Pre-sessional.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2577, 20 April 1887, Page 2

Pre-sessional.

MR BUCHANAN AT CARTEETON. About two hundred and fifty-per-sons were present; at ithe Town Hall Carterton (Tuesday), when Mr W, C. Buchanan, M.H.R., delivered his. pre-sessional address to hi? 'const;tuonts. -Mr R. Fail-brother ivas-voted to the chair, and in a few well chosen remarks'introduced the speaker.. ..Mr Buchanan, who was received with, prolonged applause, said that numerous members of the House of Representatives, including mem? hers of the Government, had recently been, addressing tho colonial constituencies,, and lie was there that- evening to do likewise! although some

might "think it would have'beenVetler if he had done so earlier. He hit'df however, reasons to give for his delay, which .were, that the-political atmosphereiiad up to recently been a dead ;calm, and he thought that by waiting •awhile it Would be livened up, so that he would be abl» to lay before them the.; receipts' and expenditure of the colony, and to review the speeches of those who had preceded him. He would first speak.oftlio work of last session, and no one: .could accuse the Legislature of being indolent, as the number of Bills, good, bad and ! /indifferent would praye"that they.had plenty of work ..on.: hand;' although there were sins of -omission and commission to lay to' their charge. Amongst the bad, 1 to which grave objections had been taken in this district.was the amended

HOSPITAL ADD CHARITABLE AIDS ACT. It would be remembered that in 1885' a bill was brought in by the Government who intended to unite the -Wairarapa in ono Hospital and Charitable Aid distriot. Mr Beetham and himself; had fought againstit but without effect.' In the last session an amended; act was brought in by the "Premier which. provided, among.other things that the Wairarapa should find money for the Wellington Hospital District, and not-, withstanding the tlireatp of the Premier the Government were beaten by two 1 votes on the clause which., the speaker introduced—unfortunately tho Clause was wrongly worded, although lie had ■showed it tohialegal authorities before 'introducing it - Prior to tlie act passing the Wellington Hospitalcost about £BOOO per annum, the-.: Wairarapa settlers had always taken a pride in supporting their own Hospitals which had been maintained partly by subscriptions and partly by a,Government grant, and he did not think it was right that tho Wairarapa should be called upon to contribute towards the Wellington Hospital. Referring to the Charitable Aid Boards he said there were two in the Wairarapa, one at Masterton and the other at Featherston, and they had always been liberally supported by the settlers, but as an instance what they would have to copp .with in future he quoted Mrßeetliam's "speech in Masterton which stated that 42 per cent of the children sent to the .Industrial schools were charged to the Wairarapa, though only two out of sixty-five children actually came from their district. Ho .contended that poverty was bred in large centros of population and that-the: country had to pay for it as the. representation of the latter : on the Boards placed them at a disadvantage.' The country' was over-ridden by the town, which meant a careless expenditure of Charitable Aid funds. The Act ' worked so unsatisfactorily in different parts of the Colony that it was evident that its repeal or amendment would be demanded. He would use his best endeavours to give effect to a measure that would be boneficial to this district. They would remember that in 1886 an Act was passed to vest the control of tho GOVERNMENT I.N'3VBAKOe ~

in, a board of directors, with the .Color nial: Treasurer as chairman. Sir Julius Vogel immediately on this. Act passing launched forth into expensive sites and buildings in Wellington, Christclrarck, Auckland, and DmMin,. at a cost to the.Aasociation of £85,000., Rumors were freely circulated that expensive sites had beon.obtained from ardent;.' Government supporter's, and that commissions, fell into tho lap of prominent members of the Govern ment;:,-:When the various amounts were brought into question it would seem • that the' Board ■ was to •be ■the means by which £226,000 of the funds were to be to a large extent thrown :away on buildings. As if this were not enough, Mr Driver, a member,of the House and a co-director of Sir Julius', was.appointed to tho Dunedin head'office, with a salary of £BOO a'.yoar and a guaranteed commission of £2OO, besides what he could make beyond this limit. Tho former agent, who was an able officer, was only receiving £4lO per, annum, the Auckland and Oliristchurch agents were obtaining only £450. The policyholders naturally became alarmed at this proposed increase and demanded a commission to investigate the working of the Association, The Government, who had the power of appointing the commission, took care to be well represented upon it, and the consequence was that the report brought up by the Commission was toned down. It,.was only right, however, to say that the whole of the Commissioners wero not favorable to the report. As Sir Julius Vogel was responsible for'the exorbitant outlay of insurance money,'he hoped that when tho proper time came the country would not forget his action. (Applause.) Ho next referred to the workings of the

LOANS TO I.OCAL BODIES ACT, and contended that the present Government, after ridiculing Major Atkinson's Roads and Bridges Construction Act, brought in a similar measuro. The new Act was beneficial by enabling the country to be opened up more speedily otherwise couldbedone. Certain amendments were necessary in it, one being that it was not absolutely necessary to have a. special rate in cases' wjiero a district was willing to pay, the interest out of general rates, another being that a poll was not always necessary or expedient, as though a majority of resident voters might be in favor of a loan, absentees and : others who could not record thenvotes were treated as if they voted against it. . He -believed the Government already recognised the -necessity of making certain and he lioped they would .see then- way to amend the points which he had indicated. (Applause).' 1 He then referred, to the

CIVIL SERVICE lleform Act of last session, which did away with patronage in high places and provided for entrance to the service, vizi.: Competitive Examination.; ;He ridiculed the attempt the Government made to insert a clause in this measure ■that' every member should have a power ofnominating candidates—introducing an American principle into the Coloiiy—which meant that old servants .were displaced to: make room for new

Javontes.'. He believed that every man's J oMdrwhether he had friends at Court or not, should' have, an opportunity), of competing fofethe GivMervice; He also spoke in 'the: clause iutendedto be iSserted to.'i'egu--. late salaries by the price paid fqr pro- : visions., He quoted seteral illustrations' to show how badly this would ; work, and concluded .by affirming that the measure as it now appeal oil & statute book was a very useful one. The Government had insisted upon concessions being made to anyone : ta'Mng upjhe•.

■;'EAiT , 'COAST BAILWW:' and an. -Epgliah. .Cbinpany • istPb&Sni feriipted to undertake prepared t'o conatruct'iUnthQ following t'errhs,' viz,, a giiara)itßse'-'of 5 per cent on the first ball uiiilion;of;iii6uey spenton the construction, and'about that amouutfourpercent, On it's completion,the' Company would receive £4,000,Q00 from the Government, if the -latter, wanted to take over the lino.'. He could not bob how any Government, in view of our railways being unproduc* tive, could involve the country to fcuch an extent, and . there " wero many, .others of this wav of thinking j but'the" GSvernuient bad a majority,, and were 'able to pass the Bill. 4 -He next briefly Preferred to the fact that,. he would shm'tly.liave to congratulate, .

. •• -CARTEIim A3 A BOROUGH ■ and - haying ,a.;Mayorj; and„he.hoped'that| the coining Counci find tho Muni-; cipal'Actof last fiessioii, with .its 472 elause'sj-a -useful-uiCaSure, ''" He would uexjt.mako a few paising .remarljsr on tha' ; s!;

NATIVE LATOS ADMINISTRATION ACT. Under the oH law, Jlaories were as free to lease or sell land as Europeans,' the Government making-all necessary reserves, and Securing that the sales were bona fido" ! ;transactions. Under the new Act, it was ijiegal io buy or lease land from , : tbe'natives, and it' would be seen whether the Government were wise in bringing in the .measure or not, Mr Ballance told the House that ithe natives in 1 the North Island wero in favor of the meiuiure, and from enquiries lie had made among the Wairarapa natives he found that they were far from being favorable to it, and ho could see that the settlement of, the North Island would ha: retarded in consequence of this measure, A proof of Mr Ballance's statement was speedily tested by a native .meeting at Hawkes 'Bay, whero tlie consent of tho Madries'had. according to Mr Ballance, been obtained, , -There speeches were made against tho Act, and its repeal .was demanded.'. He believed that' it would be'better for the Government to take over tho prc-eiuptive right altogether from the natives, as, the.simplicity ot the law would then .be in •favor of the Maories, and the' settlement of their laud would proceed more rapidly and satisfactorily, the • . REPRESENTATION ACT.

