ADDRESS TO CONSTITUENTS.

Press, Volume XXXI, Issue 4263, 28 March 1879, Page 3

ADDRESS TO CONSTITUENTS.

MB WASON AT ABHBTTBTON.

[By Tblzgbaph ] fFBou oxra. spzciaz. bbpobteb.J AeHBiTBToy, March 27. M> 3. C. Wsson, the member for Oolevidge, addressed hie constituents at the Town Hall this ereticg. Owing to the heavy rain fallmg there wu cot a large attendance. The Major, Mr T. Bullock, occupied the chair, on the motion cf Mr J. Ward. The Chairman brufly introduced the object of the meeting. Hβ regretted that 10 few woe present, bat no doubt the threshing epßn&oss bad kept many away in the country. Hβ would now ask Mr Wason to address them. Mr Waton esid that he knew the very great faeoßVesiecce it was to settlers to com* in from long distances. He thought that no member for a large country district like this eonld do better than criticise the action of the Qoreznmrnt acd Sir G. Grey. Lwt year &ey were honored by a visit from Sir O-. Grey, who gave them a picture of the political disadvantages under -which they laboured, aad the iseacures he proposed for their relief. Si? George Grey eloquently pointed out that the people were under-represented, that the eksoen of members should be on the basis of {Mgmiatioa, and the iniquity of the conduct to them of the large landholder!, who bad forty-fire votes to other people's fire. They ctrnsd a rote of confidence in Sir G. Grey and hi* Government, and it now beOEM necessary for them to say whether list eecfidrace was justified. Some fesr months back Sir Q-. Grey had addrtwed his constituents at the Thames, and h*d spoken to the colony at large. He (Mr Wataa) proposed to criticise that speech tosjghtfieeaßse the words of Sir George Grey rae the words of the first colonist in (he eeboy, a&d hence they were worthy of attention ifc the hands of their members. The very first thing the Premier referred to was the bests**, conferred by him on his especial •Udoaik to fi» detriment of the other parts ci&snlegr. This was simply; logrolling. So* ttSf'tSf but he took mth. him bis Mhdtiu of Public Works ard turned the . tti of a railway which was n*raf.«aboKsed, and which would never be laud of, except to the disgrace of the p*6t& w£o took pert in it. He (KrWasor.) mijßtjiHi aa Veil hare coma to Ashburton sal toned the first sod of a railway to imciso, The railway of winch the Premier hid tamed the first sod wae not the one asthorised br the Assembly, which was to the Wsik&to. Then there was the Tspanni job, of fbk railway tns only a second Tapanui }ob. Then there was another job, the direct ste&m eommunicaticn mth England. If the (JoTercmtrtt were sllcwed to ipend the money & &c people in this way, they iad no occasion for at aIL They reed only hire a dictator, and lire quietly under hie idga. Sβ soon as they parted with the powef of the perte they at once parted vrith the ispaoß/of' representatiTe ; At fee jsiia of the session the Minister; for Public Worit introduced Ills motion fora direct sieun serrice. All that he wanted was to hare the mattec nodes di«sus»on in corn* Blitt«e,aßd when this was done he »aid that mttter not bees received with that amount cf cocrideratias that he expected, he moved to report progress. Tfce members, howerer, did oot appear to see this, snd it was moved that the chairman leaTe the chair. Mr Maeeadrew then accepted it by moTing the resolution that the chairman k&ye the chair, thus tSgstmng the motion he Wtiaelf h&d brought iewD. Well, what was the result? Why, tissi some few weeks after the House bid fees prorogued, they found Mr M«esndrew S" communication with Metars G&Xbr&ith. Bess. &s to direct steam communication, tad in a few days .the Stad Haarlem Woruld be on their chorea; This was another sistaie of the GoverarnsEt for baying support, and wss an absolute deviation from the -srill of the people at expressedby tiesr xepre«eat*tiTes, and opposed to thefeeliugs of the Bcrcse. The Premier then went oniw misrepresent th* Osoiterbury in respect to fee Land-BilL He toi& that be George Qrej) had been dop.ired of his right of disttjSaizcm. L itt time he 'addressed fiiem he (B?Wason) had explained the matter. Sir <iearge Grey bad applied fa* a dissolution, bat the Governor had refused it because Sj&oorfte could sot prore that he had a aaptity. The Atkinson Government bad beea duplared by Mr disooTeririg tiai the steamsbip Lana had not been disposed oftositaateg*, and that they were living at *koo£ £2000 per diem over their income. 3S* Atkinson Govemmeni went out, and « Xamaeb, so doubt, having made Ms •esagemeat*, ?i"«V> over fche reLis to Sir G. Hew many who had gone over to Mr ***•*&, wh«n they found that it wasinte&i to pot Sir G. Grey into power, dethe Ministry arid formed another party. ■•Sβ Qoveranient were then in a minority, and *PpSed to the Gorercoar for a dissolution, I j£a& wu rtfused, for the very good reason Miiajtry had not a majority. He "**Sier*l tiiftt the people of tie colony owed of gratitude to the Marquis of Sor'■jSSj' for the stand he had taken m this *ie«r,'«nd he regretted that the repreeentajgl gLibe" old conntry had been treated so <*™wsrt«ra*!y as he had t-een by the MTrastry. G. Gwy had referred to theinjyfce of Isxge pTopertT'bolders hsving »J ■*JTn*e»iotbe«uniies. Would it be fair hs.d large interests at stake at the mercy of carpet baggers who •**■ owe to-dsy aad gone to-morrow ? It J* 1 <8&J fair, he said, that property should *J* a fsir share. Sir Geo. Grey had consystem of plural Toting in the ?