THE PRIME MINISTER AT WAIMATE.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14204, 18 November 1911, Page 10

THE PRIME MINISTER AT WAIMATE.

VOTE OF THANKS AND CONFIDENCE. (rsoM ore special reporteb.) WAIMATE, November 17. Sir Joseph Ward addr<jssed a large meeting in the Olympia Hall this evening. Mr Norton Francis (Mayor) presided.

Sir Joseph, who was applauded on rising to speak, prefaced his remarks by paying a warm tribute to tho services rendered to the district by Sir William Steward. Continuing, he said that tho country was progressing would be denied by few. He had read that morning that there was some doubt as to whether he would continue the leadership of the Liberal Party. To him and his friends that was news indeed. He took the opportunity of reiterating that he had no intention of accepting the post of High Ccmmiisioner in London, and he would never do so. He had no intention of relinquishing the position ho held, and he wished to utter a sincere and emphatic protest against tho action of some of his opponents in showing an almost unaccountable desire to get him out of the country. Ho wanted every fair-minded person not to accept misrepresentation for fact. His opponents —the present Opposition—were at one timo circulating tho statement that lie was a socialist, but now they were circularising in tho very opposite direction. Why was ho so abused at last election? Becauso while passing through America he had etated that the public should own, as they did in New Zealand, tho public, utility offices. This had resulted in the allegation that he was an extreme socialist. He believed that in seme instances our country led the world. The last nationalisation of a great institution was the harnessing of the great rivers, and as the. result of that movement, this country would eventually become one of tho leading manufacturing countries in the world. Within the next three years they would have in Canterbury, in tli> Lake Coleridge- system, enough power to supply every factory, shop, and home, at a rate so cheap that no private enterprise would be able to compete against the Government. How many people realised the vast amount of good done by lending money to the farmers? In this direction the Government had lent £12,000,000 to the fanners. In regard to the railways, one Canadian company had more money invested in one railway than the whole of the national debt of New Zealand. During the last ten years the Government had placed 64,000 people on the land, and 33,000 of these had been placed there during his (Sir Joseph's) term of office, and it was of the utmost necessity that these settlers, should have railways. It would be suicidal to deny them access to their land. Of the national debt no less than £15,000,000 did not cost one eingle penny in taxation upon the people. Some of his opponents went about asking why the Government did not go in fo' - free trade. Did tho people realise that in one Act in 1907 he (the Prime Minister) gave away between £isuo,ooo and £300,000 a year in sugar alone. There was hardly a single commodity used in daily life that was not free. They had made the necessities of life free* to an extent that even freetrado England did not have. Dealing with the Dreadnought question. Sir Joseph stated that in the first place lie nad consulted every one of Ids colleagues, and they had all agreed to the offer being made. (A voice: "What about the Sir Joseph, replying to the interjection, stated that he had sent two telegrams, one offering one Dreadnought and two if necessary, and a later telegram, intimating that the offer wns made subject to the ratification of Parliament. When the matter was before Parliament every man could have voted against it without loss of dignity to this country, and yet every member oi the Opposition had voted ior it, but had stated they objected to the manner in which tho offer had been made He believed' that they had voted for the proposal beoau.se they believed it would be a good thine; for the Empire as a whole. (Applause.)

Touching on defence,, the Prime Minister said that the. Labour Government of Australia had established universal railiiary training at a cost of between two and three ivillio , ";, nnd wcr ■ 'lo establishing a navy, whirh was calculated to cost between £25,000,000 and £30,000.000, at a yearly cost of £8,000,000. New Zealand, however, was only paying £■!'>! ifto n>r her dofence scheme and £250,000 a year to the British Navy, for which latter amount she had the benefit of the protection <-f the whole ot ili<> Hriti* i Nary. Thus was worth more than ten Australian navies, although Australia deserved a'l honour for n no." of her own. He was dead against militarism, but the Government wae determined that this country should bo as well trained as any invading loir-. , was likely to be. Some pc were endeavouring to pull down this scheme of universal training before it had got upon its feet. They ehould at least give it a fair trial, and that was all the Government wanted to do. Sir Joseph went on to deal with the legis'ation passed by the Government for acquiring large estates. in.= t-"c:ii'r • number of cases in which it had proved beneficial to the country. The Government had increased the taxation, but only upon those land-:-wnoiv -viili r>" - perty worth more than £40,000. The cry out, "Put the Government out: is is old." But was it old? It was only five years old; for that was the period during, which he (Sir Joecph) had been in control. Let the people judge the results as a whole. They had[ no right to judge the Government by this silly, empty-headed allegation of o!c! ■■>;;■■ l>v ■■• <party that had for fifteen years lost "in the wilderness. One of the leadins Oppositionists had advanced the silly argument that the Ward Government should be put out because the Laurier Government had been defeated. T'-ifo r<> i <i "Iμ • ■ i-i comparison between the two countries. The Canadians had put the Laurier Government out because they weri! afraid of annexation by the United States. The Government had done more in fivo years for the workers than any other Government had done. The Government had advanced £1,900,000 to ■workers tor the purpose of establishing homes of their own, and already the workers had repaid no less " than £140,000 towards the redemption of the money they had borrowed. Since 1893 the revenue had increased from £1,900.000 to fio:wi(r-o. •- <"' of increase the Government had given away through the railways, indirectly, to the users £1.000.000," and through the post office £400,000. Sir Joseph, in replying to the allegation that the Government wag not settling the land fast enough, stated that in the Canterbury district 331,GC0 acres of land had been acquirtd, and 501-3 souls had been settled upon it. Jt would thus bo seen that this province

compared very favourably with any Sir Joseph Ward's speech lasted for two hours and three-quarters, and at ite conclusion he was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence.