PATEA BY-ELECTION.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 March 1921, Page 7

PATEA BY-ELECTION.

THE REFORM CANDIDATE. MR. DIXON OPENS CAMPAIGN Mr. E. Dixon, the Reform candidate for the Patea by-election, opened his campaign at Mokoia on Tuesday evening, where he addressed quite a large gathering of electors. Mr. Dixon was most favorably received, and his address, though hastily prepared, contained good matter, was well delivered and made an excellent impression. Mr. Main presided and briefly introduced the candidate. Mr. Dixon, who was received with applause, said by the death of Mr. Powdrell they had lost a valuable citizen and representative of the people, atid one who, if spared, would have made a name for himself in Parliament. He knew they all regretted the death of Mr. Powdrell and it was fitting that they should all stand as a sign of respect to his of sympathy with Mrs. Powdrell and family. The audience complied with the request. 'Some would ask how it came about that he, a Liberal, was standing in the interests of Reform. When he came to Hawera twenty-six years ago he took no part in party politics. In those days, when prohibition was quite a new thing, it was thought best by its leaders not to be too prominent in party camps. He Was in a position to go to either camp, and neither knew to which party he belonged. During his sojourn in Hawera he had voted for the Reform candidate on more occasions than he had for the Liberal candidate. He had always preferred the man to the party, and when men stood for Parliament on any occasion he had asked himself which had the highest character, the best ability and would be most useful to the electorate. When he had decided that he knew where to cast his vote. They would remember Sir Joseph Ward’s “attitude when he returned from England. He was entirely opposed to anything of the kind, and immediately brought forward a policy. He (Mr. Dixon) felt that Sir Joseph Ward was hardly playing the game, and his tactics were such that he decided that he could never support the Liberal Party again, and had thrown his lot in with Reform. He recognised that Mr. Massey was the bigger man of the two, and those who had followed Mr. Massey since his return form the 014 Country, where he had been in contact with the best brains of the Empire, must be convinced of this. When he came back to the platform his views were Liberal, and he would challenge anyone to say that a more liberal platform had been put forward since the days of Mr. Seddon. Mr. Massey’s policy appealed to 'hiim and to a great many who were strong supporters of Mr. Massey because of the tactics of Sir Joseph. Ward when asked to continue in the National Government. SUPPORT GF REFORM.

He (Mr. Dixon) had told Mr. Powdrell before the last election that if he became a candidate he would support him whole-heartedly. This was not a very easy thi.jg to do when the Liberal Party was discussing his own name as a candidate. He wanted to say that during the whole time he had been in Hawera he had never sought a public position. He had been a member of the Wanganui Education Board for fourteen years. When .the Wanganui Bokrd lost pant of its territory and Hawera went in with New Plymouth he was elected a member of the Taranaki Board, and retained his seat for one term. He did not seeK re-election for business reasons. He had either to give up the Mayoralty or the Education Board, and he felt that it would be ■hardly fair in the midst of the war when there was so much tc do for the boys to give up the Mayoralty. They all knew that he was filling the office of Mayor of Hawera for a third term. He did not wish to say anything about the progress that had been made during that period, but the times had been strenuous. Speaking of the reason for his candidature Mr. Dixon said that he had not sought nomination. The Reform Party had asked him jf he would allow his name to go forward. He gave them to understand that he was not seeking the position, and no matter who was selected he -would stand by him and assist him to win the seat. He was anxious for thp Reform Party to win the seat, and he recognised that with two candidates the task would be a hopeless one. FINANCE AND TAXATION. The present financial position, proceeded Mr. Dixon, was extremely grave, and rigid economy throughout the whole of the civil service was necessary. He favoured the establishment of a credit in London of £10.000,000. This would get over the present difficulty in ’remitting cash. He also a reduction of taxation, especially of income tax, which was throttling industry and was largely responsible for high prices. He wanted to see the farmers’ income tax abolished. This tax was a needless worry. Many farmers paid tax who should not pay it. He believed that every farmer was entitled to charge up for the purposes of income tax the-work done by every member of his family, and if this were done there would be no tax to pay. The land tax was sufficient. They wanted to see, Mr. Dixon said, the immediate termination of building restrictions so that business would not be hampered and there would be more work. x GOVERNMENT CONTROL AND SUBSIDIES, ETC. Price-fixing tribunals should now be discontinued; there was no need for their further existence. Prices- of commodities were falling, in some cases to such an extent that goods were tyeing sold below cost to clear stocks. It had been said that up to the present those Tribunals had paid their way in fines collected; that may be so. but nevertheless there was no need foi their continuance. It • was time, too, to abolish some of the costly commissions that were going the length and breadth of the country. Wherever possible there should be a cessation of Government control, and it was time, too that Government subsidies on butter, flour, etc., should cease. LAND SETTLEMENT. He might say at once that he was a freeholder, and many settlers on this coast had to thank the Massey Government for providing facilities that enabled them to convert their West Coast leases into freehold. He was anxious to see greater development of the great ; waste lands in New Zealand. There be considerable areas of good land wiQQjaaed in New Zealand. aad the