**si, bat he bad not taken the right -*~g? a* Prenner to Kawdr it. Hβ simply hirnnaf to rasAing aid railing. They Sawusnbmd k ow a n necl a&nt flic Bin asd how eloqurat ho tree about -g* away cf the 27,000 who iswe- d.sSg*ai»d. £ct what, had Le done* The jT-*—t** io we* wtpported by the M » feir end cqatable BUL Tm> Estonijh lie Go\ emment. Saddesiy UiLbC 1 ' *! *■* foucd that fome of the Korih Islsajdweulißn* Iβ SSgthethimib of Sit Geo. Grey thwttgh :32**">te». H* eaia introducwi st«Uhftf interests of electors ||ir[~P*k Slaad trm handed ever Tftti *3Ja, wotse tnas'&is, to PsJteha:

Maoris, who were won* than savagek The clause wm carried in the Lower means which caused oce 6T the supporters of the Government ~Xo.say that h* hit it impossible to contftrOe to rapport the" Govern-' ment and reUin hi* self-refpect. Then Sir G. Grey wenjt on to descant upon tha Land Tax BilL Hβ only wished that they had before them the iniquitous results of that"BilL Sir George Grey said that the Bill proposed to rate every man according as his property grew. That was exactly what the Bill did not do, though this should be the basis of ell taxation. The Bill enacted that, no matter what revenue they might bare, if they had land to the value of £500 tlcj should be subjected to » ate. It simply meant that the great mass of the people shotld tax these who were a step higher in the sooul ladder. This he said would lead to anarchy, end the withdrawal of capital from tie counlrv. Hβ asked them if the principle of the Kil was feir* Who were the largest employers of labor? Tha larger farmers of the country. And yet they were by this Bill rushed upon as a peetQe&tial nuisance, and only fit to he taxed heavily. Hβ asked them what would be the fa! ore of Hie colony if a certain class were to be ground down by such a detpot as the Premier had proved himself to be. They were all dependent on each oth*r, and it wae only in barbarous countries where the people each lived under their- own fig tree, and haTe each their own fig leaf around their waist, that it was different. Each class was thus dependent on each other, and anything that affected one affected all. Ibis was a reasonable which he felt would be endorsed by all the settlers of tbit country. It was absolutely unfair, and no boon to the working class, to exempt them from this tax. They would do much better to pay their mite than crush another data. The Premier had attempted to draw an analogy with the income tax, but this did not apply. A man might be receiving £100,000 a year, and yet because he bad not land he would not pay more than he hard-working settler. (Cheers.) He was in faTor of direct taxation, because he felt sure that the people wonld take more interest in the politics of tie country, and in the representatires selected if they had to contribute directly out of their iucome. Besides it was not fair to take one description of property only, and that land. They should tax a man's buildings, &j. Again, Sir G. Grey twitted them with haying wished to tax improTemenfcs. Well,"they did so because the wealthy settler, who had got all his improvement* around him, was in a- better position than the struggling settler, who was just starting in life. That was the reason why they wanted to tax improvement. A man who boilt a magnificent house alongside the man who had built a sod whare paid no more or as much as his poor, neighbor. Sir G. Grey had said that there were people holding millions ef acres of land who wished to tax the farmers of the colony, so that their farms might fall into their hands. Was this a proper-remark for the Premier of the colony to make ? This was not true, and was only used by the Premier to , appeal to the worst passions of human nature. Why the father of lies himself oould not hare pat the matter in a more specious form. Beferenoe had been made to the "unearned increments" Did any one know what was intended? That land which remained unimpreyed increased in ralue was no doubt the oase in some parte of the colony, whilst in others the land had feHen in value. The Colonial Treasurer had stated that this unearned increment should be taxed. Well, how hare they carried this oat t The Government proposed that the tenant of Maori lands should pay the tax, that tenants from the Grown though not interested, should de so. Then he asked where wae this unearned increment ? Hβ said it exitted nowhere except in the distorted imagination of the Colonial Treasurer. Then the Premier spoke of the Legislative Council. Well, his (Mr Wason's) opinion was that this body deserved the thanks of the colony for their actions. They ignored party politics, and the only