NO CONFIDENCE

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10675, 3 July 1912, Page 5

NO CONFIDENCE

DEQATE IN-HOUSE OF REPR£ SENTATIVES.

THE BATTLE BEGINS.

MR >MASSET'S AMENDMENT.

(liy Telegraph—Press/ Acsociation.)

WELLINGTON, Laot. Night

In moving the Address-in-Reply in the House of Representatives this «veniiiig, Mr (R. MoGallum (member for Wan-am), after making fcoling areJfe-reaice to the death of Mrs Herlies, wife of the imenvber for Tauxanga, and to the Titanic disaster, defended the action o'f the Premier in •the matter cif tho Dmdnought being Joca'ted in the North Sea.' In connection with the' Defemce system, he thought something m the way of eoHXTdinabion. with the education system •was neccos«>ry. to reduce the cost to the ©cumtry. He expressed himself -stronigdy in favour o- land yettloraont, and advocated furthering tho present system cr? aignioufcura,! coTllogcs and cxip:«rimcatr.i! fnimns. Ho irof erred to what the eonlsidecvd deficiencies in the efficient carrying on of the University s;ysiomi, clr.id cctmplfaiiaied of the impc■ounoOTis conditio'n of the colleges. The pceitioin, to his mind, was net satis•feotory. H> approved of the granting cJ the .freelhcJd, except in ea'sws of •bush and swamp lands. He thought tho 'Guvcir.nmer.t was under a cloud, •but it iad .tho tight to ibe> cc;i:iV.-ed to phs;v its worth. Jt could not be ooiir. traded that MJsdps MfiiLai:-, R. Mcßen#:e, Clark, Reed, WUford and cithers ivmld desert a party with wlikih they had so Jong-been associated. MR VIGOR BROWN SECONDS.

, Mr J. Vigor Brown (member for .Ni'.pLeir} in seconding the motion, ro■g:\itted the oibsemice oif Mr, Millar. ..Dealing with the-laud-question, he "isaid thai either the ■pcipulaiticm of New Zealand would have to leave, or rfacilitiey must ba giivems for getting -on the llamd. He cited various la'rge estates in Haiwke's Bay suitaibl© for ■cutting up for settlement. He knew ■where one hundred people were on one Trillion r,.-"cs. The accumulation of .ibnd must be mt one© 'Stopped. He boped 'the* Govor,nme.nt would make provisipd. to reduce tbo taxes and the of living. If tliis was riot dcue, ;sc<me ceriouis trouble would ensui. 11l *hiy maitfcer the wanted „' the. assistance of tlio Oppos-itum,'. They Trore educating their youth in a.gri■eu'ltural ocilfeges, ; 4rat the land was .'locked up, dnd there was no land for to take up. He claimed that the present Government had done •everything possible for the benefit of Ibe people. MR. MASSEY'S AMENDMENT. ■Mr W. F. Ma»sey, Leader of the ■Opposition, who- followed, moved the following «!imcindme.]it to the Address-«i-Reply:—

"W£ feci it, however, to bo crtr duty to saibmiiit to Your Excellency throb it ra esrential that your Excellency's Government should possess -the confidence of •this House and the country, and to represent to, your Excdloney fthiat such confidence is.not repps;"d in the- Government fls at present constituted."

Mr Masi>?y said that the mover and of the Add<resfi-.M-T*cply had UurniEihed the best argument possible -in favour cf the, amendment. ©greed with .Mr Brown, that people were leaving the* country "because they .could r.ct get land,' a.r.id be said that the responsibility for that state tif affairs miwt belaid at the dcors of the Government. He oom.pbined tMtb| in the <Wcraor',s Speech the>ve ■was no direct roforcace to t.ho rcpre03c!tafcion in the Legislative Cbuncit, and no (reform was pf/omised in public 'auditing. There ehculd, Mr Massey conltendod, (be a reform from audit to pcot aud'Jt. He fafled to see any Tiforence in the Speech to the Land Byilj which should have been there. H« knew of a case whdre 250,000 acres, of feud were k>cked up. There wa. an entire absence cf a vigorous land ■policy.. Nor visva there any reference to the new ParJianient Buildings or irrigation) matters. Several of L-he propositions in iihe Speech were the. product of tho Opposition. He held that no set of men. should occupy tho Ireasuiry benchea without submitting themselves to the Hoiise. There were, snore strikes in New -Zealand tliam in any other country. (Mr Maesey wn»s still speaking when tho telegraph office closed.)