NO CONFIDENCE

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10678, 5 July 1912, Page 5

NO CONFIDENCE

THE DEBATE RESUMED.

(By Telegraph—Press Association.} ;;

WELLINGTON, Last Night. M/r J. O. Thompson (Wallace) resumed the debate on the No-confidence* 'amiendment of Mr Matssey in ther House of Rep'rescnta'tivs this afternoon. Be dia-.-.Vj exhaustively with the* land question, holding that the party Sn power had accomplished greatthings in the way •of settlement of th« la.nd, and had also moved, in the direction of piling down aggregations of lands. 'Their' political opponents, ho fakl,' were rather prone to critic"km; but oritiokin was not evidence■<:i nbi'htv.

M.. Bn....jWEY. Mr Bra duty (Auckland) traversed) 'several of the fctatenvc-nisj which ho Iliad heard given .breath to ill the'Ebuse. H« repudiated any suggestion that b? had miade deprecatory roioreinoe to the huamainitairian legis-ia-tion of this country. He did not object at all, as he had been, reported ito have done, to the old age pensiba. eelurae; but lie did object to the. sys~ item 'by which it was administered.

A LABOUR MEMBER. •Mr W. A. Veitch (Wanganui) said 'he wsae pleased with the Governor'» Speech in .seme respects. On thelothei' hand, he was disappointed with: iscveiral malt-tors contained therein. He referred to 'tto aggregation of Sands ,ar.d pointed out cases which. came within his owp knowledge where huge tracts of- country were controlled (by some four or five mem. He averred thn't he was not allied to either the Government or the Opposition: party. He l had hiis reasons for supportLing the party m power. Dealto the-Bilnk of New Zealand. The figaires recently issued by the -Bank: were, he yasid, staggering. No imstitnitioii' dionld a'eap 15 per cent, on its capital. The Bank should be takereover by the State and controlled by 'it. If* they were .not competent to control the 'Bank, they should not he :wihetre they were. H© criticised >t»ho isnggesitiioni in the Speech to construct 'light -lines of railway ,advocating theWide gauge and big tunnels), which could camry the in creasing traffic for years to come. He dealt -at lengthi .with, matters' connected with the railway service, 'and said i-'e only thing: •tliait kept men in -the railway service..was Jhe Superannuation Fund. Were it .mot for that'fund, the seirvioe would would be depleted of men. He also iv-forred to the labour unrest in. tho country. The soli.ltr.tom of the matter he contended, lay in the settlement' of the land question. The operation; .of a hie.ttorrr.ent tax in connections with the construction of public works .would the necessity for a. •large amount <•.;? taxation.

AN INDEPENDENT. t Mi* H. Atmcre (Nelson), said Ire' couched every virtue to Mr Ma&sey ■in private life, but he did not considmi- b;<m ocmpeitenit. lib hold tho position. r.:f leader of a. Government. HuI'mianitariaii proposals could not be ex- ! ]>v'. icd from a party which lieprceentUd the interests of men who owned' •£l'i.!~'.;o,oCo worth of land in estatesI of 25,000 acres and upwards. Mr At-' j'irtoi'-e-'inferred to the manner in which. of the Opposition, had irush.vd round his- electorate and addressed * I ','-t!'Crtinigjs. No - Ministerialists had: foliated thorn. In consequence of »;!ies? tactiim. the Oppt&ition' paarty nra« now tV.t' high tide; but .there-■-.vcvild be »r.n- ebb. and the ebb was ..■cming. x MR PAYNE. Mir, John Payne re so on tlio com-pleti-om of Ma* Atmore's speech., and continued thf debate. Ha had, ho ,s:tid, drafted a eenes of Bills .to remedy the present 'labour unrest. His idea's m-ift'lit be right—they might be v,-.voi;ig; but when the had concluded il-ii'i-3 prVgrr.onnie it would, he said, be-fj3c-Jii that he awy on the right side C'f the fence. The Hcufe rose ,on the motion of Mr Ciiovcr ,at 11.15 p.m.