fervour that existed was when a corrupt and venal Government nominated persons who were not as fit for the office as many of the gentlemen who were passed over. He thought they might go a great deal further and fare worse if they attempted a charge. There had been a change from provincialism to centralism, and perhaps this might account for the events of the past two years. Iv almost everyduiriefc the Counties Aot wee now at work. J&f- jgreed with Major Atkinson that they oould not afford the time to keep on discussing minor questions. So far as the electing of the Legislative Council west, if they created a separate electorate, they would be really setting class against class. It was necessary where millions of money were involved that they should have a body like the Legislative Council, free from popular prejudice, to act as a revising body. If Sir George Grey, instead of sailing'like an old fish wife as he did, brought down legislation oa these matters whioh he railed against, the electors weuld oonsider ifc~ The next burning question was the election of a Governor. He held that no Parliament would decide this question: It must be the people:- ' If they were going to elect their Goverhoji if they were going to settle, who, was" to- be. the ~future President of the future ' How Zealand Republic, they would out the lines which bound them to the glorious mother oountry. Instead of being oonnected -with that grand old country they would wish to copy one of the petty South; Asserioan republics, who elected the 6teeident over them one year and shot him the next. [Cheers/] Great Britain might have treated them somewhat xougbly, but no more than others. Hβ said this, that they must carefully consider the matter. The old country was over-populated, and no country could be prosperous where there were more men than masters. They were at this moment on the eve of depression, suffering from-ilar lack of-xeady money.- There was;, no wjin£ real downright want, for any one, who would work. Then there was no bar to the continued prosperity oC this country. •'■ We oould lio with many cf the men of Great Britain, and a portion of her money too.' Their "great industries would afford employment for thousands, aye millions, and when they were asked to elect their own Governor, they would, he felt sure, say that they would still remain part of the, Great Bririlii Ihnpire and true to their flag. [Cheers.] The speeches of the members of Government contained a statement that there wa» no Opposition, nor a leader of it. There was an Opposition, and a very strong one, to Sir George Grey's Government, not only in the House, but in the country. The ground of the Opposition was not to get tie Government out of office. It was to keep them in. The Government had been certainly pledged to the country, and it was important that they should have the : opportunity of knowing that they intended to carry their pledges out. They had not carried out a single pledge which had been gives, and then the Opposition had played the cards- of the constituencies. How let them look at the question of representation. Sir George Grey had punted the power exercised by -wealthy men over an election, and promised to bring:; in legation to /gure every man, woman, and child, a chance of voting. The Government themselves voted against a motion to brings in a Bill for redistribution of seats. But what was the reason Why, the census had coma out, and it was seen that Canterbury would be entitled to five or six more seats. They were greatly under-represented now, particularly that large district. [Hear, hear.] The Government hava to deal with. thie_iiue»tion_or.r*tire from their seats. After very careful consideration he had come to the conclusion that the fairest baas to be taken for a redistribution of seats would be population. JCtietr*.! They .should not have small and insignificant boroughs senaihga3 many «preeentatives as a community with a large population. FHear, Therefore, he thought that the best basis on on which to Bx wprasentotion was population under &c efreumetances of the colony. It;was, he contended, utter humbug for anyone to stand up and say that he voted j according to his.conscience. JMembers who* joined a party wire obliged to sink personal conscience and vote" for the party. Hβ said that tie independent members were men who ran with *he hare and hunted with the hound*.' Xh the' colony the Opposition had to conciliate these members, ard had d«a»:so with gosd result* to the colony. Government were about to proI pose the remission of the duty on grain, leasing the doty on timber., JEhe Opposition, with *fa* ff/ynniYnncfl a.T»i inde? geadfpt. members, forced .the Government to not the |forfh and Sosath cfi an equal footing ta fiis scatter. mother point *was as to the Beer Bill. This was one of the greatest points in*~Qie *flttWti/»tifl statement of the Colonial ißreasuwr: . 'Where was that Bill now-tita*ii%uitoa»tßMl ?? They had been strong enough to throw tkat out. Why ask then where tirae the ? . Where again wast -tjie 'Oampejiioa*; Bill ? They* hid been strong'—enough to relegate

