POLITICAL NOTES

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 17 July 1913, Page 5

POLITICAL NOTES

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Last Night. In reply td questions in the House of Representatives this afternoon, Ministers stated that the whole matter of Agricultural Colleges and experimental farms would be referred to the proposed Board of Agriculture as soon as the Board is established. If good shipping facilities and suitable freight charges were available, a profitable and permanent market for stud stock from New Zealand ought to be obtainable IB South America, but the present position does not warrant the chartenng of a steamer, which would have to be of considerable siae, iWKI for which httie, if anv returii freight would be available. It'is understood that practice of nteamers from New Zealand to Great Britain calling at Punta Arenas, was abandoned owing to the additional insurance charges payable on ships passing through the Straits of Magellan. The whole be gone into, with a view to whether anything can be don& hy the Government in the direction of developing trade. The statement by the Minister for Marine, "That the day might notybe far distant when the Government might find it economically sound to hand over the trust of its charitable institutions to the Salvation Army" did not express the policy of the Government. The extermination of opossums in all districts where fruit is grown is desirable, and will not be prevented. The Government had under consideration the question of how far the animals, could be protected within certain defined areas remote from orchards. _ • ', . ;,- There was no specific prohibition in the Shops and Offices Act of the emplovment of assistants on Sunday. Members of Parliament are within their rights in eomimT"ioating with local bodies cv. the subject of local wants and requirements. A report is being obtained as to the number of State employes who suffered' by the Gore floods, together with the estimated loss. . The principle,;, of the provisions of the Family Act was that property must bpirfe of all encumbrances ttrior totftfre issue by the District Land Registrar of a family home certificate. It was proposed to refer the question of the establishment of Agricultural high schools and colleges to the E lucation Committee. Free railway passes are issued to Territorials and Senior Cadets travelling on military duty, including proceeding for distances to. drill. The Department also does its best to afford special treatmentin instances ..wher<» »tto7iaance at drill necessitates a journey by tram, but so far, although the tramway authorities in [ different centres have been repeatedly approached, it has not been possible to secure any concessions on trams. The Government was considering the matter of amending the Land and* Income Assessment Act, providing for exemption from the mortgage tax of all mortgagees whose total respective incomes from all sources, including that from interest derived from their mortgages, does not exceed £3OO. It was the intention to obtain power by legislation for authorising the holding of public inquiries into accidents similar to that which occurred at New Lynn. . It was the intention to ask the House for power to raise a special loan, to be spread over a term of years, for the Wellington railway station and large works in other citias and towns. It was regretted that the Government was unable to. depart from its decision respecting the attendance of Government workshops apprentices at technical colleges during the daytime. The apprencies were afforded . every opportunity for becoming proficient at their trades in the railway workshops. It was recognised that there were numbers of people in various parts of the Dominion whose occupations do not permit of their travelling during the periods that holiday excursion tickets are issued over the railways. It was, however, quite impracticable for the Railway Department to carry one section of the public at holiday excursion fares and charge another section excursion rates when ordinary fares were the general rule. It was found to be inadvisable to bring the Post Office Savings Bank into line with commercial banks in the matter of provision being made whereby depositors may issue cheques.