SIR ROBERT STOUT AT OAMARU.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2064, 26 June 1890, Page 3

SIR ROBERT STOUT AT OAMARU.

Oamibu, June 23. Sir Eobert Stout addressed a large meeting here to-night. The address was mainly a reply to Messrs Hislop and Eichardson. The Mayor occupied the chair. Sir Eobert said he came before them as a citizen of the colony, but he would make some reference to what other speakers had recently said. He said he had never asked Mr Eislop’s consent to address an Oamaru meeting, and Mr Hislop’s strictures on that matter went for nothing. The speaker’s first dealt with the land question, and more particularly referred to the remarks Mr Hislop had made on the speaker’s so-called changes of opinion on the subject. The speaker said he had always held the opinion that the land should not bo sold. Mr Hislop had voted against the village settlements being held in perpetuity by families, and by his action had swept away the perpetual-lease system. Their member had also voted against the area of the runs being limited U 20,000 acres. Mr Hislop also at first had expressed his satisfaction at the alliance of Hr E. Stout and Sir J. Vogel, and had afterwards spoken against it. For the sake of getting revenue the present Government had parted with the perpetual lease system, but, with the growth of labour unions and other factors, he expected to see the same thing that existed in America —the State holding the monopoly of lands in its own hands. The overthrow of the . Stout-Yogel party’s village settlement scheme had hindered the progress of the Colony. The present Government had not given due l attention to the settlement of bomdjide on the land, but had, by their 9 cash sales, opened the land to all and sundry. The Midland Railway Company had got a better contract from the present Government than from the Stout-Vogel Government. He read extracts from the contracts prepared by each Government to prove his assertion. The present Government had granted concessions to the Company that would coat the Colony three-quarters of a million of money, besides losing 40 per cent of the earnings of the railway to the Colony. He charged the” present Government with sacrificing this to the demands of the Company, He denied that there was any connection between his Goyerument’s proposal to establish railway boards and the present system of controlling railways, because by his proposal the Minister for the time being was still to be responsible to Parliament and to be a controlling factor. He denied that, as stated by Mr Hislop, he had introduced the Threats and Molestations Bill into Parliament. The Bill was.introduced in the Upper House by Mr Buckley, and was not a Government bill. Mr Seddon objected to the bill in the Lower House, and he (Sir E. Stout), then withdrew it, and it was never heard of afterwards, He ridiculed the idea of his doing anything in opposition to trades unionism, and mentioned that it was he who in 1878 first legalised trades unions in New Zealand. He also replied to Mr Hislop’s statement that the StoutVogel Government had made a regulation that no member of a union was to be employed in the Government printing office, saying on enquiry he had found that the rule was made while the Hon. T. Dick was Colonialsecretary in the Ilall-Atkinson Ministry. He criticised th.e votes given by Mr Hislop on various measures, and declared that there was not a single pledge which he and other Ministers had given before their constituents on large questions of policy but had been absolutely violated and thrown to the winds. He proceeded to strongly denounce the parting by the State of the freehold of Crown lands, and appealed to the meeting to assist in getting the ideas carried out that the State should retain its control over the land, and that the land should be equally distributed among the people. He spoke for an hour and afialfj ap4 resumefi seat amid loqd pfcewflg-" Tfre Mayor as&ed the meeting to accord Sir Robert a vote of thanks, jind this was esrrigd with enthusiasm.