POLITICAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 94, 11 October 1911, Page 7

POLITICAL.

THE STRATFORD SKAT. SPEECH BY Ml!. MeCLUGGAGE. By Telegraph—Own Reporter. Stratford. Last Night. Mr. Joseph McCluggage, Government candidate for the Stratford electorate, at the Stratford Town Hall last night had a splendid meeting, (iOO being ]vrescnt. The 'Mayor (Mr. J. Musters) presided, and said, in introducing the candidate, that Air. McCluggage was well known to most present as one of the oldest settlers in the district and was interested and actuated by all that pertained to its welfare. They would agree that Mr. McCluggage, was a man of grit—(applause) —as had been shown when he went into the wilds of Strathmore, and subsequently further afield to Whangamomona, where he had created a big business. He had, however, managed in spite of the cares of business, to give a large proportion of his valuable time to the people of the district. Mr. MeCiuggage was possessed of brains, as \v»w shown by the fact that he had established so tine a business under difficult circumstances at Whangamomona. No man knew the requirements of the district better than the candidate, for whom he bespoke a good hearing. Mr. McCluggage, who was favorably received, said: — Since I came to the district 18 years ago, as most of you well know, I have always taken a keen interest in opening up our buck country for close settlement with good roads and bridges*, and the loading of our hack country at the present time is of the utmost importance to enable the farmers to successfully compete in the markets of the world, and 1 will always be found supporting a progressive roading policy. Land tenure is nothing compared to good access to enable the farmers to get their stock in and out to the markets and to get their produce to the seaboard.

GOOD TREATMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT. We have been well treated by the policy of the Liberal Government. Take this country twenty years ago. Two or three men held all the land between Toko and the Whangamomona Saddle, a distance of 20 odd miles, of first-class grazing country. The Government came into power in 1891, and .lohn Mackenzie passed his famous '92 Land Bill which altered the whole pha.se of land settlement as far as Taranaki's backblack country is concerned, and the whole of this now prosperous and fertile tract is a standing monument to that far-seeing statesman, the late Sir John Mackenzie.

LAND TENURES. Speaking of land tenures, the Conservative Party will tell you that the (rresent Government has no land policy, and that intending applicants cannot get the freehold from the Government. There is no truth in these misleading statements. The position is this: Two tenures' out of three in the 1892 Land Act gave the freehold tenure, and two tenures out of in the 1908 Laud Act gave the freehold tenure. Any person over 17 years of age. landless men getting prefeTenee,:.!'Can apply to the Crown and can take up 060 acres of first-class land, or 2000 acres of secondclass land, or 5000 acres of third-class land, as the case may be, under the following tenures: —First, purchase for straight-out cash—that is, the freehold absolutely. Secondly, an 0/R.P. LEASE, with the right to purchase. This is practically the =ame as the deferred payment, only with much better terms for the farnuT., a* he only pays 5 per cent, on the. capital value of the land, and after ten years and up to twenty-five years can purchase the freehold.

03 YEARS' LEASE. Thirdly, a lease for CG years, with a perpetual right of renewal for further terms of (10 years, at a rental of 4 per cent, on the capital value, and if the lessee docs not wish to renew the lease, the State guarantees, and pays him, compensation for his improvements. Under the old Act, the State did not guarantee any compensation. This would often prove a serious loss to the outgoing tenant, as in bush country, if the land were idle for twelve months, the improvements disappeared to a certain extent through fern and scrub coming up.

IMPROVED F.S. The Land Board has power, with the consent of the Minister for Lands, to offer land under the Improved F.S. conditions. This tenure is for men without capital. Under this system we can give landless men. without capital, land without competition. The Government! finds the land and allows them the current rate per acre to fell the bush, finds them the grass seed, and allows the current rate per acre to sow it, and allows them up to .00 to build their first whare to make a start with, the whole amount being capitalised, and the tenant only pays 4 per cent, of the total costs thereon. There is no other country in the world where a man with a family and no capital whatever has such good chances to get on the land.

LANDS FOR SETTLEMENT. Then we have the chances for settlement. This tenure is for men with money, where the Government purchases large privately-owned improved estates. The Government cuts the land up into suitable area-, roads it. ami offers it to the fanners at a rental of 5 per cent, on the capital cost. This is done, more in land settlement in the South Island, where the land is held in large areas and has proved very successful for the farmers, and has also proved very satisfactory in Taranaki.

LAND SETTLEMENT FINANCE ACT.

