THE GENERAL ELECTION

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 13250, 19 October 1908, Page 8

THE GENERAL ELECTION

• [Fro.ii ons column -ml a halt to two columns" space is usually devoted io ths iirst eloction address of each candidate. Shcu'd pny candidate require a special report of his tcdress published, this can be arranged fcr as ea anvertiseiUßnt on application to the ilma^er.J THE SELWYN SEAT. MR C. A. C. HARDY AT RAKAIA. Mr C. A. C. Hardy, M.P. for Selwyn, addressed a weil-atfceixk»d mooting of electors at Rakaia on Friday evening. Mr J. Lanibie occupied the chair. Mr Hardy, who was received with applause, expressed his gratification at the large attendance, which showed that tho electors were taking a real interest in. the selection of a representative. Tl_ree years ago, at E_le_mere, he told the electors that he did not intend to offer himself for re-elec-tion, as he thought that he was going into the "sere and yellow leaf." In tho meantime, however, no candidate had come forward who filled his expectations or anticipations, and his friends had invited: him to again offer himself. Coming to the strictly political part of his address, Mr Hardy referred to the importance of .the work done in Parliament by committees, and! stated that during the past session he had acted on five. He liad never professed to bo a talker, but ho had' done his work on tho committees and in the lobbies. Thore was a great deal more done "behind tho scenes" in Parliament than was done before the public in the House. He did not intend to discuss so much what had been done, as to stato what his views wero on matters of public interest. Education in New Zealand' ho would liko to see as perfect as it could be, and it was admitted that- their system was equal to any in the world 1 . It was sometimes said that farm boys did not need to bo well educated, but h*> did not agree with this. The boys &liould pass tho Sixth Standard', go to the High School, and then have a ooairso of technical instruction, which would' be of great value in giving them a knowledge of soils. ''Free from tho State School to tho university" was a popular cry, but he did not believe in it. It was right that children should havo education at High Schools free, and that was practically the law at tho present time. At the High Schools there wero plenty of schoJarships given., and if a boy was fit for tho highest education ho could' win his way to the university. He believed in the bettor payment of teachers*, as the profession should be mado attractive to the brightest* and best of their youth. A teacher's superannuation scheme had been started; audi he ooiirsidered that it would have been sounder fina_ice if tlio Government liad placed £17,000 to the credit of tho fund instead of £5000. In regard to the land question, Mr Hardy said that ho be-ieved. in the promotion of land settlement. He was a freeholder pure and simple (applause), and ho believed that leaseholder- would 'never be content until thoy got tlio freehold. The leasehold vraa a jgood system to assist landless men, hut the option of the freehold should be open to them. The ideal system, in his opinion, was the freehold in smalll holdings. If the Government purchased lands to settle people on them, it was stultifying itself in allowiing thoso people to transfer their holdings to each other. If people were not siatisified with their holdings they should sell out and buy larger ones. The 099 years' lease was a thing of the past, and tho 33 years and €0 years terms, with renewals at valuation, had been instituted. . Ho did not believe in re-valuation at all, as tho industry of the eroergetic man wa.s taxed. Ho approved of the amendment giving Crown tenants tho right to pay off nine-tenths of th© value ot their hoidinigs. This, lie said, had been originally -advocated by Mr Wason, a former member for Selwyn. A lot of people in. the cities wished* to nationalise all the, land' and aboliefa tho freehold. The farmer was already paying more than his fanV share of taxation!, aowl .it was bad policy that that should he so. Tlio speaker referred in hostile terms to tho reservation of 9,000,000 (reduced from 16,000,000) acres of Crown lands as an ©ndowiment. Tho argument that tho revemrue wias to be used for the purposes of old age pensions and education bo described as a perfect piece of bunkum. Tlio State would! always find! money for these purposes, co the ireason giveni for the reservation of the land* was ami insuffiuieait one. Speaking in regard to the land and income tax, Mir Hardy said' that tho land tax was a most unfair orao, while •the income tax was fair, a_ tit was based on profits. The farmer had to pay on his valuation year by yearr, whether he mado littlo or much. He quoted figures to show the injustice under which the own ens cf land were labouring. Tho tax on £10,000 invested ire land was £46 17s sdi, but on £10,000 (returning 10 per cent*.) invested in business, tibo tax was only £17 10s. Other comparative figures were: £50,000, £520 16s Sd (land), £210 (business); £100,000, £1666 (land), £400 (business); £150,000, £3437 (land), £710 (business). It might bo sadd that the heavy tax on land was designed to buret up large estates', but right was right, and wrong was wrong, and the Government which robbed the rich man established the principle that it was right to rob the poor man. Thcso figures were prepared by the Department at his request, and they w-ore certainly astonishing. He wanted equality of taxation, and only wliat was fair and reasonable. Coming to the question of finance, Mr Hardy said that it would be wiser and better to make railways and roads for the backblocks instead of spending enormous sums on elaborate post offices and railway stations. Tho public works policy wasvery good as far as it wont, but it was sometimes an unwise policy.. It would be better to lend money to public bodies such as county councils and road boards. Tho Government, if it borrowed the monov at 4 per cent., could lend it to the local bodies at 3 per cent, with a sinking fund. The money could be spent under Govern- ! ment" supervision, and applications I would bo considered by the local bodies ! on their merits. This would do away with the corruption and voto-buying which was rife under the.present system. The finances of the country were in a very critical state jurt now, and he was inc-in-ed* to think that they had cone rather beyond their tether. Mr Beauchamp, of the Banfc of New Zealand, had preached caution, and there were evidences that he was right. The Advances to Settlors Department was drained dry, and it was well that the people should know of it. He knew of one case in which a loan of £100 had been granted to a settler, but the settler could not draw the money, becausethe Department had not got it. In regard to Customs, iur Hardy said that he believed in a moderate amount of protection for local industries, but be did not believe in too much of it. Protection had run wild in New Zealand. It was instituted in the interests of the towns, not the country, as the towns took united action to secure the granting of its demands. If there wero more free trade there ,would be a good deal les3 heard of trusts and combines, tip condemned the increase in tbe duty on boots, and what he alleged to be the attempted monopolisation of the boot j

