POLITICAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 150, 20 November 1914, Page 6

POLITICAL.

THE EGMONT SEAT. MR C. A. WILKINSON, M.P., AT ELTHAM. Mr C. A. Wilkinson, M.P. for Egmont, Government candidate, addressed tlie electors at the Eltham Town Hall on Wednesday night. There was a good attendance. Mr T. B. Crump, the Mayor, presided.

THE GOVERNMENT PRAISED. Mr Wilkinson, in opening, said he proposed to explain his actions as member, and the actions and the aims of the Government. The Massey administration had proved itself a capable, progressive, active and thoughtful administration. It had had to put up with much unlookedfor trouble, such as the smallpox epidemic, strikes and the war, and the Government had met these disturbing elements in a proper manner. As for the holding of tlie elections this year, he held it to be the duty of the Government to go before the electors at tho proper time, in view of the frequency of the challenges issued to go before the people. At all events, the Government had adhered to constitutional procedure. He referred to Sir Joseph Ward's want of confidence motion last session, and its defeat, and he predicted that the Government would still be on top after the elections. The Opposition leader had alleged that the Massey party had increased the cost of running the country by some £760,000 odd per annum. The increased coat of administration under Sir Joseph Ward in tho last year of office had been upwards of £970,000. That was a complete answer to Sir Joseph Ward's charges.

THE WAR. Touching on the war, Mr Wilkinson said that what affected Britain affected us. Great Britain, with strong allies in the present war, would eventually come out on top. In tho event of defeat the future of New Zealand would have to be settled in Berlin. But matters were progressing satisfactorily for us. New Zealand should be, and would be, prepared to help the Old Country to the last man and the last shilling, if necessary. New Zealand had already helped in a material fashion by sending the expeditionary force, fully equipped, within three months of the outbreak of war.' This was in a largo measure due to tho compulsory military training scheme enacted by the Liberal Government, though it was but fair to say that Sir Joseph Ward had formerly opposed compulsory military service, and its greatest advocates had been the present leaders of the Government. The sending of the force, or, rather, the outbreak of war, had silenced the objectors to the present defence scheme, and he hoped Great Britain would take a leaf out of our book and .adopt compulsory military training. In the Boer War New Zealand had done her share, sending some 10,000 men in three years. But we had already sent over 10,000 men, fully trained, to help the Empire in the present crisis, and this time New Zealand was bearing the cost. In the case of the Boar War the cost was borne by the Imperial Government. ! THE NAVAL POLICY.

Mr Wilkinson referred to the naval policy of the present Government not as a party measure. He traversed Sir Joseph Ward's naval subsidy policy, explaining that the British Government was to supply us with two British cruisers, three destroyers, and two submarines. Agreement was made for Australia also, and for the stationing of H.M.S. New Zealand as the flagship of the China squadron. Before the time for completion of the bargain in 1912, the | New Zealand Government agreed to the New Zealand being reserved in Home waters, and the Admiralty later notified us that the British cruisers were not available. Hon. Jas. Allen, on his visit to Britain, had made further negotiations, and the British Government offered us a ship for training purposes, and ■to supply two other ships. The ships had duly arrived, but were useless for I fighting purposes. The British Government, however, has declined, even for an additional £50,000 subsidy, to give us warships fit for service, and Hon. Allen consequently recommended the Government to go in for a local navy, building a British cruiser. The Opposition laughed, and talked of the "toy navy," but it was a British cruiser which had cruiser belonged to Australia av.'i iiw settled the Kmilen, and that British manned by Australians. It was vitally necessary that New Zealand should have warships to help to keep the trade routes open, for if our produce could not reach the markets overseas there would be no money coming in and we would soon be in dire financial straits. Mr Wilkinson said he had always opposed the naval subsidy scheme. He opposed the gifts of Dreadnoughts, feeling it of more use to relieve the Imperial Gotcrnment of part of the burden of protecting the Pacific. Great Britain could control the North Sea, and were there at nil times, but the Dominions should see to it that their trade routes were protected. Without tho command of the sea the Empire could no longer exist.. Australia to-day constituted the great danger—a great country, practically uninhabited, the greatest prize ever offered to a conquering power. Any nation conquering Australia could develop it as it liked. New Zealand was in danger from that fact, though undoubtedly wo had been Raved by the Australia* fieot. (Applause.) Without them, what was there to prevent the Germans from shelling our coastal ports? New Zealand was not doing its share. Our naval contribution amounted to 5s a head of population, while Great Britain paid 22s tid a head. Sir Joseph Ward was still "Dreadnought mad." Sir Joseph said he could not see that a local navy for a handful of people like ours could be a success, but he (the speaker) differed, and thought that New Zealand was bound to undertake this responsibility. Most of the Liberals held Sir Joseph Ward's views, but Mr Myers agreed with the Government policy on this question. When Mr G. W. Russell had said the creation of a local navy would mean breaking the partnership in Britain he was talking pure, unadulterated rubbish, for New Zealand was under the protection of the Union Jack at all times. He quoted Admiral Sir King-Hall as a supporter of the principle of the establishment of local navies. Of course, in time of war, any locally-owned warships passed under the control of the British Admiralty, and we would never dream of opposing that.