Then we have the Land Settlement Finance Amendment Act, where five or more intending settlers with plenty of farming experience and little capital can negotiate for a block of land of not less than 250 acres, either leasehold or freebold, and provided that the Government Valuer agrees to the price agreed upon by the different parties, the Government will purchase the land, the applicants only finding 4 per cent, on the capital cost, getting 20 years to pay off the balance. They only pay U/ 4 per cent, interest on the money and 1% per cent, sinking fund, making a total of 0 per cent, altogether, and the whole lot is I paid off in twenty years. The settlers can individualise their titles or hold it in common just as it suits themselves. This is a good tenure for the sons of farm.'is and townspeople who may have plenty of fanning experience and little capital and who wish to go on the land. So you will see. ladies and gentlemen, that there is no truth in the Opposition crv that "'intending settlers cannot get the freehold of their land." We have tenures and terms to suit all classes, whether they have money or not. The Opposition puts the position very unfairly before the country.

I CONVERSION OF LLP. I T am a farmer myself with a Crown leasehold, and 1 would strongly support giving the LLP. settlers the freehold of '( the land, under the following conditions, \ that is, 1 per cent, on the original value , of the land 1 . That would put them in the : ) same position as the O.R.P. settlers. The people who went into our back country

I years ago, and underwent all sorts of I hardships and privations, and, with their I wives and families, were cut oil' from J all social intercourse for months at a , time, deserve every consideration from ' this country, but my honest opinion is J that a farmer with a L.I.P. lease is very • foolish to convert it. It is without a doubt the very best tenure in the world for a tenant. It is a 'USUI years' lease at a peppercorn rental, and no re-valua-tion. However, if these people want the freehold, I say let (hem have, it, as any Government has always the right to tax the land and stop the aggregation of excessively large estates going on again.

LAND BOARD. I have been helping to administer the; Crown lands of Taranaki for the last j ten years, and as a member of the Tara- : na<ki Luid Board can say without fear; of contradiction that the Government has done, and is doing, all that it possibly can to get and keep genuine settlers on the land. They give them every help and assistance, and ! am sure that lh«re is no other country in the. world where you get such a wide range of land tenures, especially when you take into consideration the limited area of our country! RESIDENTIAL CONDITIONS.

However, I hold that the residential conditions should be relaxed, to allow a registered substitute to comply with the residence clause. This would enable the sens of farmers and townspeople, who, for domestic and oilier reasons, could not reside, to take up the land, and it would not handicap the other settlers who wished to reside. You are all aware that the School Commissioners have been abolished, and the education leases are now dealt with by the various land boards, and I tliink the education lessees should get the same privileges as the Crown tenants by way of rebates in rent. That means they should get the 10 per cent, rebate for paying their rent promptly.

CO-OPERATIVE WORKS AND CROWN ■ LEASE. The co-operative works, the advances to settlers and the Crown lease have done more to successfully settle the Crown hinds of this Dominion with genuine small settlers than all the land legislation ever passed or suggested by the Conservative Party. When did they ever spend one hour in their lives in trying to get a workable sheme to put men without capital on the land? They never hv.ve. In fact, they have alwnys done the opposite by consistently voting against and condemning all the useful measures passed by the Liberal Government to successfully settle the lands of this Dominion with small settlers. NATIONAL EN DOWMENT. The National Endowment lands I would not touch, as I hold we cannot have too many endowments for such good purposes art the education of our children and old-age pensions. LAND AND FINANCE.

One word before I leave land- tenures. There is a feeling amongst banks and money lenders that the LLP. is not a good security to lend money on. and many a farmer has been severely handicapped upon that account, and 'l would .advocate that the Government Advances to Settlers Office lend tlie. Crown tenants up to 70 per cent, of the selling value of their land, instead of up to only three-fifths„ as at present. That would .put the Crown tenants in as good a financial position as the freeholders. NATIVE LANDS. Sir James Carroll has been blamed by the Opposition for not throwing open the native lands for land speculators and for land syndicates, but I am sure that the historian of the future will give Sir James very great praise for the masterly way in which he has administered the native lands during the time he has been Native Minister. What is the position? For argument, say. if the Native Minister had allowed free trade in native lands up the Main Trunk line 15 years ago, the whole of that vast area would have been mopped up by land speculator* and. syndicates, and future settlers' would, have had to pay many pounds per acre goodwill to get' on the land. The natives would not have benefited ami the Dominion would not have benefited, although the money to build the railway came out of the 'taxpayers' pockets by way of the Consolidated Revenue. lam sure that the Native Minister's laud policy has been a good and sound one for the people of this Dominion. NATIVE LANDS ACT.