He stated that the present parliament was elected ' under the Act of 1881, which was tho first -real attempt to give representation .on a population bußis, . Then tho South gained throe members at the expense of the North. Island. The Southern members agreed.that if tho tide of population turned next in favor of the North" Island, they wpuld deal justly by it, He, among others doubted whether the South Island members wpuld .redeem- tho "promises, they had raado.. > By .the last census it waß shown that- : the North /Island was entitled to three more, representatives at the cost of tho South, and the Government <vorq urged to bring in a Representation Bill to provido for the present act, which expires on September 1 next.', A new bill was necessary for-.tho election' of ■ the next Parliament.', The Government promised tho Bill on.'a population basis, with a non-politibail' commission to arrange the new' electoral districts, also that the electorates, with the exception of large. towns, should be pgle, He strongly approved of the Bill, and believed. thut the. country districts should get increased representation, as cities had Chambers of Commerce, and other representative bodies to work for them. He considered, , therefore, that increased representation :would only be an act of justice to country, districts.- He pointed out that town electorates would over-ride country constituences, unless the representation favored the latter. He hoped the Bill, when passed, would do justice to country districts, (Applause.) He, among others, did not believe that the - measure would pass last session. He could t;ll by what went on in the lobbies that the. Government did not want to pass the measure. Indeed,- the spectacle was witnessed of three members of the Ministry voting against the Bill. Heconsidered this incident was adisgrace to constitutional Government, and he had but little faith in the Govern- ' ment passing tho Bill next: session, There would be a struggle in the House to got it through. He would do his best to obtain justice _ for tho North Island on this question. (Applause.) Ho next came to : " ' , , ' .'FINANCE, : - . a question of overwhelming Importance.' If during the next' session the House could satisfactorily adjust .tlio finanoes' and representation of the colony, it would do the best'work that any Parliament of the' colony had accomplished, Going baok to the voar 1886, the statement 'showed, a, surplus of £37,859. As tho country-tlion expeoted a deficit, the announcement then made by the Premier, at Napier'was an agreeable surprise, ..it was : found;,' however, that" tho surplus- was,"only the outcome, of- a skilful manipulation of, figures, and.that tho boasted surplus was money duo' to local bodies. The real expenditure and . receipts then balanced, From the present, information available they found there was a probable deficit of £2Bo,ooo—in customs £128,000, and railways £l6o,ooo—although the Treasurer estimated the receipts to be within LISOO. of tho actual expenditure. Hq ; did not know why tho Treasurer- should have kept these things secret, but'it waa'hia usual plan, Great savings'-wore hinted at in the Railways and Civil Service departments, but what they would amouut to no one knew. One thihg was, however certain, that there would be a deficit of L 200,000, Nothing ni'ore-sorioiis than .this financial poaition.couldbe ; cobsidered by settlers who intended to make the colony their home. He looked upon it that there were three ways out of- the. difficulty—l, increased taxation 'j 2,

reduced expenditure; 3,"&Mng"."moro out.of our railways and public works. Mr friudo, a.' g&ntloman who recently Ipubliflhed a work which did an injustice' to the colony, and intimated a possible •foUrfch coiirse, viz,, repudiation, but ho 'thought lie only echoed the sentiments of every-'triio colonist in saying that tliis ide^^riginatcd: with Mr Froudo'alone. Tho-meu.of New Zealand were made of atufr which would not allow them even; 'to harbor such an idea. (Applause). The colony already owod thirty millions to English' creditors, an indebtedness of Ls7' .per head on .the population of the colony,' or LIBO per head on- th^tead-vwjib'iiers of- New Zeltlanfftfas .the taik'of.'tlie, phole'world and*t,he;fipger; of scorn' was.pointed at jus,...shargeMfj. . 'haying .Eroupht haying beoti •urged against' tig .mother colonies. Mr Ballanca was good enough to say that the taxation per head in the Colony was tho same now as prior to the initiation of the Publio Works policy. This was a mistake, as reliable statisticians declared that the increase was about a third more,;" Ho' next d welfc upon, tho ■

