The Temuka Leader THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1884. THE DEPRESSION AND ITS CURE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1211, 31 July 1884, Page 2

The Temuka Leader THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1884. THE DEPRESSION AND ITS CURE.

The proposal to bring flown tho rate of interest is gaining ground. A Mr -0. Mundy is contributing letters to the Christchurch Press on the subject, and various references sre made to the matter in many parts of the Colony. Mr Mumiy’s letters appear to be founded on Mr Twomey’s speech, for the subject matter and arguments used are exactly similar; hut he does not acknowledge his indebtedness to any one for his ideas. He proceeds to diicuss the subject with as much sangfroid as if the schema were his own, and no doubt he will claim originality for it if no one disputes ids right*. A writer, who signs himself “ Veracity, ” in the Wanganui Herald says : “ I would ask, who should be the money-lender 7 I unhesitatingly answer, the Government, as it can get money at 4 per cent. The simple method of doing business would be to depnsit the title deeds as security to get the amount required for improving the land, and if the appli rant failed to release the mortgage the land should revert to the Government apd be available for re-leasing as Nationalised land.” These peopl3 miss ilp' grand pr.iiijb in Uie schejne, which is to break the nepk of monopolies, hut doubtless the subject will he bptiep underwood in the course of time, snd,

when it is, something will be done in J>« m .tier. We can Bay for Mr "i '.vonipy that hfi is not jealous of others impropriating liis scheme, and lua* ii'Jihing would give him greater pleasure tliAii to gee some powerful political -ader taking it up mid carrying it to a uccessful is*c;«.

THE HONOEARIUM,

New Zealand statesmen hav« acquired pome notoriety on account of passing the honorarium to themselves for 11 days,' "work. The Australasian writes as follows : —" That was a very ugly act of the now-ended Parliament of New Zealand in Toting its members before rising a payment of £43,000 for a geision which had lasted a fortnight. This would be bad enougV hs a matter of principle and parliamentary honor, even if the financial condition sf the Colony were flourishing. This is notoriously not the case in New Zealand, where tha burden of taxation is oppressively heavy, and is still insufficient to balance the outgoings, leaving a large deficit unprovided for, to meet which mon»y will have to be borrowed. And it is in such a,time, and in such a state of things asTthis, that the members of the Legislature who are sent to Parliament to watch over the financial interests of their constituents, and who have had to deal rigorously with the salaries of other people in the interests of public economy, voted this large sum of unearned money into their own pocket*." We are in favor of the payment of members; we think it would be a great misfortune if it w«re stopped ; but this is a different matter altogether. The Members were ,only 11 days in Wellington,' thiey got their passages to and from Wellington paid, and they would have been more than sufficiently recompensed if they had accepted the Government's proposal of £llO, or £lO tor every day they were prossnt. The gullibility of the electors who returned some of theß* scoundrels to Parliament after having behaved so disgracefully selfish, is beyond our nnderstanding. The Tiraaru Herald At' the time said there was nothing unusual in it, and that the constituents of any member nexer thanked hin if he raised his voice against the honorarium. Of course no constituent!"'Would tbank any member for not having taken what he had honestly earned, but in this case the money had not bsen earned, and it was nothing short of misappropriation to take Tho lust action of- the .1«"> Parliament was a disgraceful one, and it will remain a blot on the records of New Zealand politics for a long time.

A ORUEL LAND LAW,

"The cruel injustice of a reprehensible land law has been forcibly illustrated in Stornoway. From information reciMv«d, it appears (writes the European Mail) that Roderick Graham, having erected a house of a much better class than those usually put up by crofters, on which he had expended «1J hia savings, at Fivepenny Stornoway, on the estate of Lady received an order to pall it down, it bemg alleged that he hatj proceeded without first obtaining her ladyship's sanction. There is no doubt, however, that the ground manager knew wh«t he was doing, and permitted him to build without raising any obiection. Graham-resisted the sheriff's officer, and he had to withdraw, Jeaving the hotfse standing. But Graham was fined, and bound over to keep the peuce for three months. A strong force of officials went to pull down the house, but they were set upon by a crowd, numbering upwards of 100 men, women, and children, who covered them with mud, and poured dirty water over them, and compelled them to flee for their lives. The Procurator-Fiscal and Superintendent of Police have gpne to Stornoway to arrest the ringleaders of the party who endeavored to defend a neighbor from the cruel injustice sought to be perpetrated." And this is being carried on under the eye and protection of th» law, and we nre taught to boast of our free institutions and our civilisation. It is not the first act of cruelty Lady Matheson has committed during the last few years, but the Land Leaguo of Scotland is" becoming more powerful every day, and in all probability the Scotch landlords will soon have to eat humble pie like the Irish landlords. God speed the liberation of the people from the thraldom and cruelty of tyrannical landlords and money-rings.