MINISTERIAL ADDRESSES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 135, 9 June 1898, Page 6

MINISTERIAL ADDRESSES.

EON. A. J. CADMAN AT PAEROA,

/(By Telegraph.—Special Reporter.) i

PAEROA, Slay 2S

; The Hon. A. J. Cadman addressed, &, large meeting of his constituents last evening in the Paeroa Criterion Theatre. Mr C. F. Mitchell presided. [Mr Cadman expressed regret that the state of his health would not permit trim to address meetings in various parts of the electorate. OPPOSITION ATTACKS. Opposition attacks upon the Government were not levelled at their policy as a whole, therefore it was fair to assume it was generally satisfactory, ffhe cries raised were about 'spoils to (victors,' corruption, and appointments of men of the right colour. This was Hot a new cry. When Sir George Grey first came on the scene he raised a cry against wholesale appointments of people of the right colour by past Conservative Governments. This question of appointments was now made the war cry of the opponents of the Government. It was quite true that Kiore sons and daughters of the industrial class now get Government appointments than formerly, when pubMc positions were restricted to children of the ruling families. It •was more natural to look to their •friends first when appointments were made.

SOCIALISTIC LEGISLATION. 1 More socialistic legislation was the try whenever the Government introduced any new measure, and the opposition at once began. Such measures jwere opposed as strongly as possible imtil they became law, and then ■there was an end of the opposition.

OLD AGE PENSIONS. ' The Old Age Pension Bill metjwith strong opposition, but it was only a question of time when something in that direction would be adopted. : THAMES VALLEY RAILWAY. The Thames Valley Railway was Hooked upon as a political job in the past, but he hoped to see trains running shortly. For nearly 20 years anterest had been paid upon a portion of that line, and the sooner it was completed the better. lie hoped that the line would be in use before, the fend of the present year. MINING LEGISLATION. ! ' The talk about big companies leaving the colony because of mining [legislation was not justified. That, to liim, was mere moonshine. The question of bad management and misleading reports being sent Home in respect of the land was the cause of a good <leal of the disaster and the winding flip of companies at Home. After all, fthe legislation had been very little altered since the introduction of outside capital. In spite of all the cry About winding up companies, and capital leaving, let anyone, produce a decent-sized lode to-morrow of lowgrade ore and they "would very soon see that capital would be available I (to work it. | I THE LIBERAL PARTY. j Mr Scobie Mackenzie sneered at the Klreat Liberal Party. The Premier Was the head of a party of progress. OTic policy of the Opposition was a system of letting well alone, which Jneant stagnation. LIBERAL LEGISLATION. The present Government repealeo [the property tax, tinder which any improvement meant increased taxation. it had also assisted in lowering rates of interest. The Government also did !B great deal towards assisting people rto settle on land. Big corporations holding large estates asked prices that people would not pay. .The terms on which the Government disposed of land offered the 'greatest inducements to settlers, and assisted the settlers very materially. [Legislation by the present Government resulted in the abolition of Strikes, and ended Sunday working 5n mines. THE RAILWAYS. With regard to the railways, Mr Cadman. explained that the "school excursions little more than paid their cost, but the railways are the property of the people, and they got a cheap ride on their own property. He did not think people would like to go back to old 'let well alone' policy pursued by the Commissioners in regard to freights on produce or the abolition of excursion rates. i FINANCE. It had been stated that the indebtedness of the colony in 1891 was [£38,830,350, while in 1897 it was |£ 44,963,424, being an increase of !£6,133,074, but their critics did not explain that in 1891 the interest was .£1,858,252, and in 1897 interest was only £1,741,412, a reduction of £116,----840. The saving effected by Mr Ballance in respect to remitting money [Home had it been made in 1891 would iiaye reduced the amount now paid by £80,000. Then over £3,000,000 was carrying a rate of interest which meant a saving to the colony of h£ 40,000 a year. He showed that loan money had been expended as follows: —Arrangements re interest, £1,661,----!406; purchase of native lands, £643,----450 were expended, and a great part of this land was settled by people who paid interest. Land settlement purchases, including the Cheviot Estate, totalled £809,566; loans to local bodies totalled £840,500, which paid interest. Other items were land improvement, £493,750; Bank of New Zealand, preferred shares, £500,000; New Zealand Consols, £356,185; district railways, £47,000; total, £3,790,----451. This money was returning a large amount of interest. The Kaihou railway cost £47,000, but paid !£5 7/2 per hundred interest formerly, and now returned £11 18/ per cent. That £47,000 was part of the increased debt on which the Government paid 3J to 4 per cent. They were making a considerable profit upon the CUSTOMS DUTIES. Customs duties produced increased revenue, and it was stated that this was the result of increased taxation upon necessaries of life. During 20 months since alteration of the tariff, the increase in duties was £155,581, and decrease from reduced rates, [£116,852, making the net increase, fcC38,749. The decrease on tea alone Was £65,838; On fencing wire, £22,----421. The increase on beer, £8,162; spirits, £27,526; cigarettes and tobacco, £3,787; total, £39,525. These increases were due to increased consumption, and the decreases were due to alteration of the tariff. There was evidently a greater number of consumers in the colony. RAILWAY DEPARTMENT. The railways department employed about 5,000 people, and the expenditure through his hands totalled nearly £1,000,000. A reduction of the freight on coal of sixpence a ton paeant a decreased return of .£20,000.