WOOI AN£> PEODUCE EXPORT, . ' showing last yefir'tsrotuni tobo £6,672.000 In value and bethought thesofigures ought to wipe out the prejudices some people entertained against sheepowners, it was he considered, a bad thing to cast slurs on men .who wore compelled, to got their living offiand.v tie. compared the export of ; wheat; . which, in 1883, amounted to • oame-to £213)0.00;: They would' realize the misfortune it - was for- the. export of wheat to fall so low. Farmers down. Doiith I '' had;jMduced. their; grain-eroding, areas to avoid •absolute..rum../ . 'lie' was pleased to that the farmers of the Wairarapa ,h|d ; not yet suffered to the bxtont; of their southern friends.* Last *yoar, it was, patifefactctryi. to. iin'd tliat'tlve exlol't of tallow 4ad .doubled' and'that; btitteri harit Had feen: exported to the value of £184,'000. Thero - wire 'now forty facttfries at work in tho Colony, turning out 2,000,000 lbs weight of cheese per annum, nnd as this industry had spruug up within the last five years, it was "a pleasure to know that the Colony was progressing in at least one direction. Tlio frozen moat industry, which was initiated in 1882, returned last year 1425,000. He did not think he was-over-stating facts when he mentioned that it was owing -to the development of this industry that the colony had not collapsed financially. He had done all in his power to foßtet'tt;' and he would continue to deso in order to place the -stuck of settlers in the best-markets.' .'Tho timber traffic, in spite of increased investment of the purchase of improved machinery, showed-a'decrease of L 420,000 on the returns of three years back. He Mid.not'thjilk' tho cQsmunity as a. whole were in a position Respond to increased taxation, as'the'depr&ise'in exports had reduced wages,'' told them that tlieyflpero paying less annually for luxuries/tnd : that they were becoming a more' sjbfe'iid saving people and could thorolore;:pay:;more for.necessaries. Everyone . ; must congratulate the colony on tho decreased expenditure on drinTt," as it'meaiit'foffer.: people in hospitals and gaols, and a reduced burdon to; charitable sonrco of gratification to know' that tlio people of tho colony wetubecoimiig more thrifty. (Applause;)-.,-It."-was true ; that the iieceßsaries_of life cheaper, but the because the people-had .economised' that. their taxes should bo increased; He did ntit believe the Government-wore earnest' in theiftretrenchiment. proposals. It would,be wtjiejtih.ered l that, in coriiieptipn with,-tho Midland Railway,. Sir' Ji)lius Vogel wished.toplodgo tlie.' colony .to.anannual outlay of L 97,000 .for .six years,Tliis and other considerations proved that a change in the Trgasuverahip must precedo '.real retrenchment. The present Ministry' during the first Bis months,of office spent L2,looiu travelliug exponscs asagainat-a previous - ; aunual average of e sl uiiderthis head, amounted- to L 2,800, South Australia had saved L 220.000 by-amalgamat-ing offices "in its civil service; ima New ; . South Wales. £450,000, and .lie felt that New Zealand could make a- "proportionately large reduction.- At-.the same time he did not agroe with the'cheeseparing proolivities of the present Government. - Turning to ■ '' RAILWAYS. he said Ll3,'/26,000 were'invested in their lines, and he thought more might be ob=' tained from the money invested. In Victoria the Government had worked the railways on the New Zealand system with a bad result. They subsequently handed their lines over to a non-political Board, which in 188G realised a profit of L 1,018,000, being L 4 8s 7d pur cent on the capital (uvesttd in them, besides relieving tli6 revenue of the colony. Tlie Board revolutionised railway management and changed tho lines from being a burden to becoming a source of strength which relieved the taxation of the colony. This he considered was the key to'the railway difficulty in New Zealand, He was averse to leasing New Zealand Railways as he considered it would be altogether objectionable. ;Othor colonies were following the example of Victoria and Mr Eichftrdson was not altogothor insensible to the fact that a change of management was necessary, Mr Richardson came into office with promises of improved manage-, ment, and now suggested the establishment of Boards of Conciliation. He did not think any Government could propose a weaker remedy than this, as such Boards would trammel the working of the Department. ,If ho had no better scheme than this thesboner he was placed in some higher office the better it- woiild' be for thorn all. Cuming to' ' . BORROWINO , : He said this involved tho' question of taxation. They would all remember that the last one and a half million debentures instead of paying LI 00 to the colony only realized L 96 which, Compared with previous loans, entailed a loss, of, L 45 , :000. ; If' thesa" returns wero contrasted- with 'thoso of other colonies. New Zealand - would find itself in the humiliating posit tjonof being the lowest on the list.in the. English money market. . This condition was due to the class of men who were managing the affairs of the coloiiy.,, considered they would not be abie to get over,,the .position in which they then wero for a long tiui'e. : Sir Julius Vogel had laid the blalne on Mr Fronde and the London Standard' fbt damaging the credit of the colony. He did not doubt that he . Was right to a certain extent, but tho colony had laid itself open 'to hostile' criticism,, M, 'Prodie floare,.. chairman of the Midi land Railway,;'a man whoso word carried weight.:said that;'-' if New Zealand had a pond- it;wanted to make an harbor of it. If two-or..three settlers were gathered' together a mayor "and council wore required. (A laugh',) And then they must, go in;for a, loan.'' Settlers were too fond, of adding field to, field.with borrowed money, instead of waiting, till they were ina position to purchase,""' Mr H'oare's : ■advice was" Be careful not to; put bogus, leans; on the English market, and. not borrow money for politics:! railways." These were his opinions, and he strongly advised them in electing their next representatives to see that they returned men who will so. act, and he had no hesitation iii saying that in about three years there .would be quite a differpnt state of, things in New Zealand. He apologised. for going so extensively into the financial question, but excused himself on the plea that it needed' tlio f*llest explanation.

