CITY ELECTION.

Evening Post, Volume LXIV, Issue 105, 30 October 1902, Page 2

CITY ELECTION.

MR. O'REGAN'S ADDRESS. Mr. P. J. O'Regan addressed Ihe electors of the city in the Choral Hall hist evening. The body of the hall — notwithstanding tho counter attraction of the Premier's reception — was crowded, and there was a fair attendance upstairs. Mr. G. H. Jackson presided. Mr. O'Regan said he would stand or fall bj" his principles.. Defeat had no terrors for him. He dealt first with Imperial matters. The Premier's Conference had conduced to the good of the Empire, but some of the proposals introduced there he opposed. He strongly opposed inter-Imperial preferential trade. It would be dangerous for the colonies to have a say in tho Mother Country's fiscal policy ; equally dangerous for the Mother Country to control our fiscal policy. He objected to the military humbug of the older countries being introduced here. Pie w?s in favour of maintaining a strong defence, by a citizen soldiery, and of encouraging physical -drill, but he objected Io being dragged into the vovlex of coaiciiption. Parliamentary iepre-,enlation in the Hcuse of Commons or the House of Loids would do no good and would be impracticable. It wps altogether inconsistent with our professed loyalty that the main source of New -Zealand's revenue was from the tariff on Ei-iti-li goods. If Russia or Germany piaced such a tariff on British goods we would be complaining 'about their hostility to the British Empire. . BEWARE, FIJI:' ' - ' \ Interested persons in Fiji were raiding the cry of tyranny to ttic blank' mitn for political purposes. Sip George O'Brien's speodi, us toncerr.ed our former ment of the Iviaori3, v. as perlecfH ,true." The Fijian co'rvlc ol while i tbtU \verel working fcr federation with I\ Y en J Z?:<liind did r.o'. cue tyro ?'iuy.'s aLoV" tlio black man. A sccivt wd Mlcr.l r -aa to diag v-; I >.•> the Fij.an facl-Jo.-"* j.jlit — which, irun it? colour, tcr.uer.cv, we had far better leave alone — Was going on, dnd agents from Fiji had lately been in secret confertfa'de .with Ministers in Wellington. It was not to their credit to pull seciet sliiugs. Why did they not come out into the open? If the state of things was bad in Fiji, we could make representations to the Home Government ; but to help a man ,did not involve- going to live with him. Our Parliament should not be made an amphitheatre for Fijian faclioi? fights. TOO MUCH STATE INTERFERENCE. . New Zealand would have enough to do .to keep her own hou^e in order without going abroad. One of the chief dangers was what Herbert Spencer called continuous aggression by tho State. He (Mr._ O'Regan) was never very strong on this matter of State interference ; he hud always been lather in favour of private enterprise. Theio weic some things which 'should nofc be allowed to fall into the hartds of private enterprise, but there was also a line beyond which the State should not go. Thoso who were first in denouncing the Government for corruption and for increasing and abusing its patronage, were also the first to propose more State interference creating more Government billets. The municipalities were best fitted to control tramways : to nationalise them would be wrong, oiitc fire insurance, not covering the area of operation*; Ih.il private companies covered, would be a danger, and a mistake ; and more particularly it, would be a mistake as unduly extending ~ Government patronage. To have a pure Government we must have a simple Government — as few Government employees as possible. There was a distinct danger in unduly increasing the functions of the State. One real direction for State action was in openiftg a !? bate coal n#n.e, which Minist'ers'liacl at last come (o an. The price of coal was a disgrace. All enterprises in their nature monopolies should be municipalised. BANK LANDS LOCKED UP. He supported the guarding of the stability of tho Bank" of NW Zealand, but lie thought tha Assets Board should be abolished. The Board had failed to lealise in nine yens. Was not the Board playing the part of a land speculator and holding on to these Globo assets in order to secure by means of "the colony's increasing prospeiily > their book value? The State should step in and sell all these lands at their land tax value, and if it was not up to the book value, Parliament should vole the difference, instead of, as now, voting money for backblocks areas while the As?ets Board held on to these good lands. , LOR REVALUATION AND AGAINST THEEHOLD. Pursuance of the present laoid policy would mean that in a few yeai's wo would not be* entitled to our country. If he could not get in on his views on the l?nd question, he would cheerfully accept ths alternative. He supported tho principles of Henry Gcor;;e, -aj^d 'he believed ILO people would support tkem.il •thfcy wcio fully' explained. 'They,\fouid' ngi'cc (hat we should n&vcr haye 1 sold an acre of land in -Now - Zealand ; ye.fc we were selling Crovn' lands at tße rate of 60,000 acres iv year. Since 1881. the Government had remitted £3,0^6,000 from cash sales of land, a Bum suflicient to form an endowment out of which old-age pensions could be paid without touching taxation. In ten years the Government had disposed of ten millions on lease in perpetuity, which land might just as well have besn sold. If it had been disposed of on fieehold, we could have taxed it, as it waa the land was Crown land, though we cotild^not touch it, and unless an Act was • passe.3 .we could not tax it. It was a-, gross" exaggeration to pay that leasing wstb periodical revaluation >ftts a hardship. on farmers. The U^t Land Bill brought in provided fpr revaluation because ' e'evtaiti leases hnd ,been over-valued. IE so, why noL iv valuation for cases of undervaluing. It was a, poor system that did not "work both ways. The lease in perpetuity did possess certain advantages, which shoddy Liberals were trying to destroy. The area of lease was limited, 320 aeies being the maximUm of firsf-clasn land, and this would prevent {he acciimulation of an established territorial arialocracv. Professed Liberals were soaking to" destroy this safeguard by allowing lessees- in perpetuity to convert their ieis&J into freehold. Ho, would fiffht tilts #8 Ijo would finfht the plague. In a choice bsewcen the plague and a territorial, aristocracy, he would .unhß*itatii;i;!y ,ciic-osp the plague, all could 'be- got to - unite in fighting the plague, but the power of landlordism could silence ihe pies«, ttill the voice of opponents,.' and even that of the people themselves. J FARMERS' UNION. The so-called Farmor.;' Union was rapidiy being nobble-l by the It was the coming Conservative force. Democracy would have to look to the towns Hit! union wns nobbling the Liberal Party. Tli2 only Uuvermr.eut c.ninlrv supporter who opposed the freehold wn's -.lr. Hogg, who took a- roul interc?l in me laud question. Rome of these opponent b of the laiul-tm: and suppoilors of Die freehold declared themselves ou'. timt out fupporters of the Govennnont. (A voice: ''Do you support the Government V") He supported principles. !f tli" Government supported (he V iviu £ (lilic fivihold, he would \r' L ;> :igaiii.-.L it every time. Ho would vote agaiiif.t the Uo .-urn men; if they accepted thes" shoddy l.tijcials and their views. While tit.; ciipifali.st hist year jmhl tsi iucojuc-ms £170.000 Uie wui'kc) 1 paid in duti<- 011 sugar, tea,

