POLITICAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2122, 8 November 1890, Page 3

POLITICAL.

T H E PREMIER’S ADDRESS. Wellington, Nov. 5. The address to Ids constituents appealed in the Hawera Star to-night. In opening he makes reference to Him state of his health which he regreis renders him unable to visit the district and address the electors personally. Ha then gees on to say that when the present Government took office in 1887, the financial position of the colony was a most difficult one to face, but the resources of the colony were so elastic that sufficient revenue was raised to meet all requirements to pay off the £l2B 600 of deficiency outstanding in March 1888, and to enable a small surplus of £36,500 to be carried forward to the credit of the current year. He thought that the result of the financial operations of the Government had demonstrated elearly that the colony could dispense with all outside borrowing for some time to come, and could without undue pressure provide for all its legitimate rer quirementa, and if the late Parliament and Government have only succsoded in making this fact clear to the public, they have performed one of the greatest services that ceuld at the present time hav- been rendered to New Zealand. The Government had been impressed, during its entire term of office, with the primary importance lo the colony of providing facilities tor the settlement of public lands, and he was jr'ad to observe that the country was being gradually settled by small holders, the increase still going on in spite of the financial difficulties that have existed in the colony for some time past. The total acreage of land disposed of from October, 1887, to March, 1890, was 1,082,771, of which 129.254 acres was rural lands, 1353 acres village settlements, 758 snbuibao land, and 154 town land. He believed that the perpetual lease tenure, without the right of purchase, was the best both for the colony and for the seller; but ho was satisfied that the large majority of the colonists still clung tO the idea of the old freehold tenure. Looking back on the record of the past two years he thought that it would be admitted that the Government might well claim that it had done the work it was placed i» office to do. He, next dwell on the course that should bo pursued by the colony in future. “ Above all things let ns have no political or financial fireworks; no great or heroic policy ; no great scheme to dazzle or lead us away. What we wanted, and what we must insist on, was a strict but not parsimonious economy, combined with cheerfulness and a firm belief in the unbounded resources of our colony. The first tiling the electors should insist upon the new Parliament doing was to alter its rules of procedure, so as to assume once more the power to control its own business, which power it had of late practically lost. A small knot of members could delay the business indefinitely, and this state of things must be altered, and that by the introduction of the cloture under proper Sifegoards.’’ On the question of finance he wished “to protest in the most emphatic manner possible agu'nst the views of those pessimists who say that the colony is going from bad to worse ; or that our financial position is really critical or dangerous.” What he particularly desired to draw attention to was “the annual product of the colony ; its actual consumption, and actual amount of interest which we have to pay outside the colony. The estimate of the value of the produce for 1889 was £23,500.000. There were only two charges to be made against this amount. First, the total cost of our living } and, secondly, the interest which we pdd to outside ereditors. Ihe expenditure upon our living might be put down at nearly £16.000,000. The total amount of interest which we had to pay outside the colony was about £3,100,000, and this added to the coat of living made £19,160,000. This from tha valtlG of OUT

total produce £28,500,600. 1eft£4,400,000 which he believed was &n under-estimate of the amount of wealth which stood to our credit «s a colony as the result of the last year’s labor. Aa to the reduction of expenditure, after yery careful examination to the whole of the Government departments the Government had Wit h regret come to the 00-olu« { '-~ , . to any large amount, especially when it was remembered that there were a number of necessary charges which were now born upon the loan fund, bat which would v.ery shortly have to be met out of ordinary revenue.” The next question touched on was that of further borowing. He did not see *' that it was possible to d® the necessary work of extending colonisation with the aid of Ihe ordinary revenue only without such a largo increase of taxation at no Government would propose and no Parliament would sanction, and yet this work must be done if the settlement of our unoccupied lands was to be pushed forward. It would mean the spending of an amount at least equal to that which had been for

some years past devoted to this purpose. Hitherto the funds necessary to carry on this work had been provided from loan, but the amount allocated would be ex--1 hansted at the end of the current year. If the colony was to progress this expenditure must be made. The Government entirely disagreed' with the epinion that wa should go upon the London market to get what we required, and believed that no further loans for public works of any kind should be placed on the London market for some years to come. The only only alternative then was to obtain the money required in the celony, as the money was wanted. Capital was undoubtedly accumulating here, and the Government believed that by an , amendment to the Government Loans to Local Bodies Act the necessary funds could be obtained in small amounts from time to time from our own people. To provide funds for the purchase of Native I lands it was proposed to set apart a block • of the more recently acquired land, say 250,000 acres in the North Island, ’ and as this was disposed of to pay into a separate account aoartain percentage I of the proceeds to be available for further purchases.” He defended the property tax 3 as against a land tax alone, or land and I income tax j and he felt convinced that r the latter substitute wonld be largely in favour of the rich man. He showed that a combined land tax Id in the £, and an 1 income tax of 6d in the £, would not give within £104,000 and £141,000 of the present property tax, and would be much ' more costly to collect. Even a Government 8 of which Sir Robert Stout, Sir Julius 1 Yogel, and Mr Ballanca were members, although strongly pledged against the pro-

petty tax, were unable to propose a satisfactory substitute. Referring to the strike he said “ It had taught ua two lessons. Firstly, of the danger and unwisdom of our local unions being connected with outside associations as to make it possible for them to bo coercsd into lines of action which they themselves might strongly deprecate j and secondly, that it was the duty of everyone to do his utmost to devise some ready means to settle the disputes which might in the future arise between capital and labour. He did not think the difficulty could be properly met by legislation. The solutition must be the outcome of deliberation and mutual agreement between capital and labour.” After regerring to several local matters Sir Harry Atkinson concluded if I have no heroic policy to offer yon, knowing my opinions you will not expect it of me. With reliance upon our resourea and upon ourselves, prudence in our finance and faith in our ultimate destiny, I am convinced that our temporary difficulties will disappear, and that this fair land of ours will become the home of millions of happy and thriving people, who will emulate, la these seas, by the successes but not the miseries, the great country from which wo have sprung.” THB*POLLING PLACES, Wellington, Nov. 5, The following polling places are gazetted:— Geraldine electoral district—Courthouse, Temuka (principal); office of the Levels Road Board, Pleasant Point; Mount Peel, Road Board office; Scotsburn, do; schoolhouse, Hilton; schoolhouse, Wsitohi Plat; reading room, "Winchester; courthouse, Geraldine; schoolhouse, Woodbury ; schoolhouse, Orari station; schoelheuse, Milford; schoolhouse, Rangitata station ; Charles Pye’s house, near Eairlie Creek; Rees’ bouse, Opihi riverbed. Timaru electoral district Courthouse, Timaru (principal) ; William Evans’ old office, Stafford street, Timaru; Boreugh Council Chambers, Timaru; office of the late Meat Preserving Works, Washdyke; schoolhouse, Wai-iti; schoolhouse, at the homestead, Levels station. THE RETURNING OFFICERS. Wellington, Nov. 5. The following returning officers are gazetted : James Roland Colyer, Ashburton; Caleb Ezekiel Shemtt, Geraldine; Thomas Howley, Timaru; George Henry Graham, Waimate. Cheistchubch, Nov. B. The Trades and Labor Council have decided to support the following candidates : —Christchurch: Messrs Reeves, Perceval, and Taylor; Halswell: Mr F. S. Parker; Heachcote: Mr Tanner; Akaroa: Mr Joyce; Ayon: Mr Blake Kaiapoi; Mr Hoban.