to place it fully before the people (Cheers)

•' Sm^EMENT. He coHHicier^d! this one of the most -important questions, of • the day, and taking into .• consideration the large quantity of unpeojrtetod .unutilized land m tho colony, ifcwouldocciipy considorablo attention Houso. -Mr-Ballance had passed a Consolidated Acf on tho lines laid down by Mrßolleston. He had Riven the measure .his support, aud it was ■the boast that welinvo the ihost.'li&eral •land-laws in •do'kig'his b'eat ' tothe land", jomer -.think lie is ffroiig, ; wMe' ' he is' )#St" 7J®co"irere; graye' orrdrs m soma of his'schemes,- for instance, we have 'special' settlements in the Forty Mile Bush whic|i;ara totally 7uMtMvM)all.lio]diiigs r w-hile>t)iere' wasplenty of" suitable lands in' thl hands of the Government that could beu'til&ecftor thepurposo. A glance at some of-tho special settlonieptiand between Master' ton and Woodyillo will allow that thtfbest crop that wiirfe'takon off it .will btf the growing timber;'! thought 'thf Minisiter of Lands had not-exercised sufficient : caro in the selection of these lands for the s people, and considered- there was no excuse why ho should haVe committed so grave an error. People naturally aeked " Why is this so? Why aro thd poople not settled, on the-best- land?' 1 To this tliey must go to the Qowrumont for a reply.. He on the subject and' hid "pwiuised tKat the Puketoi couhtry-Bhouid-beopened up, but thought. there was very little Hope of anything-being /done V this The Village Settlement,schsmei"had also' : : fen-kiitiated : in 'a. manner that must' ', eventual in.failure' - Kamilleß/Hai' lxen' placed' in 'rqtisrh, .out-of;the-ffay' placed, witli ; nochance bfebtjiininglremunetaijve • employment,' and, .from be co'\ild gather, next winter we.)halk bars most ■ harrowing;tales of>! ■ frcSm,. > places as.it is rioxt to impossible for theni to make things meettheje; though he hoped that Jiis would prove false and that Mr Balance's sohemo wd'iild bo a success, as it would' bo a good thing for the Colony and-solve the problem of how to settlo tlio waste land in a beneficial: manner, '• ;•

