EVENING SITTING.

Press, Volume L, Issue 8534, 14 July 1893, Page 5

EVENING SITTING.

The Honse resumed at 7.30 p. m. Mr AUCKLAND continued hia remarks. He said he should oppose as strongly as he could the proposal t? hand over the railways to the Government. He expressed himself as altogether opposed to the abolition of all exemptions on improvements. The whole of the Government taxation was tending in the wrong ■• direction. There should be no exemption, and-every man should be made to pay according to his ability. Then as to the magnificent surplus they had heard so much about. During the late election contest in Wanganui it was posted on every telegraph post that the Government intended to relieve the poor working man out Of this surplus, but What relief had been given? They had spent the surplus oa co-operative works. The exemption of improvements was a sop to the towns against the country.

Mr HUTCHISON said the method of debate in the House must be degrading, for they had Seen one of the Opposition leaders challenging the Premier of the. colony on a matter of fact, and the Premier sat silent. The Premier made a statement in Aucklaud which he knew would be challenged in the House, and which actually Was challenged, but, beyond an occasional interruption, no notice was taken- of the challenge. He remembered the time- when the Premier would have sprung from his seat to repel such a challenge as that issued by Sir Joan Hall the previous night, but matters were managed differently now-a-days. He detailed the circumstance in 1879, to which Sir John Hall had referred in his defence of Sir H. Atkinson from Mr Seddon's attack, and said the colony at that time was in such a serious condition that its credit hung on a telegraph wire. It was, therefore, to his (Mr Hutchison's) mind, most unfortunate for the present Premier to have referred, to that period of the colony's history. Referring to the present surplus, he wished to say the Premier should not make too much" of it, as surpluses were proverbially uncertain. The expression "bogus liabilities*' which Mr Seddon had referred to in Auckland was scarcely becoming iv a Premier of the colony, although perhaps good enough for the member for Kumara. He censured the Government for not having removed some of the taxation from the necessaries of life, and said no party had ever a better opportunity of doing so, as they had the most magnificent majority ever possessed by any Government that yet held office in the colony. They bad relieved people from taxation who could well afford to pay it, but they had not relieved the great mass of the people whom they professed to have under their particular care, and who returned then* to power. After referring at some length to the working of the land and income tax, he pointed out that there was a deficit of .330,000 in the revenue expected from the income tax, but a greater excess on the land tax than was derived from the property tax. He considered it most disastrous that land should be penalised in this manner. Land had to bear lour times the taxation of any other kind of property and yet land was almost the sole producer of the wealth of the colony. The Government proposed to spend -3250,000 on public works this year. He contended that they should have all the details of this expenditure before them before they granted supplies to her Majesty. Instead of waiting until the last day or two of the session for those details it would only be proper to have those details on the table before they passed the estimates. He proceeded to strongly attack the co-operative system of labour, which, he said, elevated those who were in need of relief to a position above the ordinary tvorkingman,and therefore pauperised the working classes. He criticised the working of the system', and said the public works of the colony were being carried on at 25 per cent, more cost than by ordinary work. The Treasurer was to becongratulatedon the facility with which he hod prepared the Statement, but it was time for tho colony to realise its position. The Ministry was a vety different one from what it was last session, and that being so it was questionable whether Ministers were justified in asking them to repose confidence ia them. They found ths Government was daily being* reduced. As for the latest defection, Mr Cadman, they would probably not get a man more respected than he was on all sides of the House. The Mini.try were the same as sat on the Treasury benches last year minus one. It might be possible that the brilliant talents and resourceful tact of the late Premier existed only to obscure similar qualities in some of his colleagues, but who it was who possessed those qualities was not yet evident. It was a profound secret, and the late Premier himself did not appear to be able to discover it, for Whan it was deplorably evident that he would no longer oe able to meet the House another hon. gentleman who had ta.en a great part in the affairs of the -colony was constrained to offer himself as a candidate for a seat far removed from bis ordinary walks of life, and coming to the House he now simply dwarfed every man on the Government Benches, and yet they were expected to support a party absolutely beheaded of all the ability necessary to carry on its affairs. While they saw the one'hon. gentleman who came on' as the other unfortunately ' went out, they found him sittiog on the back Benches. He. maintained that Sir R. Stout had responsibilities to the colony which would not permit him to remaiu on those back benches.'...

Mr HOGG strongly, defended the cooperative system of labour, and claimed that it would be the means of doing away with the middleman and put the profits in the pockets of men who did the work. He questioned, however, whether, the men on those works were not underpaid, and he knew of some cases where they were not paid fall t wages. He warjily praised the Financial Statement, and said it showed that the finances of the colony were in a sound and healthy condition. He supported the ' abolition of the tax on Improvements, and said it would be a greater reliei to the country than to the towns. He spoke at some length on the necessity of -the: Government -lendieg money to small settlers oa the security oi their improvements. These settlers were doing work, which would last for some fcimo. Private money lenders would not accspt their security, but the authors of that security (the Government) refused to advance them any money upon it. . , Mr EARNSHAW thought thsy siiouM all Mr Ward on - manner in which bacT tak&Q up the work of tho late John Ball-ace, as h» had shown decision of character that proved be would be a worthy successor to their late chief. He sincerely regretted that the Premier should have ssen hia way todraadows the staunches* seotion of his party,~ in the 'way he bad paadtred to the brewing interest in the colony. He referred to the deputation from the te—par—is*

party that rsoanUy waited on tho P«__ltn whioh were received courteously. A growers' deputation then waited on the Premier aad taught him a lesson with re* spect to "tied houses." Referring to ths present debate on thaPinaocial Statement, he censored the Government for allowing members who had no particular position ia the House to lead off instead of following tha usual course by allowing the leader of jof the Opposition to do so, although Mr ! Rolieston had requested an adjournment of ; the debate. The consequence of this was ! that ihe discussion on tho liquor traffic was ! postponed, but if the Government thought I this was an end of the matter they wert | very much mistakes. He asserted ibat ! the Way the Government had burked | this question of social reform was a disgrace to them. As to his own po.itiou. he could not leave his party : although he and others had been dragged ! down to the gutter, but ho had always been a Radical, and therefore be should for the rest of the session not act the part of a blind buffer and Would m_k* one to force the Government to take up this question of internal reform. He was not sent to the House to support those seven men oa tho Treasury benches. He was sent) to support prill* oiples, and when the Government deputed from those principles he did not ieel bound to alter his views. With respect to the Financial Statement ho was not going to deal with it, as he frankly confessed he was not able, asd apparently no one on the Government si-is had the ability to do so. Respecting the land question, he felt that the Liberal Government was jnst as anxious to dispose of laud for cash as other Governments, but he hoped the day would come when no more, land for cash would be parted with. He considered good work was done by the Labour Bureau. As tothe purchase of Cheriot.hobad already stated he did not think it wire of the Government to purchase land. If the Goverumans were going to part with the fee simple of this land, then they might as well not have purchased it at all. He approved of tbe co-operative system of labour, but thought it premature to exempt iroprora*. men is from taxation. He 1 egret Ud the Government had not brought down their tariff proposals this session, aud gone to tho country on them. Mr MOORE moved the adjournment of \fche debate.. Agreed to, and the House rose at 12.2$ | a. in.