THE PREMIER AT DUNEDIN.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1294, 24 January 1885, Page 3

THE PREMIER AT DUNEDIN.

The Hon. Robert Stout, Premier nf the Colony, addressed bis constituents in the North Dunedin Drill Shed last Wednesday evening. The Mayor of the N.E. Valley presided, and the Hall was full. He commenced by complaining of having been unfairly criticised by the local papers, and gave a history of (he late session. What he said on this head is so well known that it needs not recapitulation. The only new thing was that the Premiership was forced on him by Sir Julius Vogel, because that gentleman was physically unable to attend to the duties. He paid a high compliment to Messrs Montgomery and Macandrew, and went on to say that he did not wish to criticise the acts of the last Administration, but if he did so he could show them things which came out last session not at all creditable to them. Some things had been done which could not stand criticism, and these they found in their papers, many of them carefully covered up. There was the San Francisco mail .contract. The contract reflected no credit upon the Administration which entered into it ; it was entirely a one-sided contract, and Sydney had much the best of it. Though Sydney was made the terminus, and the steamers only made a brief passing visit to Auckland, yet Sydney had to pay only half the subsidy of New Zealand. ' The Sydney Government had attempted something like sharp practice in the matter ; they had given notice to discontinue the contract, and then behind New Zealand’s back had tried to arrange to have the service continued and to pay only half the subsidy. Subsequently the Sydney Government wished to withdraw the notice they gave of their discontinuance from the contract, but his Government would not allow this, and the result was that they had forced the Sydney Government to give in, and by that one administrative act had saved the colony £9OOO. Next ho might refer to what happened during the term of office of the short-lived Atkinson Ministry, In remitting money home to England that Government had caused a loss to the colony of £2OOO, so that by the first Stout-Vogel Government being put out of office the colony lost £2OOO. He referred to the Married Women’s Property Act and the Working Men’s Lien Act, and went on to say that the land question had been further dealt with. The Government found that Mr Rolleston had prepared an Amended Land Act. Most of that Act he (the speaker) cordially approved of, and he had to say about Mr Rolleston that, although he knew he was unpopular in some quarters, he was sincerely desirous to do his beat for the settlement of the people on the land and for the liberalising of their land laws. He tried to prevent any single person becoming the licensee of more than one run, and contended that this was calculated to secure the very largest area possible to be occupied by a good class of grazing farmers. There were several blocks of land which had been set aside, especially in the North Island, which could only be taken up by small farming associations, with no man holding more than 150 acres, and it was provided that each such holder should settle on at least half of his holding, and if he could not do so he must find a substitute who would. By this means effectual settlement would be provided. He regretted that Mr Barron’s Plural Voting Bill and Mr Bradshaw’s Eight Hours Bill did not pass, believing that both were absolutely necessary. He advocated no Sunday labor, because people wanted rest. He did not object to people enjoying themselves in any way they pleased, but he objected to the hours of working being extended, holding that it was necessary for the physical health and moral wellbeing of the people that there should be no infraction of the preaentcustom. He thought it was desirab'e that the LegislativeConnoil should bo made more efficient, and he believed one way to make it so would be to elect the members for five or seven years. (Applause.) His Government bad many enemies in the Council. They were not certain that any measures proposed by Parliament would not be rejected by the Council. It was not fair that any Government should be placed in this position, and the only reform he could hope to accomplish would be the limiting of their term of office to 5 or 7 years. _ One idea advocated at the general election bad been carried out, viz., the appointment of Railway Boards, and Government had encouraged colonial manufactures as far as possible. Saving had been effected in the Lands, Defence, Native, and Immigration Departments, and further saving would be effected in the future. The

