The Daily News FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13. THE PRIME MINISTER'S SPEECH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 274, 13 November 1908, Page 2

The Daily News FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13. THE PRIME MINISTER'S SPEECH.

Despite strong loeal counter-attractions, the personality no less than the mission of the Prime .Minister was able to command at I\ew Plymouth on Monday night one of the largest, most orderly, and ivppreciative audiences ever gathered under a single roof in this town. To those who had not previously had the privilege of listening to Sir Joseph Ward, and who have not forgotten the magnetic and compelling personal force wielded by the late Premier, Sir Joseph Ward was, to some extent, on his trial before the people of Sew Plymouth and district. That he emerged from the ordeal with flying colors, his cause strengthened and the people's confidence in him and his Government unshaken, was abundantly demonstrated as the meeting progressed, and culminating with salvos of applause and cheering. The capacity ot the late Mr. .Seddon tor enduring physical strain was once a byword in Xew Zealand; but the vigor that has been infused into the present election campaign by {Sir Joseph Ward has already stamped him as a man of great physical strength. With scarcely a breathing-space or moment for rest he has addressed meetings almost nightly in towns over the length and breadth

of the country. While keeping up with the pressure of his departmental work at all hours of the day and night, anil meeting deputations on all manner of subjects at every stopping-place, almost nightly he takes the platform and cheerfully throws .himself into the fray with speeches, the rhetorical magnitude of which are beyond the power of all but very few public speakers in New Zealand. No ijmblie speaker in the Domi'uiuu to-day can compare with Sir Joseph Ward in the amount of information he can convey to am audience in a given time, and his natural gifts in that direction go far in stamping him as a strong leader of exceptional talent ability. We need not here folio*' the Premier in his dealings with Abe criticism of the | country's finances and credit (whicli is dealt with, in another article) except to congratulate Sir Joseph on the clear and emphatic manner in which he disposed of Mr. J. 15. Hine's argument against tiie wisdom of investing £BOO,OOO in gilt-edged securities in Loudon, enabling the country, in the event of a financial crisis here, to obtain money at short notice if necessary to maintain the cointry's stability. In answer to the critics who complained that money voted for public works was not spent within tho linancial year, the Premier made the only logical reply, that the diiiiculiy could only be overcome by changing the financial year to one ending at September instead of March. We have r,'n various occasions pointed out that no other solution oilers, unless ii ]„• :n have the Parliamentary sessions duri i = ' the .summer months, and that is o£ viously out of .the question. To ihe untenable Opposition charge that the Government had increase! taxation, the Premier's reply was convincing, ' Uo challenged his opponents to name a -ingle law under which the Government liad increased taxation, excepting the graduated land-tax affecting "only owner possessing landed property of over £40,000 unimproved value. An effective reply to those who accuse the (■overnmont of taxing the farming community was the Premier's statement that of 149,001! landowners in the Do minion, only 20,000 (including 3900 wealthy enough to be pavimj graduated land-tax) paid any land-tax at all. These figures should convey to the farming community some idea of the special exemptions in their favor, which contrast very markedly with their position under, the old property-tax in force | when the Liberal Party r-ame into office, and which they nuirkh- repealed, releasing SOOU farmers from land-tax.