USD *: Si" Robert Stoat, as Minister of lands in 1877 and 1878, parted with more land for settlement than any other Minister of Lands who has. been in -office, and as Premier last year, he gave two and a half millions to the Midland Railway Com"' pany. In Invorcargill, on 'the first of April last year, ho said—^There;,, millions of acres to dispose of,and tl>e land linvsmustbo framed soas to be beneficial to the wholo race. To do this, then, they must assure the cultivator of his holding, He.hadrio sympathy With' tho .cry for common holdings in land, which would destroy all individual character, and stop all progress. .With the onormous TOiifCrown and native lands still available, it was folly to -propose to buy up large estates. Wo had 28,000,000 acres of waßte lands, aud it would ba tiino enough to buy privato estates whonr they weredisposed ot," A lawyer, may bo able to roconoile these know (hat tho Fremior is a clover; lawyer—but how 'ho can account first entered the jProviniiial .Council of .OTkgor "remains/■ to iBo-zsaen," Ho. •considered that tho' Land Nationalia,atipn .Mheme : would be tho disturbing .elfflnen'tin'tho Country, ;.aod dlflfitroy, the' corifidencp of. the. .Colotfy :ilr';tfio 'Some. MtffletJ Crown Grant holde;s, would; ■have ; n6.;iaith iii their: iitlea, ; Vith this' Bfford;)ian!(ing over tlieffi, required, inerbaßed popu-j tho land.questipn, a dakaj of emigrants. y?ho.could bringcabitalWith thorn Qo.coneideVed the dayißffie'o'ajd : assisted."emigration was over,, -feokuaPin the preseut stati) pLthsfoolany,' - the oyerflow to otheiv oolqdiea would- bo tuqrp than, tho the/labor market was mora euppiieii. lu. ,IBB3j the' balan'co of in 'faiw'qf'N#; Zealand taa%-tfc arrival - arid i departure from our.ppris was 10,000 ( 1885,6.,0CfQi aud' ia ;i.88(i: a; .littty over 1,000, tho Gov ermwut.Kave been recently, introducing a : clae'mployere oilabor, a very of ~ aifligrantti-r and )asfc yea'r;6.§ "families,. representing 289 bouls, deposited the Government' 'L9,250 as & guarantee of their goolfaitji, tiieir * .total, amount of capital being L 23,825, He alluded to. the' Government lecturer .in England—Mr Claydon—and .thought that although lie might be a good 'lecturer, still he was hot the man to inspire the hard headed English farmers ' with confidence, and considered that a differeiifmode of proceeding wouldhava to be adopted, especially as there was sucli an opposition as America in. the market. He said the Government could inako better termuortheiromiju'itienbya class of slow steamers to the colony,; which lie was pleased to say was likely to bo shortly connected .with the. English trad e. In concl uaion he said ifc was five y ears since they had elected liiin as their representative, and they had "since conferred the honor of re-election on him, a posi--tion that was tho highest they could bestow. He was conscious that ho, fell short of what he ciiiild wish to be, but had always trjed to do all in hit power to Itct as they could wish. Tho next tiino ho addressed them ho would again be a candidate for their suffrages against all •comers, and he hoped they would deal as favorably with him then as they had on previous and the present occasions, (Loud applause.)

In answer to Mr McCallister, Mr Buchanan said 110 did not think the flax industry could be worked successfully in tho colony. Still he would be in favor of granting a bonus for encouraging the introduction of improved modes of dressing. In.answer to.Mr Parker, he 'said if ho couldeoe the possibility .of. reducing the number of Representatives in the House, he should voto for it. (Cheers) In answer to Mr B. Boys, he promised to use his best endoavora to get the- |; tariff of'the timber, traffic amenclod, i sd- ' that 'firewood would b^' carried ;at' reduced rates; and in answer to th'e 'same gontleman, said—He was in favor of' the VVairarapa-returning : twS ihem..berß, -but if an additional;? aleotorate was. made in tho.lfprth.WairarSpa,' he would be in favor of.aivamalgamated district. A voto of thanks to Sir Buchanan wai moved by Mr W, Booth, and seconded by Mr B, Ijoys, and-was-carrM amid pwlojiged applause, and the- usual. vote of.thanks to the chair concluded'the meeting.