THE MINISTER OF LANDS WAIMATE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2356, 14 May 1892, Page 3

THE MINISTER OF LANDS WAIMATE.

I Tlie Hon. John McKenzie, Minister o Lands, addressed a public meeting at Waimate on Wednesday evening. The meeting, which included a number of ladies, was one of the largest political meetings ever held in Waimate. His Worship the Mayor, (Mr G. H. Graham) occupied the chair, and Major Steward and Mr March were on the platform. Before Mr McKenzie rose to speak Major Steward apologised for the absence of Mr .Rhodes, M.H.R., and congratulated the Waimate people on having the Minister of Lands to address them. Mr McKenzie spoke for nearly two hours. He defended Ministers' speaking in various parts of the colony. Owing to the misrepresentations of the Tory Press they had found it necessary to get the ear of the public in that way. He claimed that by his Government's administration of the lands of the colony and public works, the exodus had been stayed. He denied the assertion that the Goverment was galloping to a deficit and to a loan. As a Minister of the Crown, he was able to say that they would meet Parliament with a handsome surplus, even more than that of last year, and they had cleared off a debt of £200,000 since taking office, an achievement never attempted by a previous Government, and the colony was now in a good, sound financial position, while it held a place in the eyes of the people at Home as high as that of any other colony. Mr McKenzie dwelt at length on the land question, which he held to be the greatest under the sun. He referred to the Land Bill which he had introduced last session, but which had been thrown out by the Legislative Council. When he took office he knew that the lands were slipping out of the hands of the people of the colony, and to remedy that evil he had brought in his Bill, but before it left the Upper House the main clauses of the Bill, including that of perpetual lease, one man one run, and the inability of married women to take up an area of land, had been struck out of the Bill, and he could not accept the amendments which had been made, but referred to withdraw the Bill. He hoped, however, to get it passed into law during the coming session. He hoped to open up large areas of land for settlement in Southland, Otago, and in Canterbury at an early date. He held that the education endowments were becoming a block to settlement, and he intended to bring the question before Parliament so that these lands could be dealt with. At the same time he would say that it was no purpose of his to take away the revenue from the purpose of education. He would again introduce his Land for Settlement Bill,. which had for its object the repurchasing of lands, which it was very necessary should be done, at any rate in Canterbury. Referring to taxation he claimed that the people of the colony would yet thank the Government for bringing the in Land and Income Tax Bill. He concluded his remarks by a brief reference to the Payment of Members Bill, which it was intended to reintroduce in the coming session. After a number of questions, chiefly of a local nature, had been replied to by the Minister, the following resolution was carried unanimously, " That this meeting thanks the Minister of Lands for his visit to Waimate and for hi 3 address, and expresses its confidence in the policy of the Government as striving to promote the settleinonl of the lands and also a fair adjustment of the burdens of the people."