industry by a Christchurch trust. Mr Hardy produced Lis already famous boot exhibits, and proceeded to demonstrate that the manufacture .ot "shoddy"' was not unknown iv New Zealantl. He said that tbe increase in the. duty on boots had not secured more wages to the workers, though it had given more work. Everything seemed Ito have gone up, and he blamed . tho trusts, which were making the money A Voice: What about the duty on flour ? Mr Hardy said that there was £1 per ton on flour, and ho voted for it. Ho did not believe that any country should be allowed to* flood tho New Zealand markets with flour, to tbo detriment of the farmers who lived by producing flour. (Applause.) Farmers had often to work for very little money, and in a great many cases where money had been made, the farmer got it by the rise in the value of land, not out of his products. In regard to defence, Mr Hardy said he thought there should be mere sympathy with volunteering than there was at present. Rifle clubs should be encouraged, but forty or fifty thousand riflemen iv tiio country would be a mere rabble uinles-s they were organieed. Two or three systems of diefenoo had boe:i> tried j and the latest scheme, the Council of Defence, had proved disappointing. Some of tho previous schemehad been defeated by political influence, aud unlets tho Defence Council gavo better results than it had itp to the present, a change would' have to bo nir.de. • The '-Second BaHot Act was ono of the absurdities which liad been, mode law. He did not know what the Government were tliinking about. At the first ballot the great interest in tho licensing question would' bring people to the poll, but after that very tew people would care about who represented them in Parliament. Tho avowed object of tlio Act ac to avoid a multiplicity of candidates, but ib had not had that effect. He believed that the Act would bo repealed- before vary long. Dealing with the amendfti-einib of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, Mr Hardy said that Mr Millar's Bill was a most interesting ono, and he believed that tho conciliation clauses would be effective. H© approved' of the Workers' Compensation Act, which ho desoril>edi as a right good' Bill. Mrr Hardy went on to dJeclare that he was strongly in favour of quinquennial Parliaments. He argued ihat under the present system the first year was spent* "breaking in" new members; tne secoi:*l in doing work; and the third' in- talking to oonstituerots through Hansard. He favoured a five-year term of office, or, failing that, certainly four. He condemned tho dairy regulations as absurd in the extreme, and! severely criticised' tho Shearers' Accommodation Bill. The Minister for Labour liad confessed that he was ashamed of the Bill. He (the speaker) thought that it would pay the Dominion to pay Mr Tregear, the Chief of the Labour Department, £500 a year r>en_don, and! fet a practical man in his place. Mr 'regear was a very ndoo man, but he was not sufficiently practical to oan>trol the labour affairs of the oo*u_jtry. In regard to Socialism, he said) that he did' not cairo for vthoso who were in Cathedral Square, but he was afraidl of those in th© House and the Cabinet. He believed that th© Trades- and Labour Councils were not in touch with the unions. They were run. in the interest- of paid secretaries audi men who were trying to get into Parliament through talking in these councils. He quoted tho evidence given by Mr Moriarty before the Labour Bills Committee" in support of this view. Dealing with the coalition proposals made by the Employers' Federation, Mr Hardy said that Le was not taking any of that stuff. The "Government had not resisted Socialism, but the Opposition had stood up against it. He submitted that thero were good reasons for the presence of a strong opposition in Parliament. A Government with too much strength might become too domineering if there was an absence of control and criticism. At the conclusion of his address Mr Hardy was loudly applauded. l In reply to questions. Mr Hardy said that he would prefer Dominion option to local option, but he was not prepared to say that he would support the taking of a colonial vote in addition to the local option poll. The greatest factors for evil were the brewers and syndicatecontrolling tho hotel-keepers. • The price of a hogshead ot beer had not been reduced, even though sugar was half the price it used to bo. He was not in favour of abolishing school committees and giving Education Boards direct control over all matters in the administration of schools. The Chairman asked why native lands were being treated in an exceptional way. There were 7,000,000 acres of land lying waste, but the Government wanted to burst up other estates. Mr Hardy said that £8000. had already been spent on the Native Lands Commission, and more would probably be required, He thought the land should be taken.and lot for the benefit of the natives. The Chairman asked Mr Hardy to explain how the Government could claim to have a surplus of over half a million, when they wero borrowing at the rate of £2,000,000 annually. Mr Hardy said that it was not a bogus surplus. A large proportion of the money was oaid into the Public Works fund. - It would bo better if it wore used to pay the English bondholder, as it would then give an indication that New Zealand was trying to pay off its liabilities. This would inspire more confidence in their finance, and simplify borrowing operations. At present, ho contended, tho surplus was used for the purpose of purchasing votes and buying constituencies. A hearty vote of thanks to Mr Hardy for his address, proposed by Messrs M. J. Liddy and R. Magson, was carried with applause.