THE GOVERNMENT'S PERFORMANCES. "What had the Reform Government done?" was. the cry of the Opposition. It had revolutionised the land policy of the country. The Liberal policy had been leasehold; the present Government's the freehold. Crown tenants had been given the right to acquire the freehold on easy terms. Hundreds of settlers had already taken advantage of the Act, and more and more would do so. Over 240,000 acres of land had thus changed its title, and the Advances to Settlers Department was assisting the settlers to make the purchase. '• The ■Government had reformed the

under the control of the Civil Service Board, and making fitness the qualification for employment, eliminating political influence and patronage. That was in the interests of taxpayers of the country, and for the State employees also. Continuing the record of "Reform" achievements, Mr Wilkinson said the Government had repealed the Second (Ballot Act. He had not been much against the Second Ballot Act himself, but there had been a general consensus of opinion against it. (Cries of "No.") His local political opponents, anyhow, was against it. In 1908, out of thirty second ballots, 21 leaders at tlie first ballot still led at the second, and the results of the remaining nine reversed the decision in only one seat. That second ballot had cost the country over £IO,OOO and kept the country in a state of termoil for another week. Mr G. W. Russell was opposed to the second ballot, i(A voice: He wants a substitute, though.) Mr Wilkinson said that if the interjector could devise a perfect system he would be welcomed in high places. The "first past the post" system was simple. It was not perfect, but neither were the others. The Opposition advocated the single transferable Vote system, which was not perfect. He detailed this method of endeavouring to secure an absolute majority, and pointed to its deficiencies. Coming to the country quota, Mr Wilkinson explained that in the constituencies outside the towns had greater representation, the actual numbers in the country constituencies being increased by 28 per cent., and thus compensating them for difficulty of travel to the polls, and so on. The system advocated by the Opposition would rob them of-that privilege. He referred to the fact that the people were showing a tendency to flock to the cities, and if there were no "country quota" the country representatives would be lessened.

LOCAL RAILWAYS BILL. The Reform Government had passed the Local Railways Bill, though the Opposition had strongly opposed the measure. Had this Act been law long ago, there would have been a railway from Eltham to Opunaltc. (Hear, hear). But the Liberals would not pass it. He urged that the country should have the right to build railways just atthe townspeople had to build and run thoir own tramways. It had been urged that some of these local railways would not pay, and that the State would have to make up the deficiency, but the local ratepayers would have to make up. He quoted several Stat railways which were far from being a financial success, and said that thep eople who had no railways were making up that deficiency. There were in the South Island railways which cost large sums of money, and carried trains only on two orthree days a week. The South Island had theb ulk of the representation in the old days, and the members had made good uso of their time by securing many miles of railways in localities wher subsequent lack of traffic showed them to be unwarranted. What was the Liberal Government's record in railway construction so far as Eltham was concerned? Not only had it refused to construct tho Oiinako line, a railway that on acount of the close settlement and enormous production would pay. handsomely from the first day of its opening, but the Liberals had robbed Eltham of its junction with the Main Trunk railway. Notwithstanding that there had been surveyed a practically level route fro Eltham to Took, the Government of that time had authorised tho line to Stratford, thus making it necessary for traffic from south to climb an inlline of 305 feet, and from Toko to Stratford 399 feet. That was the work of the Liberal Government. He contrasted this work to that of the Massey Government, who had in its first year authorised the Qpunake line, in the next year placed £15,000 on the Estimates for it, and in the next £40,000. Next, he contended, looked like business. It was a square deal. (Applause (. PENSIONS.

