iivcnsdalc, JL-P.'s. A visit was paid to Waikino en route After inspecting tlie Waihi Compwiy's Victoria battery, the Prime Minister received several deputations. who gave utterance to a number of local wants, lie also addressed a gathering of battery hands on the general policy of the Ciovernmcnt. J.n a brief reference to the mining industry, lie attributed the decrease in last year's gold returns to the cessation of Operations of several dredges iu the south, and prognosticated a future increase in the industry's productiveness. On arrival at W'ailii the Prime .Minister was formally welcomed by the .Mayor (.Mr, Thos. Ctilmour) and prominent citizens, ..t'ter which he devoted two or three hours to the reception of deputations. In the evening lie delivered a public address, and was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence in tlie Government. Later fsir Joseph was the guest of (he Jlayor at a social. To morrow he proceeds to the Thames, where lie will speak ill the evening. ] n the course of a reply to one of (lie deputations oil tile ipiestion of the generation of electricity from water power for mining purposes. Sir Joseph stated that the Gi> \ eminent was formulating conditions under which private companies would be enabled to harness the available waters ot the Dominion for power purposes.