NOTES.

Mr R. Heaton Rhodes. M.P., 4 will address the electors of Ellosmere at the Town Hall, Lecston, to-morrow evening at eight o'clock. Mr Greenwood addresses the Hurunui electors at Leithfield to-night. Mr G. W. Forbes, a candidate for Hurunui, speaks at tho Seargill School ■to-night, and at the Waikan Hall tomorrow night. Mr F. Rowell, a candidate for Ellesmcre, speaks at Pigeon B_y to-night, Littlo Akaloa to-morrow, Okains on Wednesday, and Le Bons on Thursday. Mr C. A. C. Hardy, M.P., will address tho Selwyn electors at Fairtcn School to-night; at Lauriston School to-morrow evening: Barrhill School on Wednesday; Highbanfc School on Thursday;" at Methven Hall on Friday, and Lyndhurst Hall on Saturday. Mr K. Moore will address the electors of Kaiapoi at St. Paul's Schoolroom. Papanui, to-night, at Clarkville School on Tuesday, and at Woodend Oddfellows' Hall on Wednesday. -Mr D. Buddo, M.P., a candidate for the Kaiapoi seat, sneaks to-night at Kninpoi Oddfellows' Hall; at Belfast Town Hall to-morrow evening; at Oboka on Wednesday, and at Woodend on Friday evenings. Mr G. JRennie. a candidate for Elle3mcre, speaks at Atsahua to-morrcw evening, at Brookside on Wednesday. Springston on Thursday, and Broadfield en Friday. Dr. Thacker will meet the Lyttelton electors at Mr James's, Ascot Vale, Colombo road, to-night at 7.30, for tbe purpose of forming a committee. Mr George Witty will meet the Riccarton electors at tho Cpper Riccarton Schoolroom this evening at eight o'clock. Mr Geo. Sheat. a candidate for the Riccarton seat, speaks at Upper Riccarton School to-morrow evening, at Sprevdon -School on Wcdnesdav, and Fendalton Sunday School, oh Thursday evening. -' -. I Mr D. G. Sullivan will address the

