HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Waikato Times, Volume IV, Issue 215, 25 September 1873, Page 2

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Monday With regard to the Land Loan Security Bill, the Premier •said he hopod the bills would be postponed until next sitting, and then the Government would assist in passing them with un alteration. The borrowing should be bo restricted as to confine it to sums obtainable from the bankn and capitalists in the provinces, to guird ngainst the clashing with the colonial borrowing, or damaging the colonial credit. That fear should bo removed, and also tho borrowing of money restricted to works of a useful and necessary character. Kcquiaito provision would hard to be made for gaols, lunatic asylums, and education purposes. Thus amended, he hoped tin.* Legislative Council would accept them. Major Atkiinon moved that the amondnient by the Legislative Council m'tlip Timber Floatage Bill be disagreed with. Hit* Council hud added a clause bringing the bill into operation in Auckland, but in the other provinces by proclamation of the Superintendent and Executive Council, — The Premier supported the bill and it* amendment — Messrs "Rnlloston and Fitzherbert spoke against such special legislation for one province. — Mr Sboehan protected against the bill, as it particularly affected Auckland, yet Auckland wai tho only province where tbe people were not to luve a voice in bringing its provisions into operation. — Mr Swanson expressed the eamo views ai Major Atkinson. — The motion was carried by a mujo-ity of 25 to 15, Mr Vogel calling for a division. — Managers have been appointed to confer with the Upper Home. The Licensing Bill wa* reported with amendments from the Committee. — Major Atkinson, Mr White, and others are trying to obtain a recommittal. In the House to-day, Mr Tolmie moved that the House go into committee to eoii-uder bringing in h bill to amend the Civil List Act; limiting the number of Minister* to six Kuropeans and ono native, and increasing their salaries — Mr Thompson said the proposal was absurd, suggesting in* I crease of lalariei deuondent on reduction of number — The ! Premier laid Government could not enteitain the question to put salaries too lo», and invested pensions — Air Fox moved an amendment m favour of an addresi to the (Jo\ernor, asking him to send do \n a meaiuro to increase salaries — Air TomJip then withdraw his inohon. — Mr Stafford said the committee had considered it advisable, if a change of Ministry "occurred, that tliero should be a reduction in the number, and an increase of salary take place. — Mr Fitzherbcrt said the committee thought the voting power of Minsters in tho Ilouse too great. — Mr Rolleston thought the House ihould fix tho number, functions, and salaries of Ministers, but the question was too largo for the present discussion. He suggested that the debate should collapse. — After some further discussion, Mr FoYs amendment was carried, and, on tho House going into committee, the resolution, embodying Mr Fox's amendment, was carried.

Tuesday. At nn adjourned meeting of tho Government supporter! held to d.iv, it was agreed unanimously to support the Pro- \ .iicinl borrowing bills Hi modified. The bilU are the first orders of the day, and are expected to pass through all the ?t«<^-< i, f, nnu'Vea rhe Upper House will pnss some of them Sewn Loan Bill-, were introduced to-day : The Otago Loa.i Empowering Bdl for a loan ot £310,000; the Wellington Loan Bill, for £175,000 ; the Ou<*o Lund (Ordinance, for a lotui of £300,000 ; the Nelson Loan Bill, for a loan cf £1 10,000 ; the Marlborough Loan Bill, for a loan of £21,000 ; Auckland Loan Bill, for a loan of £'245,000; and the Htnvke's Bay Loan Bill, for a loan of £210,000. A full meeting of Ministerial supporters took place to-day. A resolution wns come to to reduce the Provincial Loans Bill to £280.000, the total to be expended between tins and the le-t January, 1875, the money to he expended in pre» limitmn iimeys and nreessaiy works. Otngo in to get £10,000, Wellington gets the largest share. The Opposition assert that they had a majority on the Provincial Loans Bill last night. On theque«tion that the House, in the evening, should take up the Prowncinl Loan Bills, Mr Tolmie showed that Hie colony and tho provinces were going too fast. It is not probnble that they would get the money. Loan Companies would not take debenture* while borrowing in London at the Mime rate. Jf the banks bought they would do so to sell in London, and the same power us before would be used to consolidate. The amount of borrowing for Provincial and Colonial Governments for ono rear would amount to three millions eight hundred thousand pounds. — Mr Rolleston concurred in the remark? of the last speaker. He dwelt on the dangers following reckle.n borrowing and an extravagant poliev — The motion wns carried. Mr Tolmie guve notice of motion, that, during recess, the Government make the preliminary arrangements necessary to heeure a modification of the existing law*, with a viow to j a consolidation next and folio* ing session. The Auckland Loan Bill provides for a loan of £245,000, only £127,500 of which is to be raised between the passing of tho bill and tho end of December, 1874. The firat Hohcdule provides for the erection of schools, schoolmasters' houses, and other educational buildings in the province of Auckland, £50,000; for the construction of branch railways or tramways from the Auckland and W.iikato lino to ManuI kau and Wairou, sixteen mile?, £80,00'J ; for the erection of an hospital, £20,000; for the erection of a gaol, £20,000 ; for the extension of the lunatic Asylum, £10,000 ; for the purchase oC the Tararu "tramway and wharf, £10,000 ; for the extension of steam accommodation at tho Manukau, 5,000 ; for the formation of special settlements of immigrants north of Auckland, £30,000 ; and fof the opening up, by means of roads and bridges, of ntitire lands to be acquired south of Auckland, £20,000 ; total, 245,000. Tho second schedule provides that all those waste lands of the Crown at present unsold within the province of Auckland, situate as follows : — Counties of Wynyard and Mongonui, 191,486 acres ; in tho county of llnkiangu, 48,190 acres ; in the county of Bedford, 86,651 acres ; m the county of llobson, 3 t,3so*aeres ; in the county of Mnreden, 102,789 acres ; in tho county of Eden, 66,658 acres ; in the countie* of Grey and Rutland, 61,000 acres ; and in th? Queen's county, 59,062 acres ; total, 740,792 ai-res. Excepting therefrom in each of the above counties 25 per cent, thereof to be denlt with under the homesteads clause of the Auckland Waste Lands Act, 1871. This percent ngu would amount to 185,198 acre.*, leaving therefore 555.51) ( acics available as security upon which loans may be raised.

