MR PEARSON AT OHOKA.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1500, 1 May 1886, Page 2

MR PEARSON AT OHOKA.

TO THE EDITOR, Sir,— When Mr. Stout .spoke ;at Ittvercargill • lately, he asked his* hearers “to sift all schemes laid before them, with -an eye to future generations—if so," he said, “ they would have a pure state of public morality, without which they, could not expect purity in party or Government.” Yet, according to the Lyttelton Times (April 3rd 1886), the Ministry has treated the question of a State Bank “contemptuous indifference.” , I think that it would be much more true to aay that the Mrnistry and the Lyttelton Times have treated the State Bank question with contemptible evasion, weakness, and dishonesty, MrTwomey recently asked Mr Rolleston at Temuka how the colony is to pay four millions a year in interest on its outside public and private debts ? Mr Twomey pointed out that as the yalue of our imports exceeds that of our exports, -. the- -interest, .could, . not... be paid by our exports, and as the Banks have only about two millions in gold (which they require to keep for their circulation and reserve), they cannot pay the interest in gold. This question Mr Rfylleston confessed he could not answer. Ti e Lyttelton repotted that several iwriwtportant questions were asked and answered I After this it is not all surprising that' the Lyttelton Times and the Press should misrepresent the Ohoka meeting as much as possible. “Just for the fun of the thing,” I suppose, there reporters put in “ cheers ” and “ applause ” when what ia said suits their liking, and leave out the cheers and applause'tvhen it doien’t please them. If a speaker is howled off the platform for bringing forward the State Bank question (asrat Temrika), he is represented as having had his questions answered. (Honest- reporters would 1 say smothered). And ft after art orderly, quiet meeting, at which everyone has'a fair hearing, the majority are in favor of “the State Bank scheme/ they report that ‘ the State Bank advocate “evidently hSd'the support of the larrikins.” And if the Meeting is decidedly ana used to firidthat the statesman cannot answer the farmer, they report that the latter “ created great amusement by asking questions,” As these questions created such amusement, I ask you, Mr Editor, to oblige me by publishing this letter. The following are some of the questions I asked Ist. How to pay four millions a year interest out of the.colony? etc. 2nd. Mr Stout, at Invercargill, siid that no Government could increase its weklth by means of a printing press and a. bale of papea. Afterwards he said that if the Srate were to resume its right of issuing notes instead of allowing the banks to do so, it w ould only amount, to one million free of interest. Isn’t that, a contradtc* tion ? 3rd. When the New Zealand Government gives its promissory notes or debentures to the London Stockbrokers in exchange for their,paper money or bank credit, is it not using “ printing presses and bales of paper ” to impoverish the colony? 4th. Isn’t it by means of “ printing presses and bales of paper,” that London Stockbrokers get rich ?

sth. If the East and West Coast and Nelson railway is made, by .a syndicate, as now proposed, will the syndicate, pay for the railway in gold, pr “ by means of printing presses bales of paper !" Or, will the banks hare much more "old in the colony 1 6th. Then why could not a State Bank have done the business I 7th. If u State Bank had .as much gold aa all the other Banka put together, why could not the Government lend money to farmers i t 3 or 4 per cent on freehold security ? Would that be more socialistic than lending money to the banks at.2 per cen f M or it s <quivalent in allowing them to issue tbeir own notes? Bth. Mr Stout says that the idea of reliving the present depression by means of a State Bank is “ utter nonsense,” but I should like to know whether making the East and West Coast and 'Nelson railway without borrowing, reducing the rates of interest so that farmers would produce more exports, aqd. only a million without interest, would, not go a long way towards increasing our wealth I As Mr Pearson could only answer 'that he was not in favor of a State Bank, I proposed an amendment to the motion for a vote of confidence. My amend* ment was for a vote of want of confidence. The amendment was carried by about 16 or 16 hands to 5 or.O hands held .up for the vote of confidence. (lami not counting bi ys.) Mr Hugh Elder, who was not formally elected as Chairman but simply took that position on the Preis reporter pointing to the chair and'beckoning to him, declared (very indistinctly) that the vote of confidence was carried. When this was understood it was of pourse contradicted and a show of hands again called for, with the same result, Mr Elder persisting that the vote cf confidence was carried. I appealed to Mr Pearson, He said it was the Chairman’s business,' and others, spoke to and remonstrated'with the reporters, but it was all of no use. They ought at least to have reported that the vote of confidence was disputed. The Lyttelton Times went on to report that a vote of thanks to the Chairman terminated the meeting. This was simply Untrue. No vote of thanks to tha Chair*

rnun -was even proponed. The meeting terminated by a confuted remonstrating \with Mr Elder, Mr Pearson, and the reporters. The Press went on to say that the seconder of the amendment stated to its reporter that he only seconded it for the “fan of the thing.” Unless a man has pre-arranged anything for a public he takes his chance of a seconder. This was the case with myself, but there were plenty of others who would have seconded my amendment ' seriously. This is easy to prove, because dur Ohoka Railway League party —as may easily'be seen even by theuncandid reports of the Lyttelton Times and Press—are in favor of a State Bank. A resolution passed by them was : “ We are in favor of the railway being made, not by means of borrowed money, but by means of a State Benk.” I refused to attend the Railway League meeting held after Mr Pearson's meeting at Ohoka, on the ground that I would have nothing to do where Mr Elder is Chairman. Had I attended, I should have moved “That in the opinion of the Ohoku League it is disgraceful tor the Government to give away to a syndicate land which will be worth more than three millions when the railway is made through it, and to got nothing in return for the land except the indirect benefit of a railway, for the use of which the colony will bo taxed by a foreign syndicate.” : v Mr Rollsston said at Tennuka, “in old days tyrants and armies rode rosgh shod over the people at large. Now an adventurer, with borrowed millions in his budget, with the support of rings and companies, can corrupt legislature and ehokethe expression of the popular mil." Is this really true 1 In conclusion, I must say that 1 wool d rather have the larrikins on my side than the Lyttelton Times and the Press, if they persist in misrepresenting facts. I think they have done Mr Pearson much harim T send copies of this letter to the Lyttelton Times, Press, Dunedin Evening Herald, Tbmoka Leader and Marlborough Express, «*d shall be obliged if any other paper will copy, “ lust for the fun of the thing.”—l am, etc., John Miles Verb all. Ohoka, North Canterbury, April 25th 1886.