Hie Premier's defence of the Govern, '"cut's railway policy is one that has Hie mil approval of all but a few actuarial cranks. Anyone who contends that the railways should earn more llwn ■i per cent, on capital either knows nothing of the subject or is prepared to revert.to the old charges for fare" and freight and reduce the if ages of railway servants. The Government policy ot remitting to the people all the railways earn rn excess of 3 per cent, is one that has tended more to the development and expansion of New Zealand s iriido and industries than anvthing else, and it would he a grievous day for New Zealand if aav'opponenfs of that policy got into power and put heir theories into practice. Meantime the Dominion has the Premier's assurance that nothing of the kind will ,-,. ceive any consideration from the Government, whose policv is to further r.Uucc charges as the. surplus revenue increases. The same liberal policy is bcine pursued witli all the other "rent Sta-o .enterprises, and whether such a policv he deemed .socialistic or not, it is one Uiat has the support of nearly all glades of opinion. At the .same'time, 61 , t Joseph made it quite clear thai wlu e he believed the State was able to do still more for the common, weal through its public services, he had no practical sympathy with land national, isation. Commenting on the land question Sir Joseph claimed that but for he Lands for .Settlement policy of the .overnment, New Zealand would not have had its present volume of exports. J.hat is surely obvious when he was able to show that under this system alone the. Government had acquired over ono "»l 'on acres of land, on which were settled over one hundred thousand souls. -Naturally the country's production has increased vastly as the rasult of Govern meat borrowing for the purposes of •„■ inuring land for .settlement. Sir •Josephs intimation that the. Governments Land Settlement Finance Billto Pliable any number of men exceeding ive to form themselves into ~,„ a „ ociil °. lion to secure freehold farms through Government agency, at i% per cent., covering interest and sinking fundwould be passed next session js indisputable proof, if the farming community needed it, that the Government is not opposed to the freehold tenure It is a Miigular commentary on the diil'erence between the great business of condirl mg' the allair, of Slate and (hose of .-jii, a .public company, that while, with the latter, money invested in such businesses as land settlement, railways, etc would lie. known as capital, m current politics it is never credited with any appellation other than debt. The Premier had no difficulty in exposing the exaggerations of the Opposition in their charges of o.vtravageneo on public buildings and public works. No ono nowadays, ,not even the most bitter political' opponents of the Government, can ques-1 twin the tremendous success of the Advances to Settlers polity. Yet prejudice 'lies .hard, and while it would be di'irieull J to find a struggling farmer who has not been aided by cheap money from the Government Department, his sympathies. i„ l 0„ niany cases, are with the party that did its very utmost to deprive him of the advantages of cheap iii'iiicy. Such is gratitude, however. Jhe Premier's reference to his great scheme of National Annuities, und-r "Inch almost every man and woman '"'ill be able to make adequate provision lor the maintenance of himself and his wile and children in his old a»c touched » responsive chord in the myelin..' ami I llie announcement that tin- Jiill is" to he proceeded with as a policy ju ,-,, w ,s warmly applauded. Sir .Jo.,eph dealt at length wilh the dairying regulation, assuring the farmers thai, the Government's only desire is In help them and I heir industries. If, however, I hey a. re opposed to Government .supervision of any kind, he invited them to represent their views to Parliament. If it came !•■ a question of (.he Gcivei'iime-,il withdrawing its support from the fanm-ig industry, however, a support Hint ensls (he country .hundreds »f Cioiisinds o!'■ ■pound-, anil involving a. lax of :u per' head oa every man.' woman, and child ' in Ihe Dominion, we are persuaded ,i particular class "I fanner would speedily come lo his -ciiscs. As a mailer of fail, and we sir il with a full sense of r.-i.,nsibii;tv. the views of the rrtrniln:' eoivmunify es e, whole on. ill,. dai.y ■,!..] !,. tV. Premie by the'(b-pu'la, u on Monday morning. T.o put il

mildly, a system of "gag" was in operation, .and the views only of tlie extreme section of tlie farmers were nut before Sir Joseph. Wo say without hesitation that there was a considerable number of farmers present who generally favored tlie regulations, but desired that the advisability of making certain amend- . incuts be brought under the Premier's t notice. Means were taken, however, , that prevented these views being .put . forward, ami so far as the deputation was concerned, the premier was told that Taraiiaki wanted no regulations, no supervision, practically no Governinelit assistance at all. It was a most regrettable admission, one that we are certain finds little support from the great majority of level-headed fanners, and one that would not be made in anj other part of Aew Zealand. Speaking ■regarding the regulations at liis nieetiii", Sir Joseph issued a challenge that somewhat changes the complexion concerning the history of the regulations, and is particularly" pertinent to certain claims being put forward by Jlr. Okey. The Premier delied any member of Parliament to say otherwise than that it was all along the intention, of the Government to submit the regulations to the Stock Committee so thai limners could give 'evidence upon them. The Premier referred with pardonable pride to the achievements of the Government achievements which, notwithstanding Opposition criticism, not even the Opposition dared to suggest repealing. In asking that the Government be judged on its record, he left no doubt in the minds of the electors as to whom they should support if they desired to assist tho Government in continuing its policy of progress.