The native lands of the Dominion are now dealt with, except in a few exceptional cases, under the Native Linds Act, 19(19. The main feature of this is the throwing open of all native lands, by removing restrictions from Crown grants, etc. Procedure for alienation can be arranged for as follows:—Firstly, by the native owners; secondly, by Maori bind Boards as trustees for the owners: thirdly, by a committee of incorporated owners; fourthly, by a resolution of assembled owners, to prevent the aggregation of large estates By individuals, and for deciding classification, etc. Roughly speaking, the area of the Dominion of New Zealand is 00,000,000 acres. On December 31, 1908, only 7,.">00.000 acres were held in the interests of the natives, and on December 31, 1910, the amount had been reduced to 0,(137,120 acres. Of this area, 3.232,070 acres were being property occupied, leaving a balance of 2,804,452 acres, which area is now being dealt with by way of survey, there being over 70 survey staffs in the field cutting up the. balance. When you. consider that there are 45,000 Maoris in New Zealand you will see that there is thus a very smnll area per head of unused native land. CO-OPERATIVE WORKS.

I believe in the system of carrying out public works on the co-operative plan, which is fairest for the men, and the cheapest for the taxpayers. I aui speaking now with 17 years' experience on these works. I know all the virtues and all the weaknesses of the system, but if properly carried out it is the best.

OLD CONTRACT SYSTEM, Contrast this with the old system of

carrying out public works by contract. I Over 20 years ago I was working on the I Otago Central railway, where the eon- ! tractor, or relative, kept a store, and if we did not deal with that store we 1 got the, ''sack," and no "beg pardons" \ about it. Tf a man lit his pipe between ] the hours of 8 and 12 and 1 and 5 it j meant instant dismissal. Men had to work like horses for (is to 7s per day. | Contrast that with the present system I now in vogue, and it is easy to see which is the best. WORKERS' WAGES ACT. | And under the Workers' Wages Act the ] workmen can be sure of getting tiheir wages in full by the wages being made a first eharce on the contract, and making the principals responsible for thirty days ) after the completion of the contract. A vast difference to what it was previous to the Liberal Government passing this Act. where any man could take a. eontract, put on a hundred wages men, and work two months, then draw 75 per cent, of all work done, and do the ''Pacific Slope," letting the storekeepers and the wages men whistle for their money. I was treated like that myself once in I Blenheim, and know all about it. , I GIRLS IN FACTORIES. : Mr. McCluggage dealt at length with ! the position of women in factories, con *■ [ trasting the present satisfactory stats

of things with that obtaining in the old da vs. GOOD WAGES. Tt is proved by statistics that where wages are good the farmers are doing well, and the farmers are the back-bone of this country; and. I say, when you have the farmers and workers doing well, the business people and the rest of the community must be prosperous and doing well also.

ROADING AND BRIDGING. I would strongly advocate the Government borrowing mofe money or issuing State notes to carry on the development of our back country, and to expedite the opening up of the same—to spend, say, half a million per year on these important works. It will take half a million to properly open up Taranaki's back country, and (if! this large area is firstclass grazing laud. Bv doing this the. Dominion would be making a good sound investment, and it would be. good business also for the settlers. With out back country properly opened by good ro;tds and bridges, the railway running through it and the harbor completed at New Plymouth, it is easy to picture what a prosperous and contented province Taranaki will be. I am, and always have been, a strong believer in the future of this favored province, but we must get the back country opened up quicker. We have a splendid future here, better than most people -realise. It only requires a forward roading policy to bring about increased prosperity. OPUNAKE RAILWAY.

We ail know there is to be a railway constructed from, Opunake to some point on the main line. It is to the very best interests of this district to get that railway to junction at Stratford. If that were, done, it would bring, a very large amount of trade to Stratford. It would practically mean that Stratford would become a very large important railway centre and stop-over place for trains going north, south, east and' west. This railway must come, and very soon at that, as the local bodies can never keep on piling on special rates for remetalling their -roads every six or eight years. That term is practically the life of metal in Taranaki. We must get railway connection with the main line°to save the road traffic, and when it will not pay to have a railway we should have a motor service for goods and pas* sengcrs run in. connection with the railwin'.

TATU MAIL CONNECTION. One mistake Taranaki business meii made was in losing the mail connection from Stratford to Tatu, in the King Country. There is no doubt we should make every effort to get a mail service from Stratford' to the Main Trunk at Ongarue, and also a. telephone connection through the Tangarakau Gorge. With this and a mail service it would assist to develop trade and commerce immense, ly. Nearly the whole of the King Country this side of the Main Trunk line is in the Taranaki province, and the trade should naturally come this way when the railway to 'Ongarue is finished and the harbor improvements at New Plymouth completed.

TAVATION. The candidate dealt at length with the question of taxation, showing that taxation has been taken off the shoulders of those least able to bear it and put on the shoulders of those best able to bear it—the wealthy classes. THE DOMINION DEBT.

The candidate dealt at length with the Dominion debt, .showing that of the £42,247,772 borrowed during the twenty years £33,274,247 was reproductive and interest bearing, the balance being spent on public and rood-making, etc. He pointed out that the present Government is only paying £3 14s <id per centum for its loans.

