The Clutha Leader. BALCLUTHA : FRIDAY, DEC. 3, 1897.

Clutha Leader, Volume XXIV, Issue 1222, 3 December 1897, Page 4

The Clutha Leader. BALCLUTHA : FRIDAY, DEC. 3, 1897.

The Old Age Pensions Bill has almost wholly monopolised the time and attention of the House of Representatives for the past two weeks. This measure is quite in keeping with much of the ill-considered and haphazard legislation forced on the country by the class policy and Party tactics of the Seddon Government. The leading principles and aim of the Government seem to be to destroy all inch-pouch nee of character, to suppress individual responsibility ancl effort, and to degrade the community into mere; automatons, abject slaves whose duties begin and end in unthinking and unreasoning obedience to lhe great autocrat of the colony. The Old Ago Pensions Bill is only one of many measures introduced by the present Government, all tending less or more in the direction stated. It proceeds on the preamble that " deserving colonists who during the prime of life have helped to bear the public burdens of the 3olony by the payment of taxes and to open up its resources by their labor and skill shall look to the colony for a pension in their old age." Supposing this principle bo a sound one it has a very wide and varied application, for according to ifc any man employed on a farm, in a factory, pr engaged in any industry, is not only entitled to full remunera-

""'' '" " —*»"Ta—^— — «n—» —»—^^mm mmmmm «g— —^ tion for the service ho may have rendered and the assistance given in establishing such industry but he would also be entitled to be maintained in idleness for the remaindsr of his life after reaching the age of 65 years. Some years before his death, Major Atkinson, then occupying the position of Premier, made a tour of the colony propounding a scheme which had a two-fold object in view — viz., to encourage thrift on the part of the community, and to provide pensions for old age. To secure these objects it was suggested that every person should commence at 20 years of age, or so, to contribute small sums towards the old age pensions fund. In order to be in a position to make such contributions a reasonable amount of industry and frugality would be necessary. But then when the age of 65 years was reached a fund of their own creation was ready to provide' for their maintenance and comfort for tho remainder of their lives. In this case all idea of chanty, pauperism or degredation was excluded. The fund was provided by the recipients of tho pensions and the mere fact of their being in receipt of such pensions proved that through life they had been industrious, thrifty and well-doing members of society. Another feature of the scheme was that there was no class distinctions. One and all contributed to the fund, and rich and poor alike would draw their pensions. How different Mr Seddon's scheme. In this case no contributions to the pension fund are required ; so far as provision for old age is concerned, no industry, thrift, or forethought are necessary ; on the contrary all such old time practices must be indulged in to only a very mild extent if an old age pension is to be claimed. The recipient contributes nothing to the pension fund and his annual dole he must accept as public charity. We hold that the present Bill is based on an unsound principle, that its construction is faulty in the extreme ancl that in its operation it would have a mosfc demoralising influence over a large section of the community. « In dealing with the question of old age pensions last year the Premier proposed finding the money from some ten or a dozen different sources such as a graduated income tax, a graduated land tax, a ticket tax on entertainments, tax on martgages, the totalisator tax, etc., bufc after turning the matter over in his mind he has decided to take the whole out of the Consolidated fund. Ifc is calculated thafc LIBO,OOO a year would be required to meet payment of pensions already applied for and ifc is admitted that this sum would largely increase every succeeding year. But the resources of the Premier are very elastic ; he points out thafc L 300,000 a year is taken for Public Works, and that, should the pension fund require to be increased this could be accomplished by reducing the annual expenditure on public work?. Now, from what class aro the pensioners likely to be recruited 1 No doubt in every country district respectable persons are to be found who, owing to a combination of adverse circumstances, and through no fault of their own have been unable to mako adequate provision for their declining years ; these fully deserve and would gratefully accept the needed assistance. But the great majority of the future pensioners would be from amongst those who now daily congregate afc the street cornersof thelarge cities, men who do very little work, who therefore find it difficult to meet present necessities and who cannot be expected to make provision for old age. These will draw the full amojnt of the prescribed pensions. But other classes will also be entitled to the benefits to bo derived from the operation of Mr Seddon's bill. For example, a man may have one thousand guineas on fixed deposit bearing bank interest, afreehold house valued atL3OO and yet bs entitled to a pension. On the other hond should a pensioner feel strong and able for work and desire to supplement his pension by earning a pound a week tho pension would cease. Now who are those who would contribute the bulk of the fund from which the pension would be drawn 1 It is admitted that the settlers contribute the lion's share of this fund. We would ask the settlers of, say, tho Catlins District to think over tho niatter. A large portion of the rates they pay to the countyis no»v handed over to the Charitnble Aid Board to meet tho necessities of those in Institute circumstances and who from old age are nnab'e to provide for themselves. Are the Catlins ratepayers prepared to largely increase this payment in order to proi vide 1 i f<? pensions for the street corner loafers in the largo cities ? Are they prepared to provide life pensions for persons wlio yearly draw the interest on their capital, amounting to upwards of LIOOO ancl who are owners of freehold houses of the value of L3OO each 1 Aro they prepared to waive or lessen \ all demands on the Government for the construe tion of roads and bridges to givo them access to their properties, in order thafc the public works fund may bo devoted to the payment of pensions to such men as will be entitled to them under Mr Seddon's Bill should it pa9s into law 1 There can be onlj one answer and we are sure tho settlers of the Clutha will agree with us that people

should be encouraged to provide for themselves in their old age instead of living lives of idleness and unthriftiness and throwing themselves in their old age on the tender mercy of public charity.