electors of Avon at- the Marsbiand Hall to-night at eight o'clocK. Mr Clothier will meet tho electors of Hurunui at Waikari on Wednesday, and at Scargill on Thursday evening. Mr James Thorn wm address .'lectors of Christchurch South at the Oddfellows' Hall, Lincoln road, to-night at- eight o'clock. Mr John Jamicson will address "the electors of Avon at the Kia Ora tearooms, New Brighton, to-morrow evening at eight o'clock. The Mayor, Mr J. Glanville, will preside. Mr McCombs a candidate for Christchurch .East will meet his friends and supporters as follows:—To-morrow evening. Waltham School; Wednesday, Sydenham Methodist School; Thursday, Foresters' Hall, Oxford terrace; Friday South belt School. A general meeting of committees will be held at the committee room,. Cathedral square, on Saturday evening. Mr G. W. Russell will speak at Ferry road Congregational School to-night, at North Linwood School to-morrow evening, at New Brighton School on Wednesday, at Richmond School on Thursday and Phillip-town School on Friday. The friends and supporters of Mr G. L3urenson. M.P., candidate for Lvttelton. will meet in the Druids' Hall, Woolston, at 7.30 to-nio-ht. A meet*"g of tho lady friends and supporters °f *"r Laurenson will bo held at three o clock to-morrow afternoon in the Lyttelton Oddfellows' HallOlr G. I>. Greenwood, a candidate for Hurunui seat, addressed a, large meeting of electors in the Balcairn Schoolroom, on Thursday evenina;. Mr D. McNamarn prejiidcd. Mr Greenwood re-ceivcd' a hearty vote of thanks for his address, moved by Mr Fitzpatriek and by Mr Smith.. Mr W. Nosworthy, Opposition candidate for the Ashb urban seat, addressed a well-attended mooting at Tiiiwald, on Friday evening. He was accorded a vote of thanks. Mr W. J. Dicfkie, a candidate for the Solwyn Koat, aiMressicd a mooting at Mount Somers on Wedneeday evening. Thero was a good attendance. The chatr -was occupied by Mr E. Gates. On the motion of Mr Millar, seconded by Mr W. McCijTnont, a vote of thanks was accorded tho candidate. Mr Dickie addressed a meeting of about 100 electors in the Staveley Public Hall on Hhaw-sday- ovenang. A vote of thanks, moved by Mr T. Carlisle and seconded by Mr Aldridge, was carried. Mr W. R. Smith addressed the electors of Avon in tbo Schoolroom, Bromley, on Fridhy evening, Mr Burton, chairman of tie SohooJ Committee, presiding. Mt Williams moved, and Mr Had Ley seconded, "That this meeting accords Mr 'Smiith a very hearty vote of thaniks for his straight-forward address, and confidence in Mm to represent tOiem in Parliament." At the request of tbo candiid<ate the word "confidence" was witbdTawn*, Mr Smith, saying that the confidence. _hou_d be the ballot-box. On Saturday evening Mr Geo. Witty's supporters held a meeting in the Druid's Hall, Worcester street. A large general committee was elected. air W. L. Chirys-al notifies his retirement from the combes* for tbo Ghristcburch East seat. A meeting of the friends and sup- I porters qf Mr O. M. Gray, M.P., wl! be held at the Cbmimitttoe Room, 205 Giou-oesfce-' surest (late Joynt and) Andrews's office) to-inorrony, evetninig, at eight o'clock.' Mr R. J. 'Edkrcyd will address a meeting of tho electors of Chr__tctburch South at the LDbrary, Dover street, St. Albans, tcMnighb. IMr W. R. Smith, a candidate for Avon, wiill epeaik at the corner of Stanmore rood and Clashel street "this evening, at eight o'clock, at the Phdllijretown School to-morrow evening. Mr W. W. Tanner wdfl meet the electors of Avon at the Phillipstown School to-moirrow evening, at eight o'clock.

(PBBB9 ASSOCIATION TELEGRAMS.)

4 NAPIER, October. 18. ■Mr W. J. MoGrath has declined nomination for the Napier seat, and will support the candidature of Mr A. L. D. l-raser. INVERCARGILL, October 17. Mr D. Macpherson, Liberal candidate for Wallace, addressed the electors at Nightcaps last night. He announced he would support tbo Government in its main policy measures. His reception was enthusiastic, and he was accorded an unanimous vote of thanks and confidence. DUNEDIN, October 17. Mr R. Scott, tho Opposition candidate for Tuapeka, says the prevailing opinion is that the Government are not in earnest in the matter of the irrigation of Central Otago, and that the proposals are another case of dangling carrots in front of a donkey's nose.