THE GENERAL ELECTION.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXVI, Issue 13528, 9 November 1911, Page 2

THE GENERAL ELECTION.

PATEA. Mr. O’Oea’s Candidature. Mr O’Dea has had good meetings' at 1 both Westmere and Brunswick. At both places committees' are being formed, at Westmere with Mr A. Bretherton as chairman,, and at Brunswick with Mr Dj Robs (who had previously been mentioned as a probable candidate) as chairman. At Westmere, when speaking on old age pensions. Mr O’Dea referred to tho fact that Mr Massey, who now upheld old age pensions, had on the second reading of'the Old Age Pensions Bill characterised the scheme as “another system of charitable aid.” A well-known settler interrupted with, “So it is.” The candidate said there were evidently a few of the old timers left who had the courage to stick to their convictions. Mr O’Dca’s Aramoho committee meets this (Wednesday) evening at the appointed time and place. Business important. Mr P. O’Dea speaks on St. John’s Hill, at Mr Meuli’a residence, on evening next. ' ' ■ Mr G. V. Pearce speaks at Waitotara on Saturday evening next. WANGANUI SEAT. Mr. Hogan’s Candidature. Mr Hogan’s General Committee will meet at the Fire Brigade; Hall to-morrow evening at 7.45, when a full muster is requested. . . Mr. Mackay’s Candidature. Mr C. E. Mackay -will address the electors in the Gonville Town Hall to-morrow (Friday) evening. . Mr. Veltch’s Candidature. Mr W. A. Veitch, the Labour candidate, will address the electors in the St. John’s district to-morrow (Friday) evening. He will speak in the Primitive Methodist Schoolroom, corner of Dublin and Keith Streets. A largely-attended meeting of Mr Yeitch’s committee was held in the permanent room, Druids’ Hall, last evening. A large amount of business was transacted,and the party’s organisation' reported to be in a verv forward state.

THE WAIMARINO SEAT

Mr E, W. Smith, candidate for the Waimarino seat, has during the past week held meetings at the following Eongoiti, Ma'taroa, Ruanui, Rangawaea, Mangamahu, Ford-all, Okoia, Ivaitoxe, and is to be at Upokongaro this evening and leaves by to-morrow’s early train for the northern part of tho electorate. When speaking at Kaitokc last'night, he paid a high tribnteo to Mr J. T. Hogan for the fight that gentleman, put up in connection with the Wanganui Harbour Empowering Bill, and,gave it as his opinion that no other member in tho House would, under similar circumstances, have received the same support, Mr Smith expresses himself us being, very confident of winning tho Walmarino seat.

Speaking at Levin; on Tuesday evening, Mr W. H. Field/ Liberal' member for Otaki, said:—No one in the past had been more blackguarded than the Liberal leaders— Mr Ballance; Sir John Mackenzie, Mr Seddon—yet now the Opposition were canonising them. . , The Opposition were going to reduce borrowing and taxation, and yet were going to appoint an expensive Civil Service Board, a Public Works Board, a high-salaried General Manager of Railways, develop the whole country, irrigate Central Otago, settle native lands, spend two millions a year on lands for settlement with land at its present high value, and many other things. How could it be done? . . Without perc°uld say that y-Massey was unfitted for the office of I rentier. The camnaign on the part of tho Opposition was, as it had been.since tho time of Mr Ballance'a Government, one of misrepresentation and insinuation, especially in the out-of-way districts. opting his campaign at Foxhil) (Nelson) the Hon. R. McKenzie said he did not anticipate that they would see a lory Government in power again. Thev - d - at y the country once, and he did not think it possible that the people would return them again. In ten years there would be an extreme' Radical hk P r iMmber od that when ho first stood for.Parhamnt he was looked upon as a Radical with extreme views >’-ow he was looked upon by some as an easy-going Liberal. * 8 an

STATEMENT BY MR. MASSEY. (Per United Press Association.) u f PUKEKOHE, November S Reference to the subject of special remuneration to Judges of the Supreme Court was made by Mr Massey at Patu- “^, oe , tlu « evening in reply to a stateT’| t Af7 Sir John t Findlay last evening. The Attorney-General said that there was never a breath of such scandalous charges until the wretched tawdry agitation in connection with the Hine allegations was brought forward, Mr Massey replied that the Opposition members drew attention to these payments to Judges for years before Hie Hine charges were ever heard of. Party records showed that they recorded no scandalous charges, no charges at all, except those against tlmT Government itsdf Ido not attack Sir Robert Stout, nobody has done so,” Mr Massey exPi ! y? led; ‘‘but what I do say is that, oven if feir Eobert Stout is the most honest and straightforward man in New Zealand--! do not say he is not—these payments are improper. Mr Massey said he also objected to payments of special remuneration to members of the House of Representatives as essentially wrong and tending to interfere with the independence of memh®rs; In the same way the independence of the judicial bench would he sapped if the system of special remuneration were hot stopped.