The Government had granted pensions to the military veterans, though the Liberals had denied it to them year after year. The pension amounted to £3O a year. The Age Pensions scheme had been liberalised. The scheme had been introduced by the Liberals, and it was a good one. The Massey Government was Improving it, and helping it along. The Widows Pensions Act had hcen improved, by making it apply to all tho children, while the Liberals limited tho nensions to four children. Also, the Massey Government had enacted that on the death of the widow and another, the children's pensions should be continued, being paid to tlie guardian.

WORKERS' DWELLINGS. Mr Wilkiniom showed that tke Massey Government had erected more workers' dwellings than any previous Government had done. He explained the easy terms on which workers could obtain these worker*' home», and eventually secure the freehold, paying off tho «apital price as weekly rent. There were restrictions, of course. Applicants must not earn moro than £2OO a year, or own other land. He had arranged for sets of of plans of these buildings to be sent to Eltham ,and the plans were here now.

STATE ADVANCES. He denied that there had been any stoppage of loans to workers. No one had been refused. Of course, since tho war, the limits of loans to settlers and local bodies had to be reduced, and the money was being spent to provide against unemployment. There was no possibility of getting a loin from London to-day. When tho War Government went out tho Advances Departments were at a standstill, but at 31st March last tho office had over a million and a-half of money available. Right up to the war the Government had been lending liberally, lending to anyone who came along, and lending up to tho full limit the law allowed. LABOUR. The Government had done much towards the prevention of strikes, and had so effectively cleaned up mattrs after the last strike that there was littl likelihood of another in the country for some little time. The legislation of the Government had made it almost impossible for a strike or a lock-out to take place, under very heavy penalties. Most of the Labour members agreed that this was a good law, for strikes were a prolific source of loss to the worker, the employer, and to the State.— THE UPPER HOUSE.

He was not satisfied with the Legislative Council reform, and he hoped that next session the legislation passed would bo reveiwed. A Voice t Who was right, the Liberals or the Tories f) For 21 years the Liberals in power had never appointed a prominent Opposition to the Council. In two years Mr Masscy had appointed six Liberals, Sir Vfm. HallJones included, and two Labour men, Hons. Paul and Barr. It was the unfair selection of representatives to the Upper House by the Liberals that had brought the Upper House inU disrepute. 7 There had, of oourae, been some good

Councillor in the hall at the moment who had filled the position with credit to himself and all concerned. (Loud applause.) Mr Wilkinson said he wanted to be free, if re-elected, to use his discretion in the matter of reform of the legislative Council, and amending the recent legislation, with which he declared himself dissatisfied,

LAND. Mr Wilkinson referred to the determination of the Government to enforce subdivision of large areas of land which were suitable for close settlement. This would be effected by an annual increase of the graduated land, tax to such an extent that eventually the holder would be forced to cut up the land. There would be no hardship on the land-owner, for he would always have the alternative of selling his land at the top market price. Mr Wilkinson pointed out that New Zealand had not a great deal of land suitable for close settlement, and it was the duty of tlie Government to sec that the best use was made of what we had. That could ho done only by subdivision. Taranaki wa3 a fine ex ample of the success of closer settlement, being the most closely settled and most productive province in the Dominion. He predicted that befroe long New Zealand would be exporting twice as much produce as now, and there seemed to him no reason why, from being a borrowing country to-day, New Zealand should not eventually become, on account of the iwealth produced year by year, a lending country. THE GOVERNMENT BORROWING. He had been accused of supporting a Government who had borrowed more than it was pledged to do. The Government had actually reduced borrowing. The Government in twenty-seven months had borrowed less than their predecessors had borrowed in the previous twentyseven months by about a million pounds. In regard to the future he wanted a free hand. The Government was going to borrow £2,000,000 for war expenditure, a million for backblocks roads, where wo were already spending more than had ever been spent before.

COMMERCE REGULATION. He had in his first candidature advocated a board of commerce and trade for New Zealand, a competent tribunal to overlook the business of the big importations, instancing the sugar monopoly, the oil and kerosene monopoly, tfte tobacco monopoly. The cost of living was becoming too heavy, and the board of commerce should see that the people were not unduly exploited. The Board of Commerce would soon be in operation, the result of tho Massey Government legislation, and the prominence he had given it, and he was sure it would do much good. The Government had decided to assist in the development of the fishing industry of the Dominion. CUSTOMS.