EDUCATION, He believed in our present system of education, but thought that country school-teachers were very much underpaid for the amount of responsibility they had, He thought that the female teachers should receive the same salaries as male teachers, especially when they do the same amount of work. LIQUOR QUESTION.

The candidate continued:—l' now come to that much debated question. It is not necessary for me to say that I am, and always have been, a temperate man, and I have no sympathy whatever with the abuse' of strong drink. I think that in a democraitic country and standing for democratic, principles that wo should have a bare majority on the national vote. I think that more strict supervision should be had over hotels by the police, to enter any hotel at any hour and take samples of liquor from the bar or store-room and seal up same in the presence of the licensee and send to Wellington to be analysed. If upon being analysed it were found to be adulterated with anything injurious, I would cancel the licensee's license and prosecute him in addition. CIVIL SERVICE.

The Candidate declared his opposition j to taking away the control of the Civil i Service from the Government of the day. I STATE FARMS. I He supported and advocated a State J experimental farm being established near Stratford. Stratford was the centre, ot | the largest area of dairy land on the coast, with the railways running north, ! south, east, and, we hope in the near I future, westwards also. ''The Hon. T. ! Mackenzie, who is a most live Minister I for Agriculture, a man who has donelan immense .amount of good for the farmers of this country, especially by exposing the great Beef Trust frauds at I Home some years ago. deserves the thanks and "confidence of the farmers ol | the Dominion for all time, and I think i that if Mr. Mackenzie were approached, he would see the advisability of estabI Hahing more State farms in the Do--1 minion. - '

FORESTS DEPARTMENT. I would suggest the creation of a Department of Forestry to encourage and control the growth of our newforests, and to replace tile ones that are fast disappearing.

UPPER HOUSE. f I don't think that we can improve upon the present system of nominating ] Legislative Councillors for a term of seven years. But if there -were to be a change", I would support an elective Upper .House. ELECTORAL SYSTEM. i 1 (bink that our electoral system could | easily be improved upon, and I would '< support (proportional voting. That is the fairest way to get representation for the minority, although the second f ballot is a big improvement upon the old ! svstem. Still, under the present system, |.,' J.irr minority is practically disfran--1 chiscd. Under the proportional system all sides would be represented. BANKING. ,1 think that it is a great pity that the Government did not keep the controlling interest in the Bank of New .Zealand when it came to the Banks ! rescue by guaranteeing the ; C2»o fifteen years ago, and T still think that the .bank should be a State Rank. As ' it is, the bank has done very little good f Ol . the farmers. They make all their ■ advances on demand, and when tightness I of money comes, they make matters i ; worse by callinig up their overdrafts, and - ' many a fanner has had to sacrifice his, - stock, and in many cases also his land,

to pay off the bank's overdraft. I would urge the Government legislating to compel the hanks to lend money on fixed mortgage, otherwise I should support the establishment of a State Bank to do this.

COLONIAL INDUSTRIES. I would support any measure designed to assist the- manufacture of articles in the Dominion, to keep the money amongst out ratepayers. The Government should establish one ammunition factory, and if war broke out they would know exactly what ammunition they could depend upon. In my opinion, war as bound to come, sooner or later, as the population of eastern countries is growing so rapidly. They must expand somewhere, and the Pacific is their natural outlet. IMMIORATIOX.

I would urge the Government to bring out a limited number of British immigrants every year, and I think that people who are in the country and who have relatives at Home wishing to come out, should: he allowed to nominate them here and bring them out free of cost.

HTOLANrTARIAN LEGISLATION. He was in fav«r of the humanitarian legislation outlined in the Budget.

BACK BLOCKS. The Government had gone a long way in humanitarian legislation. In back country isolated settlements it should go still further by way of providing registered qualified nurses in mid-wifery. He advocated the Government setting aside endowments of land up to 1000 acres scattered over our back settlements, the rental to go towards paying the nurses' salaries, any deficiency to be made up by the hospital und charitable aid hoards out of rates. He advocated the Government building a sanatorium in each island for the treatment of consumptives, and allow any person suffering from tuberculosis to enter free of cost. PRESENT GOVERNMENT. . The speaker continued:—l would ask yon to carefully weigh all the beneficial legislation passed by the present Government for the benefit of the whole of the. people of this Dominion. The farmers have benefited by the abolition of the sheep tax, by the Dairy Act, the Advances to Settlers' Act, the Lands for Settlement Act, and the Lands for Settlement Finance Act. The workers have benefited by the Advances to Workers' Act, the Workers' Dwellings Act, the Factories Act, the Old Age Pensions, and the Workers Compensation Act, and other progressive legislation which the Conservative Party has consistently voted against and condemned whilst before the House. (To be concluded.)