currants, and cocoa, nearly a quarter of a million. The proper policy was to increase the land-tax and remit those cruel Customs duties. Rating on. uuimproved values had come to stay. He asserted deliberately, despite denials, that there was over-crowding in Wellington — continuous of huddling that made virtuous healthy life impossible, and this in rich men's land. Had rating on unimproved value in Wellington confiscated the little all that some poor widow had put into a vacant lot? Had it ,not caused speculators to build? And, 'should 'it not be extended to general taxation? PROGRAMME. His programme was abolition of the sale of Crown lands, to make the municipal franchise universal, increase of landtax, and reduction of duties on necessaries, 1 opposition of emasculation of the Land Act 1882, opposition of the Fijian movement, and a whole-hearted support of Liberal measures. The- present party system admittedly did not put in the -Ministry the best men. They should therefore give the Elective ' 'Executive — which he * maintained would put the best men in power — a trial. Ha would support tho present Government Party if he could, bub would insist on having the best men in the Ministry, and on having a reconstruction. The present members of the Ministry had not the confidence of the great majority cf their own supporters. They were not incompetent, but there. 1 were, others more competent. He would support the 'Referendum Bill ; Hare's pro1 portional, representation (failing that, Mr. . -M'Nab's Absolute Majority Bill); the liquor laws as thoy $tood,. The testing • ,time '(Wd times) of laDour legislation „ -was still ,to come. ' ' : : ' " „.. QUESTIONS. ;, >' ' . \ -In answer to, Mr. O'Regan 1 ■ ' said he thought" to increase -/the graduated ; land-tax and thus make big; landholders i go into the maiket was bettor than com- ■ pulsory acquirement; whereby the State » paid 'tho private oTiier'his* unearned in- * . cremeut. He v: r in favour cf preference \ of omplwriaent : > '-.inionjstp, on the grouud i 'tlia.t v/ri'k&rp v;'io . struggled for .their > .'rights 1 slHruld £'t iirst benefit. . ' ' ,On the motion of Mr. 11. Jolly, second- - ed ,by Mr. Williajus,. it was unanimously t resolved .that JSfr. O'Regan is a fit and • proper gentleman to represent the electors in Parliament.