The Lii!f/>f))dfnla.\\fson that there wag a disposition on tlic }..i.l i/J tbe Government ,i esterdny to allow the proposals for t lie provincial borrowing to stand over until next session, and a uamfivi vvjis made amongit tlie Government supporters to induce them to agree to this course. '1 he Got eminent aro now dt'terimm>d not to depart I'roni the programme, but will Mibinil tn the House a scried of bills authorising certain provinces to borrow under the terms and general conditions contained in tboonginul bdl thrown out bj the Upper House. The following letter appenrh in to-day's Independent. "Sir, — At the time when the two branches of the Legislature :n c not agreed as to the necessity or desirabilit y of borrowing more niuii.n lor public works, it may not bo inopportune to di-eiH* the \ ii h.s enunciated in the pamphlet lately published on biMiiilfol Messrs Broaden and Sons. Itsecnu to me that Mime suih ))lnu a> therein pro(,osed would solve the present dirticultv lx.tli eirectunllv and satisfactorily; for although the public uork< would be *t ill carried on throughout the length and bread I h of the two islands, thore would no lonirer be any neee^ily for mining one single bixpenco to our public dehl -Tin* punnpal, if nut the onh , ob'ei-lion urged iigain'.t eiitriiMimg imr public worko to a compAny, is, that doing so •uMild pluee ru iv thin le^iinnatc poue'r in the hands of (I'iectoi-*, but 1 think tins might be obviated by placing not only directois but .-ill employ ee-. of pitch a company exactly m the wnno portion a- those in (•ovcrnmcnl icrvicc, viz", leniJerin;: them diMjunlifiul fioni holding seats in UieAsionibly. Nay, if necc>-«an , dihfranehwe them altogether, for 1 would be geeond io none in (iglitn.g against the raising up of n "power behind the throne Mionuer than the throne." Having,] hope, got i id of I Ins objection, 1 t me in few words point out sonic- ol many a>ivuni>i-,', which, in my opinion, the eilom would derive Iroin a iinupaiM, lather than' <i ivi rnnu nt h,i\iti r ; the co «t met ion and 'lnnnajeinent o| nit piiblii \\,,il- And here 1 would n->k \om n.ideis to I

an Hi>]f Miljilcin tlit? Sa'nrdag Rerieto of Il>r 21st June lrtat, in which is wry lull* (iis.'ii-ii'd the question ol Uuveinuit'iit Venus co")piinj management of railways in i< ngland. 1 judge liosii it t'nit our leading statesmen at liomc lime mow quite abandoued the idea that (lie former should be prelerred to the latter. 1. There would bo no occasion lor further borrowing ; for, if all we have- already sjient on railways be paid back mlo the freasury by a company, we should have ainplo and Bulliumit for tlio purposes now required by tlio seieral Prnuncial Loan Bills, and the further development of immigration, and possibly be in a position to reduco our present enormous debt of ionic fifteen millions. 2. There would no longer be any necessity for the proposed property tax ; indeed 1 should think our present heavy taxes might bo considerably reduce J, for 1 understand that it 13 intended j by the proposed company to capitalise the mtoroit on then outlay during the construction, which means that the colony w ill not be called upon to pay any portion of guaranteed interest until several lines are in working order. Tiien there m no doubt that some ot the railways will themselves pay an important pert io the interest aboie tn w. r,sing expenses, and to Hint extent will relieve the colony c< ttio liability incuired by a guarantee. But, under any circumstances, before we should be called upon to pay anything on account of guaranteed interest population would have been increased by many thousands, and taxation to be borne by each individual* proportionably lightened. Let your readers for a moment take into consideration what this young and heavily taxed colony will gain by theso few years of rest. Burdens which, if Government (whether General or Provincial) c tntmuo to borrow, will soon become almost iniupportable, will no longer cripple our energies and frighten capitalists from our shore 3, while we shall be reaping enormous advantages of having public works carried on on * i«calo of magnitude hitherto only, perhaps, vaguely thought of, without any drain whatever on our revenue*. I apeak of magnitude of works, for the action of the company would not bo confined to railways, but would extend to nuoh other wo; ki as breakwaters and water-races. For further argument in favor of the guarantee principle 1 would refer your readers to the pamphlet itselt, but I think that the question of entrusting the construction of public works to a company, a large and influential proportion of the shareholders of which would be our fellow-coloniuts, is at present worthy of careful consideration, and of something more than the lukewarm reception it met with when iirst morted "