throughout the colony. When people asked for a reduction of one item they did not consider the result, to the colony as a whole. 'He received a good deal of gratuitous advice regarding railway management, some reasonable and some childish. Concessions must be general to be fair. The Hawera Council passed a resolution i asking that the mail trains be de- | layed to allow passengers to exchange greetings. That was a sample of what was done solely by a borough council. One paper referred to it. as" 'STOPPING TRAINS TO RUB NOSES.' One difficulty was getting a time table that suited one district, as it did not satisfy another. Railways could never compete with buses within a radius of five miles, nor with steamers, excepting for goods. The State must charge universal rates. Men who paid thousands per annum for freight could not get goods carried cheaper than the man who sent one ton. Tire question was frequently asked why various goods should be charged differently, instead of pe.ttruck load. The explanation was simple: Sugar paid 18/ per ton; road metal 4/6 ton. To charge both equal meant road metal paying 11/0 petton and. resulting in no roads being made, consequently higher freights were charged on goods capable of paying. Such things as chaff, metal, and firewood were rated as low as possible. RAILWAY SURPLUS. "An impression prevailed that when the. railway had a surplus it could do all sorts ol: work. The. surplus was only au increase of revenue over the year's estimated expenditure. The railways were not paying more than 3} per cent, on £10,000,000 borrowed for construction at an average rate of 41 per cent., so the colony must find the oilier one per cent. Last year that meant that £160,000 had to lie found out of the. Consolidated Fund. OPENING NEW LINES. Last year Parliament made provision oi £200,000 for opening new lines. This year he expected £100,----000. It was 'stated that the railways were starved lo make a surplus, but the statement was untrue. In 189-1 and 1.895 the sum of £272,000 was expended for maintenance; in IS'Jfl it reached £283,000; in 1897 if amounted to £301,000; in ISO? to 189S it. totalled £327,000, showing that the lines were, not neglected. The expenditure on rolling stock showed a similar increase. ABNORMAL INCREASE IN TRAFFIC. The traffic! increase was simply astounding during the last few years, and it was due to the introduction of cheap money and reductions in freight. At holiday time the Department could not find carriages enough. The. introduction of the penny-a-mile system paid admirably. Since the Government had taken over control of the railways passenger I raffle had in- i creased nearly a million and a qtinr-o tor. Other increases were: —Parcels, 8(5,000; cattle, 5.5.55; sheep, 8.'!f,,i;71; chaff and lime, -10,251 tons; timber, I 114,425 tons; grain, 38,892 tons; nierI chandise, 87.102 tons: minerals, 190.930 tons, making a total tonnage of 409,970, with an increased revenue of £225,000, and increased expenditure for maintenance of lines, £55,----209: increased maintenance rolling | stock. £27,370; all due to reduction of rates and freights. He hoped to make further reductions on produce j Twelve engines were now in course I of construction, and they were also j importing engines from England and j America, for which Parliament bad found £30,000. A healthy sign was j that more rolling stock was required. ' YAILL'S SYSTEM. j Referring to Yaile's system, Mr Cadman objected to Mr Yaile insinit- j ating that the beads of departments opposed the scheme because it. affected their oilicts. Any man of ordinary intellect could lay out a scheme to increase returns, but who was to pay j the cost. Two years ago he proposed j that Mr Yaile be called to Wellington j to give evidence so that the public, after seeing both sides of the case, could judge personally. He would not take the responsibility of instituting the system. LIGHT RAILWAYS. A good deal was said about, light railways. Ue was not prepared to advocate railways any lighter or narrower in gauge than at present New Zealand lines. Mr Cadman read a letter from Mr Yaile suggesting the. construction of a series of light rail- I ways to complete the railway system, j reducing expenditure by £970,000. If] he (Mr Cadman) thought it could be | done, he would like it, but he was convinced it would be a great mistake. The hills to be climbed by these^railways meant having weight, fo get. loads up. At Rotorua an engine could only take 40 tons. What would light railways do there? A million spent on light railways would be a great, mistake. Air Yaile objected to differential rating, contending that it was meant to plunder the public. Mr Vaile also referred to timber being carried cheaper from Manuka to Paeroa. Mr Cadman said Paeroa and Tc Aroha were booming. Mr Kusab wrote stating that cheaper rates would permit the sending of timber, competing with the mills down the river paying no freight, and as a result the revenue from freight decreased to the extent of £1,175 by reducing the rate to 2/0, timber being carried on trucks that would be returned empty from Rotorua. Most of the trouble regarding the pace of the railways was from through passengers, but it was the intermediate traffic that made the revenue. Paeroa wanted a night train to Auckland, which meant over £15,000 a year. The through passengers from Auckland to Paeroa only averaged five per day, including season rates.

