MR HOGG AT EKETAHUNA.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3669, 22 November 1890, Page 2

MR HOGG AT EKETAHUNA.

I Mr A. W. Hogg addressed the electors at the Town Hall, Eketahiinn, last night, Mr A. Andersen in the chair. / ■ . v Mr Hojrg trusted that tlie audience .would bear with him, as he had a bnd cold. He thought . that there was a great future, for Eketahuna, but lie was sorry to hear that both Eketahuna and Pahiatna were undergoing a period of stagnation.' The opening part of his speech was similar to that already published. He then gave a summary of the policy of the Stout-Vogel and Atkinson governments. 'l'lie latter-Government was not very particular as t0... what promises they made so that they ■ could remain in power, Sir H. Atkinson had taken the taxation .from.-the towns and put it 6ii, the country. The Government promised whon they took •>-office thai ;• there■; • should be no future, borrowing, that ' they would not irtprease (he taxation. But out of Tax they had got £50,000 moMfcka did the Stout-Vogel Governnfww. Miifcfc> otthetaxation,wasinterest, and the, rest, was.chiefly duties'on the necessaries of life. A man! who earned 6s per day; received only 4s, two shillingsgoing for taxation, The working man with a large family was contributing in taxation as much as the big landholder. Land Tax,- . . Property owners were/afraid tliat they would look too. dose to the big . holdings. ' It wag cruel : and, unjust to tax improvements; Ho then referred -to the system of free holdings, and the way that small holders wero. taxed to excess. The last few days he had seen large estates held by absentees, such bb the Balfour estate, which employed three, men only. He then produced j list of the large holders in Now Zoaland, showing why the Forty Mile Bush had improved. The. bush was all felled by the small capitalists, This was all that was left to the ; people. The best of the land was all taken up . by the capitalists such as the twelve apostles of■ Hawke's Bay. Those gentlemen would not go' to the bush" Land Tenure, '

: If a man had more land thin lie could travel round in one day he had more' than his fair share, 'more particularly as there were'thousands in the country who could not get one aoi'fl to build a house upon. He advocated a graduated land tax. The rising generation would have the land divided. He.would not tax the improvements, but; would tax tho unimproved - land,, and that held chiefly by absentees,

BETBENOHUENT. had been made to a small extent, A move was made a year or two ago by reducing the salaries of the civil servants, He here referred to the * action of the Skinflints, and to the action of the Government ; re Mr Blnokett, Mr Blair and Mr O'Connor. He referred also to Mr Maxwell's trip to England, The- Government and their friends were shareholders in the Union Company. ■He -animadverted Btrongly on the action 'of the Government ; in transferring Mr McKerrow from the surrey department to a : commissionership of railwavß. Such a transaction had not , been seen ninoo the creation of the world. . •

LABOUR TBOUDLE3, If they only know the relation . between the Government and thdy shipping companies, if the Premier had only said, "Well, you must disassociate yourselffrom the Australian nssociatipn," the strike , would not have taken place, (hisses''& cheers.)

Railways. The Goi'go line was beintj made for the express purpose of increasing the value of the Manawatu line, (An elector: Give us some of yourviews on politics, never mind the Government, we have had enough of that.) The speaker still went on criticising the Government, owners of land, and every one else who was not in accord with him, Up to this time Mr Hogg had not spoken one word as to his ; views on politics generally, Attbo conclusion of his address he invited questions. An elector! Wbataro your views on protection ? Mr Hogg: I should liko to see tho duties taken offtho necessaries of life and put on land, An elector; In what way would taxation benefit the farmer ? Mr Hogg: It should benefit tho farmer in this way, that it would koep the population in the towns. No one would benefit like the farmer. An elector; IE you are returned to tho House what would you advise 4 oft stop the exodiis of population to 1 Australia, and bring them back again ? (uproar.) Mr Hogg: If we had a good land i tax the stream of population would turn. An elector: If you had a chance to take up ten thousand acres would you not do it. (Hear, hear.) Mr Hogg 11 think I would, but I also think it should be divided among the people. In answer to a question, Mr Hogg stated that tho Chinese should be allowed to compete with European labor, i

Mr Williams spoke at considerable lnntjth on freetrado v, protection, amidst consjde|qb|p uproar, qnd cries of "platform j". • A vote of thanks and conlklenoa was then proposed and socondod. An amendment tvas moved that 3 vote of thanks only shoulder bo givoi), Ihp amendment being put, was carried, The meoling closed amidst uproar,