ELECTION BREEZES.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 247, 17 October 1919, Page 5

ELECTION BREEZES.

BLOWN IN PARLIAMENT. A MEAT TRUST ALLBG'ATION. (By Telegraph.—Partlwnenitarj- Reporter.) WELLINGTON, Thursday. Some suggestion of the coming conflict come before the attention of Parliament to-day when Mr. Pearee (Patea), called the Premier's attention to a statement made by the Liberal candidate for Raglan, Mr. Campbell Johnson, that the American Meat Trust l»ad been operating in New Zealand for some time andj had received Government as«istan"e as well as accommodation to the extent of two millions, though the Government! had refused to believe it, and concealed i the faict. Mr. Pearce suggested that in] face of thk statern&nt and the fact that; last session the Government passed legie-j lation for licensing exporters of meat, the Premier nrigbt make a statement. He understood the A-rnwrar Company had been refused an export license. Mr. Maaeey replied that reference to ktat session's legislation was correct. The Government had tried to make it difficult if not impossible for the meat tniate to obtain a looting in New Zealand. Evidently this candidate was not aware of -wljat had been done. The suggestion that the Bank of JTe\V Zealand had advanced two millions to the meat trust -would 'hare its arnm reftijal on the face of it. The whole "thing was a tissue of falsehoods and he could not nnderstand the candidate making euch statements.

Mt. Vigor Brown: They have been trading here for yeare tinder other people's names.

Mr. Masscy: Yes, but we have tried to make it inrposeible for them to trade. The Armour Company was refused a licence.

Mr. Brown: He gete his friend to take one.

Mr. Massey: Exactly. I know whathas been going on, and there w'dl tie rewo-l lations about the meat trust before fhe next few weeks. He added ths.t when he was in London, Armours wanted to take over the surplus meat from the British Government, and he was a sired to consent to a representative of that Srtn, but he refused, thoug-h the application was made over and over again. Xew Zealand could keep out the meat trust if the people assisted the Government.

Sir Joseph Ward agreed wi-tk the Premier that the statements were not in accordance with the facts. He also very much doubted the afceursrey of the statement about the Bank of New Zealand, but he wished to ask the Leader of the House if it wae intended to introduce from time to time oxpres&ions of opinion from mn contesting seats, because if this wae done he was afraid there wouhd be a great many questions of this sort from the Liberal side. He wanted to see the House carry on its business in the ordinary way, ami let the

whole of the candidates fight, the elections fairly. He strongly deprecated the introduction of this does'of controversy into the House.