The Government was going to revise the tariff. One-third of the revenue of the country came from the Customs house. At present tlie poorer people and the country people were paying more than their share. The Government had not been able to carry through this reform. The first session had been very short, and the second one a terribly hard one, so much so that the Premier and Hon. Jaß. Allen were exhausted, and one member had died. Had that strenuous session been continued much longer, he was sure that there must have been many cases of collapse among the legislators. He quoted figures to show that the incidence of taxation was unfair, and pressed too heavily on the poor man, the worker, and the farmer. For instanco, only £30,000 had been collected in duties from a million pounds' worth of motorcars imported. While motor-cars came in practically free, there was a tax of 130 per cent, on perambulators. Cocoa > and chocolate, paying £BOOO in customs, {should be free. Bottled and preserved ■ fruits paid £IB,OOO, tinned fish £27,000 I (about 2d a tin), linoleum and floorcloths about 20 per cent., and all these i should be free. The lamps and lampware used largely by the country settlers, paying £16,000, should bo free, and so should wire nails. Corrugated iron, which formed the roofs of nearly every farmhouse and farm building, was dutiable up to £40,000, while tho Marseilles tiles and the fancy roofing used on the roofs of the wealthy in the cities camo in duty free. Chinawarc and erockeryware paid fully as much duty as was collected on motor-cars, which was quite unfair. He urged reduction in the duty on women's and children's footwear. Tobacco, tho only solace sometimes of the worker in lonely places, bore a tax of 3s 6d per lb. It should be reduced to 2s 'fid. Ha would mako up for these concessions by increasing the beer tax to 6d a gallon, and making a graduated scale of hotel license foes, go that the big city hotels should not get in on the same footing as the little inn in the country. He would be prepared to tax goodwills. Touching again on the beer tax, ho humorously remarked that it seemed unfair to make men drink 140 lbs of beer in order to pay the same Customs taxation as the man smoking one pound of tobacco, and his proposed increased tax would reduce tho beer drinker's labour by half. (Laughter.) The Government proposed to give a greater tariff preference to Britain. Tho Old Country was treating us very generously during tho war, and it behoved us to buy all we could from Britain, and to give preference to her manufactures. (Applause.)

I THE STATE WORKERS. Mr Wilkinson claimed for the Government that it had done moro for the State employes than any other Government had ever done, instancing the increase of railway men's wages by £128,000, and the increased privileges to railway servants worth probably £50,000; and increase of school teachers' salaries by £150,000 per annum. Every policeman in the country had had his wages increased, and so had the post and telegraph officers. Then it had been made possible for cooks and waiters to have a weekly day of rest, and provided for i the free defence in court of any poor | man charged with a criminal offence. The Government had enabled local bodies and employers to provide superannuation for employees, so that our people would not be dependent upon tho State or on others in their old age. The Massey Government was not opposed to labor. Were not wages higher now than ever? Contrast the position with what had [happened in 1908, where the Liberal Government had got in a, blue funk, Sir Joseph Ward got the "coldest feet" of all, and he threw out of the Civil Service 1041 employees into the street. But the Massey Government stood by tho worker of the country. It would not stand by strikers, or law-bre»Jkerg. Thanks to there being such a Government as the present one, there was no unemployment as tho result of the war, nor would there be any. The Government could carry on the public works of tho country until March 31st next without borrowing sixpence. (Hear, hear.)

QUESTIONS. In atißwer to questions, Mr Wilkinson stated that instead of, as alleged, curtailing the business of the State Fire Insurance Office, then- had been an increase in the profits from .£16,248 in two years under the War and Mackenzie Governments to £38,331 in the same length of time under Mr Massey. Thj Government had made it possible for borrowers from the State lending departments to insure where they liked, and this was only fair to those farmers who had their own mutual insurance schemes, under which they could be insured at smaller rates than were charged by tire State and other oflices. The charge that the Government had attempted to throttle the Public Trust Ctficchad been exploded by the returns showing that the profits of the oflbe had increased from £II,OOO in 1011 to £20,000 in 1014. Mr Bradshaw Dive accused the Government of having failed to keep its pledge to reduce the cost of living by revising the Customs tariff— Mr Wilkinson: You were three years in Parliament, and you never opened your mouth about it once. (Laughter.) Mr. Dive, after Mr. Wilkinson had reiterated his explanation of the physical inability of the Government to undertake this big reform, asked: "Didn't you have time in that second session to give, relief by the income-tax to men earning up to £7OO a year?" Mr Wilkinson said that this had proved a simple matter, and explained that the income tax concession had been framed with a view to relieving the man with a family. On the motion of Messrs. J. [Phillips and Campbell,,'Mr Wilkinson was accorded a heary vote of thanks. £