SPEECH BY MR. MASSEY. PUKEKOHE, November 8. • The leader of the Opposition, Mr W. F. Massey, delivered his first speech in connection with his candidature for re-elec-tion to the Franklin seat at Patumaboe this evening. ' Mr Massey was received with applause. Ho said that keener interest was being taken in public affairs at the present time than during any previous election, campaign, and this was gratifying. The Opposition could make no promises of railways or bridges. All it could offer were clean hands and honest service, and he honestly believed that the Reform Party had now a majority of people at its back. "Very soon the country must realise the necessity of preserving a more equitable relation between income and expenditure, and

when that time came it would need men of grit, energy, and ability to administer its: affairs. Mr Massey referred to several points discussed by the Prime Minister at Winton on the previous evening. ' Sir Joseph Wprd had compiled an extraordinary table regarding the manner in which the Leader of the Opposition had voted on the Land Bill of 1894. It was significant that the Prime Minister had been forced to go back 17 or 18 years to find a flaw in the record of the Leader of the Opposition. He did not need to look ,back 17 months or even 17. weeks to find any number of flaws in the record of the Government. While checking the figures drawn by the Prime Minister from ancient history, he had been reminded of the interesting fact that Sir Joseph Ward had voted against Sir John Hall’s proposal to extend the franchise to women—(laughter)—and that on the division he was accompanied by Sir James Carroll, the first lieutenant of rho present benighted Ministry. Mr Massey maintained his contention that the borrowing under the present Government had been excessive, and added that the Government, instead of determining the extent to which the country might borrow in each, year, shirked its responsibility, removing it to the shoulders of members. Discussing the land policy of the Government, Mr Massey said that it was absurd to suggest, as the Prime Minister had declared, that every facility was given for acquiring the freehold. No man could say what the land policy of the Government really was. A't one time it had nailed its colours to the mast on a purely leasehold Bill. Then it had submitted a half-and-half Bill, which had in turn been lowered by the freehold Bill, and the last was dropped because of the opposition in the ranks of the Government itself. The Reform Party proposed that settlers on lease in perpetuity lands should be allowed to purchase their holding at the original value, so that the invested canital would he released for the purchase of other lands for settlement. The Prime Minister made the ridiculous reply that the effect of the proposal was that land would he given away to the value of over millions. The Government desired the settlers to purchase ■ the freehold* at the present value, or, in other words, to pay twice over for the improvements made by them during their occupation. Sir Joseph Ward was reported to have said, in connection with the Mokan deal, that a claim of .£BO,OOO had been saved upon the country. That statement was absolutely incorrect. Be had endeavoured to draw a herring across the scent by urging that the natives had received a fair price for the estate. The real question was whether the Government was justified in issuing an Order-in-Couueil to allow a speculator to buy 53,000 acres at 10s 4)d per acre before he secured the consent of the natives. Mr Herman Lewis resold 46,000 acres of the land at a profit of' £35,000, and the second speculator disposed of it immediately for a further profit of £IO,OOO. The proper course for the Governinent was to have purchased it and .opened it for selection on the optional system. The Government denied that it had sold the land, but what it had done was to sell to a company of speculators the right to make a profit out of the settlers in the years to come, aud he assured his audience that the company was not a philanthropic institution. The Government’s proposal in the policy measure of 1909 was that no man should hold more than 303 acres of .first-class land acquired from the Crown. Subsequent to the passing of the Act of 1907, the penalty for any man who acquired an additional area was a fine of up to £SOO or five years’ imprisonment. Tho settler was to be made a criminal, but the : treatment for the speculator was an Order-in-Council permitting him to purchase 53,000 acres in one block and to make a huge profit out of it. The Government might attempt to gloss over the Mokau dealings, hut the fact remaintd I that a gigantic swindle had been perpetrated. Mr Massey added that he was prepared to repeat his statements on every platform in the country and in Parliament.

Mr Massey claimed that tho amendments, made in the death duties by the Government were due to the criticism lie had made in Christchurch some months ago. The only policy at present before the country was that of tho Reform Party, and it was without doubt tho most liberal and democratic ever submitted to tho people of New Zealand. Dealing with other questions, Mr Massey said that the Hine charges were proved up to the hilt, and ho objected very strongly to the remarks of Sir J. Findlay on the subject on Tuesday evening and in Wellington some months ago. There must he reform in the system of expending public money. It was the duty of every member, whether Government or Opposition, to obtain his share of public money in proportion to the amount available and to the needs of his district, but after 18 years’ experience he was convinced that the system was abominable, degrading, humiliating, and extravagant. If the country was to preserve its democracy and any of its rights beyond the right to he taxed, it must very quickly find a definite remedy for the despotism of the Government. ■ A vote of thanks and of confidence was accorded to Mr Massey. DUNEDIN NORTH. DUNEDIN, November 8. Mr G. M. Thompson, Dunedin North, opened his campaign, when he addressed a large meeting of electors. He announced himself an out and out opponent of the Government and criticised the administration particularly with regard to tho coal mines’ department. He advocated the right of Crown tenants to acquire the freehold at the original valuation: an elective Upper House and insurance against sickness and unemployment. Tim candidate asked that confidence should not. be expressed by motion:but at the ballot box. A unanimous vote of thanks was accorded him. PROTEST BY MR. PIRANI. FEILDING, November 9. Mr P. Pirani, chairman of the Wanganui Education Board, has again forwarded a protest to the Premier and the Chief Electoral Officer against the use of the. public schools on election days where other: public buildings are available, and has informed the latter that every means will' be adopted to prevent access to the school buildings in such oases. The examinations were long ago fixed for December 7, and the awkwardness of taking the schools is thus considerably accentuated.