development of this ought to be <f pedited to the greatest extent possil/jte. New Zealand required farmers, and conditions should be made at least possible for settlers going out into the backblocks. Stringent legislation should be enacted against land aggregation. Land speculation, gambling in land, especially in rural ‘land, should be discouraged. This country should try to offer liberal inducements to settlers. He favoured the\ Government advancing money on the easiest terms to provide necessary and adequate housing accommodation on their farms, and thus facilitate the employment of married men and women in farm work. The Government should give equal consideration to this matter as they do to the housing of people in towns and cities. He did not favour the Government purchase of land now in occupation—particularly land unsuitable to cla-se settlement—if it could be avoided. PURE SEED AND GOVERNMENT FARMS. Mr. Dixon briefly touched on the question of agricultural seed-growing, and pointed out that this was a new and promising 'branch of agriculture that should be fostered. The Government experimental farms, such as they had at Moumahaki, and the Government subsidised demonstration farms, as at Manaia and Stratford, were very desirable institutions and should be developed to their most useful stage. RAILWAYS. Railways should be a real service to the people in every respect possible, and in this connection he would just like to remark that there was an urgent need for the re-classification of the rates of freights charged. The present rates had been in existence for 30 years, so that they could be readily see there was need for revision. In many respects there was need for common-sense improvements. Far example, every facility should be granted for putting sidings for business warehouses, for factories, etc. He was in favour, too, of granting greater privileges to children travelling on trains, and would advocate that children under five years of age should travel free. It was the duty of the Government not to penalise the man with a large family, but to make conditions as easy z as possible for him. This country required population, and they should give every consideration to the men and women who are bringing up large families. The Government would do well to consider the appointment of a board of advisers—a board of business men—to assist, not so much in the management of our railways, but particularly with freight rates. This country would be all the better if they had more business men in Parliament. The railway service should assist to foster other departments. In any large business, if one department could be assisted bj’ another department this assistance was quickly forthcoming, and so it should be in our railways. They should, for example, assist the Education department. POST OFFICE MATTERS AND TELEPHONES He thought it imperative z that the Government should give every facility for every farmer to be 'connected up with telephone. He would like to see a return to the penny postage as soon as possible,, cheaper telegrams, and the extension of the postal parcel deliveries to business houses. TARIFF REFORM. The present Customs tariff had been in operation for 12 years, and during that time the conditions of trade and industry had materially changed. Much labour-caving machinery, for example, and even road-making machinery, had been invented, but this was all charged a high duty. There was at present a Board of Industries and Commerce; there should, also be a Customs tariff board tto make general recommendations, and it might be desirable to amend the law to give power to deal with article by article by way of amendment to the tariff without the tariff in general being subject to amendment. Preference, he considered, should be given to articles manufactured in Britain. HYDRO-ELECTRICITY. The provision of an adequate supply of electric energy was the basis of our ■industrial progress. If this country was to experience a. period of industrial expansion then no more pressing duty devolved upon the State than the development of our magnificent resources of water-power. The harnessing of our great resources of water power was an urgent national duty. If there was likely to be a'period of un employment in New Zealand, what better work could men be employed upon, than the rapid development of our great hydroelectric scheme*. So far as Taranaki was concerned he favored one power board linking up all the resources, from which power could profitably be'developed and distributed equitably throughout the province. New Plymouth apparently desired to retain their own particular scheme, in order to make a profit out of it, but the matter should be dealt with broadly, having regard to the requirements of the whole province.

REPATRIATION AND SOLDIER SETTLEMENT. He referred to the splendid work done by the ’.present Government in connection vfith repatriation and soldier settlement.

