MANIFESTO OF THE COUNTRY PARTY.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 2661, 1 August 1889, Page 2

MANIFESTO OF THE COUNTRY PARTY.

THEN! CASE STATED: | iiy Ti-:i.i;i;i!Ai'H. —nu-'.ss association. 1 W i'.luniiton, Wednesday. Till-: following manifesto has been drawn up by the country party, and issued on the authority of the Executive Committee of the party : —

.STATEMENT 01'' Till-: CASK OF TIIK OIWTKV L'Alll'Y. As the members repro-enUug country districts could not debate the present Representation Dili, and thus make their views known to the ejlouy without in ell'ect lending assistance to the objectionable practice of stonewalling, it has been thought advisable to shortly state their position through ttie medium of the Press. They would therefore dia\v attention to the foilowing facts and arguments as entirely justifying that position : — 1. They are supporting a 15ill which introduces nothing that is new, but which endorses a principle that nearly throughout the whole past history of t.ie colony and up to the present hour lias been recognised without dissent.

2. That even the main detail of the Poll, namely, an advantage to the extent of 25 per cent, of population given to the country districts, has also been the rule throughout the past history of the colony up to 18W7. The Uepresentation Act of 1.551., for instance, deliLieivtely made " the quota of country districts less than the quota for town districts by as nearly as possible 25 per cent," this being the actual language of au otlicial paper then laid on the table of the House to explain the operation of the said Act. :■). This allowance to the country districts made by the Act of 1 Sri I \va- universally recognised in and out of Parliament as just and reasonable. Two general elections were held under that Act, and amid all other matters then discussed not a word of objection was ever raised to the said allowance to the country districts.

•I. From this allowance no departure in principle has ever been made, but in the extent of the allowance was curtailed to IS inxlly, but practically M per cent. I'll'! main purpose ol the Bill embodying this curtailment was to equalise representation as between the North ami South Islands, and all objections in Parliament to curtailment were suppressed for a time by a threat on the part of the then (lovernn.entthatit the objections were insisted on, the ISill itself, otherwise a jf'iod one, would be jeopardised. The true democratic principle consists in a fair distribution of power and influence in representation in proportion to population. The contention of the town members involves a very wide ami most disastrous departure from tint principle, inasmuch as it is recognised throughout the world that largo cities, with their facilities for instantaneous and their powerful municipal institutions, their inlluential newspapers, and the close community of interests that exists through all their section', have a power and influence out of all proportion to their actual nniiib.;r; country members are therefore only advocating the retention of a power hitherto possessed, of correcting an anti-demo-cratic inequality in representation. (i. This inequality is increased by the facilities which towns afi'ord for the exercise of plural voting, a privilege which, whether right or wrong, wise or unwise, is obviously confined to sm ill electoral areas with perfect communication. 7. Further, in every 10,000 of the city population there are l!, 000 male adults who, it will be admitted, form the bulk of the tax-payers; on the other hand, there are 2,000 of the same class in every 7,000 of the remainder of the population of the colony, so that, without taking into consideration any of the numerous political advantages large cities enjoy over the country, 10,000 of a city population should, on a taxation basis, have only the same representation in Parliament as 7,000 in the rest of the colony. This at once justifies 30 per cent, out of o3 : ' ; per cent, of the nominal reduction from the city population demanded by the country party. Their claim is, therefore, not only supported by the constitutional maxim that representation should accompany taxation, but also by the fact that the Constitution Act requires the representation of the colony to be based on the number of electors, and not on the total population. The decrease of the number of members from 01 to 71, the etl'ect of which will be felt chiefly in the country distiicts, would justify even a higher proportionate difference than that now churned.

N. The statement that the concession t«) tin; country districts would mean throwing the representation into the hands of landowners is manifestly absurd, in tlie past, with '2~> i>i'r cent, it has never produced that result, why then now? As a matter of fact, the argument, whatever it may he woith, is quite the other way, since all experience shows that the feeling against, audi a tendency is stronger in the country districts than in the towns. ( .t. A true estimate of the value of the objections now made by the town members may be lormed Irom a bare statement ol the fact that their leader, Sir <.•. tlrey, in 1.N7!) introduced and strove to carry through a, Hill expressly conceding to country districts an advantage of per cent. 10. The activity of the cities at the present moment in their hostility to the Representation Hill is the most conclusive proof of their power of swift organisation, and the influence they can wield. On the other hand, the wide dispersion "f the country population is a serious drawback to any effective elfort even in (he defence of their own interests. In view of nil their far!,, ill.' country members woulil regard it as :i betrayal of their trust were they to recede free, a position based up.m justice, and aimim.' at practical equality ol lvpresental i\ e power.