MINLNG MATTERS

In mining matters they were told that legislation was driving capital away. The Government stopped the sale of royal metals, and. declined to sell freehold mining properties. The legislation of the colony got a good deal of blame, for things it was not responsible for. The question of rents was hard to deal with. He had remitted rents when advised by local bodies, but the Auditor and Comp-troller-General pointed out that it was illegal. Mr Cadman believed it would be a better plan to let local bodies collect rents, lie wished more, lads competed for mining scholarships, as they carried three years tuition at the Otago University. The Government had done a good deal fo assist schools of mines, also to develop the Thames deep levels. He considered the people here should DO MORE PROSPECTING. Under certain regulations prospectors could get assistance from the Government if they would only accept it. He proposed to erect three small prospecting batteries in outside districts, where big companies were not likely to build mills. The Government had purchased, cyanide rights for £10,000 and spent £1,500 in the law process. It was now avail-

able at 1 to 21 per cent., instead of 7 to .10 per cent. The Government already bad received for the use of the patent £700 or £800 for the quarter ended March 31st. ROADS TO GOLDFIELDS. Large sums had been expended on roads to gold fields. The Thames never before had so much Government money spent in it. Ohinerutiri had £7,000 in grants and. subsidies, and £3,770 was since authorised. DUTY ON MACHINERY. A great outcry was made, about tho duty on machinery, lie was not very sweet about faking off this. duty. There was nothing to hinder much of the machinery being made in the colony. GOLDFIELDS WATER SUPPLY. Respecting water supply for goldfield townships, Government engineers were already preparing reports re the best means of supplying water. ABOLITION Ol*1 GOLD DUTY. The question of the abolition of gold duties was strongly urged by foreign companies, but what would the public bodies do? Iv the South the duty avus abolished, but property was rated. Objectors suggested that they charge a fixed penny per en rat. Under such a system Ohinenuiriwould have lost in I'bOl. £893 mul in 1897 £1,531. He considered gold should bo refined in the colony. Arrangements were, made with the Kauri Timber Co. fo acquire their land for mining purposes where, it was denuded of timber at £I. per acre rental. Already 18,500 acres were acquired, and peggers' lute rests were protected, lie could fairly claim that the mining industry had not been neglected. True, there was a slump, but so there was in the Transvaal and in Western Australia. ADVANCES TO SETTLERS. Mr Cadman quoted .statistics fo prove the value, of the Advances to Settlers Act. To May II they had received 7,800 applications for ' £2,700,00(1, and £I, 424,000 was lent. The interest and principal repaid totalled £85,000, and, deducting principal, the result was a profit of C 15,000 per annum. That spoke well for the scheme. UNIMPROVED VALUES. Rating on unimproved value he considered a good Act. A man should not be rated on his improvements. If the system was good for ihe Stale it, should also be the same fur local bodies. OLD AGE PENSIONS. lie did not see why old age pensions could not also come out of tin- Consolidated Fund the same as the £34,000 now paid to civil servants, LIBERAL PARTY. The Liberal Party -was now in its eighth year of office, yet their policy was noi ai lacked as a whole by ihe Opposition. Some of the labour bodies, on the other band, roeouinienI ded the format ion of a separate party. That-did noi point i<> too much labour legislation. There was reason in aithings. The Parlianunt's whole time could not be devoted, to labour mutters. The present, (iiivernment had dor,: its fair share of labout legislation. SOUND PIN ANTE. Ever since the party came iff to power the;,- had a surplus, which showed that the finances of the country wen- properly cared for. Over v j million of money was taken from the Consolidated Funds for general works, I and £ 140,000 of Hunting debt was paid j off. The present Ministry had eer- { tainly a record reign. Our bonds in | England were higher than ever before, i and the Premier was one of the j strongest men in the country, it was J only a'question of time when a change iof Government must, come. Then the ! working classes would realise what the. present Government had done for them, and afterwards the Premier would return to power with a party Hint would ant.oi.iish even his friends. | Mr Cridrnati's speech lasted two J hours and a half, A vote of thanks ! and confidence was accorded Mr ("adman. A vote of confidence in the Government was also passed. The Hon. A. ■'. Cadman \vn«t tendered a banquet at Te Aroha by the local fool - ball club'; of which he is patron, on May 21th, Mr V. Pavitt preided, the vice-chair being occupied by Mr \V. 11. llerries, M.11.E. In propoMitg the toast of " our patron, the Hon. A. ,1 • ('adman,'.' Mr llernes said thai he was particularly I pleased, as an Opposition member, to pro I pose the toast. It gave the opportunity of j testifying to the high personal regard i which he had for Mr Cad us an, ami so lone j as they had Ministers of hi.., calibre, there need be no fear for the welfare of the colony, The toast of "the Mining Industry," coupled with the "names of the Rev. Joseph Campbell and Mr ,1. \V. Walker, was also proposed. Mr (-nuipLcll, in responding, said that whatever might be the future of the milling industry j there was a bright prospect in view for Te Aroha. After many months of anxious care and hard work, lie had at last made a .start with his battery and he was convinced of the ability of his process to overcome the difficulty with refractory ones.