According to the latest repeat made up to February 20, the department had, since its inception, placed 22,502 discharged soldiers in suitable employment; in vocational training with sustenance or subsidy, 5460; attending evening classes' or universities, 1253; 4804 loans for acquiring established businesses, involving an expenditure of £4,089,000, had been The amount paid to or on behalf of soldiers under all headings was £1,757,819, and up to January 31 repayments on account of loans granted was £440,789. The majority of the men were meeting their obligation,' promptly. The Land Department has repatriated 17,880 men, of whom 4854. have been placed on the land with an aggregate area of 404,327 acres, and the position at January 31 was that £17.672-,000 bad been advanced the Discharged Soldiers’ Scttleincrt Act. £6,487,889 had been advaau I f r stock; £1,600.000 for the purepas-’ Crown leaseholds; erection of dwelling-. £6.037,000, or a grand total of £25.003,000 on repatriation and settlement of our returned men. And they deserved every penny of it. He would like to pay this tribute to returned men, and particularly those in the Taranaki province, that with one exception only he knew of no soldier who received money from the War Relief Association in some of, say, £lOO. £l5O, or £2OO, who squandered it. That ft £<&&£ WW* £$ m

, EDUCATION. It could scarcely be charged against the Massey Government that it had not been sympathetic towards education. In this respect it had been more progressive than many Governments for many years, puring i*t® administration 1915, it increased ex,pediture under this heading, apart from lands and buildings, by £300,000 over and above 1911, and by another £500,000 during 1919. During the war period it fell far short of the needs of the country at that time, and it then became necessary for the Government to adopt a more vigorous policy in making provision for the requirements of education boards. They then passed the Education Purpose Loan Bill. Hitherto if vis the practice to provide for new sohoois on the Public Works Estimates, but under .the new Bill of 1919 provision wa# made for raising a loan of £3,500,000 to be expended upon educational buildings and land. Of this sum £500,000 was provided for 1919, and £750,000 is to be expended annually during the following four years. In Mr. Par/ they had one of the most progressive Miin'is'ters for Education that the country had ever had, ahd so far as Hawera was concerned its educational facilities had been greatly advanced underJiis control; and what concerned Hawera concerned also Mokoia and surrounding districte. A technical college was now being erected there costing something over £17,000; they had also purchased a hostel for boys and four acres of ground, set apart four acres for, an infant school, and secured land fidr a girls’ hostel. By Mt. Parr’s progressive policy these had been made possible. He had introduced a feature that he (Mr. Dixon) greatly favored, and that was free dental attention for school children. He favored our present system of education, and would like, to see liberal resistance given to those who had the ability and aptitude to go into scientific research.

CONCLUSION. “Why do I support the prosent Government may be asked?” said the speaker. “Because the only strong political rallying point to-day was the Massey Government and Reform Party.” This district had been represented by a Reform member for many years now, and he believed it would still continue to be so represented. Never in the history of this Dominion- was the need greater for good government and good' administration that could be depended upon, in these days of unrest to maintain the rights of the petoplfe as a whole against the revolutionary elements who had, unfortunately for the trade unionists of New Zealand, obtained control of some of the principal labor organisations and who were aiming to secure the control and direction of trade unions generally. Law -and order could only be maintained- in these perilous days by a strong Government that was prepared at all clasts' to uphold the existing constitution and maintain our connection with the British Empire against those ■whose object was to 'overthrow both, to disorganise industry and production by igo-slow methods., strikes and )so forth, and so materially help in increasing the Cost of living. In view of the alarming spread of Bolshevik methods there never was a greater need for the Reform Party to four equarfe against all disloyalty and un.patriotism. The Liberal Party to-day was relying on its past fcputaltion and the alleged incapacity of the Reform Gov-eTnmient, but he (Mr.’Dixon) mid fearlessly and •without any of those mental reservations which sometimes eharaoterise the sayings of their political oponents that the Government of to-day nompa-Ped more than favorably with any Government that had ever held office in this Dominion. The Premier had proved himself to be one of the cost capable statesmen of the Empiye. They looked to the ( electors to-d'ay to see to it that in the present critical period of this country’s existence nothing was done to weaken the Government’s position or to give electors'in other parts of the Dominion the impression that in the Patea elec-torate—pre-eminently a farming community—there was any weakening of Royalty to the Government that had done so much for the farmers of this Dominion. Replying to a question, Mr Dixon said that New Plymouth would like to form a power board and sell electric current to Haiwcra and other places at a profit. What he wanted was a power board for the whole of Taa-anaki so that all would share, in any profits that might be made. He considered a board should be formed to take over the New, Plymouth and Hawera Works, these to to be used as subsidiary to the. ’main scheme to come later. He favored exploiting any fui-ther sources of supply that may be discovered. On the motion of Mr. Campbell, seconded by Mr. Bickford, a hearty vote of thanks to Mr. Dixon for his very able address was carried by acclamation.— Hawera Star.