relations of Government with the natives were friendly and encouraging and great efforts had been made to prohibit the sale of intoxicants among them. He had been acting as Minister for Education, but some persons apparently did not like that. Let him say this: When some of those who had criticised him had done what he had done for education since he had been in New Zealand, they could afford to be criticised. (Cheers.) Those who talked loudest about education had done nothing whatever in teaching morality or religion in the schools, and he would like to know how many members of the Bible in Schools Association spent their Sundays as he did in teaching children morality 1 He wished to get our syllabus altered, and the first step in this direction would be the introduction of technical education in the primary and secondary t-chools Ho thought theidea of federation of Australasia premature. What would be their future position in the Pacific as to Samoa and Tonga ? The present Government felt that they should be under British rule, and it was desirab'o New Guinea should be so also. German or French colonisation meant that if England were entangled in war the seat of war would he changed to the Pacific. They all knew that when there was fear of war with Russia men-of-war belonging to (hat nation were found in Japanese, Chinese and nearer waters, and if they allowed such colonisations to spring up, the result would be that the colonies would experience all the horrors of war. It was with the Government no question of lust for territory, nor did they object to German colonists. As to the Samoan affur, the Government had received letters from that island stating an agitation was going on to get the kingdom joined to Groat Britain. The Samoans wished to become either part of New Zealand, or part of the British Empire. As soon as the officers of a German man-of-war stationed there knew that the Samoans were asking for annexation, they forced the King to make a treaty with them. A good deal had been said about the New Zealand Government sending a steamer to annex Samoa, but all they really did was to arrange for sending the Hinemoa to ascertain the state of feeling in Samoa. They did not disclose what they were doing until they received from Lord Derby an answer to (he message which they had sent him stating the position of affairs, flis reply was that, seeing that Samoa was an independent state, New Zealand could not interfere ; but Lord Derby did more than this, though it had not been made public till now—he had sent H.M.S. Miranda from Sydney to Samoa, The English Government ought to have annexed Samoa and Tonga long ago, as they did the Fiji Islands, and it was to be regretted that English statesmen had not looked far enough ahead. It would have been for the advantage of the whole Pacific Islands if those islands had been welded in one conferation, which should ultimately include England and America. Though the New Zealand Parliament objected to federation at present, he considered it was not their duty to stand aloof from the rest of the colonies, but to unite with Australia in a sort of legalised convention which would enable the colonies to unite on things on which they needed union. Regarding Local Government, he thought the colony committed a huge mistake in passing the Abolition of Provinces Act. The problem of local government was just as great a difficulty in England and elsewhere as they found it themselves, He would not do away with ridings, boroughs, and counties, and he would not have all institutions throughout the colony moulded on one pattern. The present system could not possibly continue, and as an instance, out of the last loan of £1,500,000 they found that £700,000 only was devoted to railways whilst upwards of £620,000 was devoted to roads, bridges, etc. They weie simply shifting the construction of roads and bridges from the Provincial to the General Government. Since the year 1877 the expenditure on roads and bridges had risen from £BI,OOO to £328,000 in the year, and the fiuances of the colony could not stand that. The amount spent in that way last year was as large as the whole sum spent in a similar manner by New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia put together. He thought he had said enough to show that the system had entirely broken down. Another matter that was in a terrible mess was that of hospitals and charitable aid. There was no rule or regulation in any two places. The remedy for these things must be a large system of grouping of districts. There must be an aggregation of some of the counties together, so that they could deal generally on certain subjects. Some might say that this would be a return to Provincialism, but he held that it would not. He should proceed in his wck leisurely and careful'y and consider as he went along the difficulties with which he was met. He could say ho had never broken a pledge which he had given his constituents, but had voted in every way that he had promised, though on some occasions his Ministerial friends did not agree with him. Many of the things ho had spoken about they might deem Radical, but he would warn them of the rising that was taking place all over the v/orld—the democratic tide which was rising everywhere ; and he would caution them that if they wished the ir individualism preserved intact they must carry out necessary reforms qnieily and calmly. No questions were put to him, hut it was enthusiastically and unanimously reso'ved— “ That this meeting p iss a hearty vote of thanks to the Hon. the Premier for his able amlress, and that the electors of Dune iin East continue to entertain the fullest confidence in him as their representative.” The proceedings then closed.