Ie the Limbo of thrown out BiL't\y The "provisions„of the .Bill ware that-any-}f number of persons who combined together to i- develop the; natural industries of the colony' i- were taxed.' Tbey had been advised that the ir Opposition would have played their cards d better by leaving the Government to carry d their Bills. Would they. have been doing I. their duty to the country to allow such taxad tion as this, which could only exist in the y minds of the Government ? He said Ho, and d that it was better tb keep a venal Government 11 in power than to do this. As to education, ir he was glad to say that Mr Curtis' d BiU, which proposed to restore denominate tionalism, had been thrown out, and he hoped ,t that any further attempt in this direction c would be defeated. He should be very happy -. to answer ray questions. He remarked that c private affairs of a very urgent nature, called c him away to the old country, and it would s therefore devolve upon them very shortly to f elect another representative for the con- . stituency. He had felt very much honored at ■ the trust they had reposed in him, and though 1 it was a tad thing for any one to say farewell, c he trusted that at no distant date he would be > able to return to take an active part in matters s which concerned them and the whole colony. r [Cheers.] j Tbe Mayor alluded to the regret felt at Mr i Wason's departure. • Mr L?gett asked Mr Wason how it was that t under the constitutional Government of New . Zealand, the Government could enter into fc such contracts as the Thames-Waikato rail way and Tapanui job? Could not the r House of Bepresentatives stop it ? i Mr Wason said that it was always a moot ■ point whether the contract for the Tapanui r job hod been signed before or after the meeti ing of the House. He could not explain to Mr Legett how it was that such gross mii justice should be done, but the House Was all ; powerful. It was the duty of their representatives to bring the-e matters before the constituents. All he could say was that, if the Mid-try defied the people like this, the only course was to remove them. He said that they used in legal form a position which they had usurped and obtained by false pretences. Mr Caiee asked how was it New Zealand was so often insulted by the stoppage of surveys, in the North Island ? Mr Wason said that it was open to him to make a great deal of capital out of this, but he had refrained because the question was of such vast importance. Iv the North Island the settlements were remarkably sparse. Sir* , Donald McLean bad kept these disturbances j down by means of the " give and take policy.'* i They had all cause to regret the loss of Sir 1 < Donald; but it was hoped fondly that with \ the advent of Sir George Grey all these Maori i troubles would cease, but the country, .now - saw on what straws, what reeds, they depended . when they trusted in Sir George Grey. The - Maoris, whatever they might be, were no, * fools. He could not conceal from himself <] tbat they were on the verge of a volcano, i There was a Maori who was twitted with \ having a down on Sir G. Grey. He replied tbat Sir George Grey was like a bullook in a yard. He (the Native) was the man who had J hold of a rope round his horns. Every round ° brought him hearer the end, and ultimately £ said he " I shall have Sir George Grey in the . dust." [Cheers.] The fact was Sir George ■* Grey and his Government had alternately _ cajoled and threatened, and the result was a that the Premier of this colony was under the -j thumb of the Maoris. They should not treat _ the Maori question as a party one j bnt they n had to consider two cases, whether they 1 should oarry out Sir Donald MoLean's policy si of conciliation, or carry on a war of extermi- c] nation. The latter could not be carried on, B l but he thought they should make terms. * Tbe Maori was no fool, and could understand " threat* or kindness, but not a mixture of g both. B( 'In reply to a question from Mr Elder, Mr s Wason said he should go home before next w eertion. It Mr Cates asked Mr Wason whether the si Government intended to borrow any more w money to oarry them over this crisis. ■* Mr Wason said he did not think the Government could at present borrow any money. He thought that the Home Government m should be called upon to contribute to the cost of immigration and not leave it wholly p( on the colony. Mr E. Saunders regretted very greatly that Mr Wason was about to leave them. He should like to ask Mr Wason whether, the action of the Government in tinkering with their constitution had brought on the orisis they were now condemning. He begged now 2l to propose a vote of thanks to Mr Wason & for his address that evening. Mr Steele seconded the motion, which was S< carried unanimously, and with acclamation. Mr Waaon briefly acknowledged the vote of thanks, thanking the electors of the district for the confidence they had reposed in him B for so long a period. B A vote of thanks to the Mayor concluded the meeting. , «