LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 25, 24 October 1907, Page 6

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

, ■ 4 _ ■ ! ' WAITARA HARBOUR. ;.;u;v ■ .SEimuel-ipresented a petition l bf New 'Plymouth residents against the .Waitara Harbour Bill. • I '. ■-■'■''■'* '•*'-' */■ > '/ ' i AKt SUPREME COURT 1 PRACTICE BILL; 1 The joint Statutes Revision Committee, 1 Reporting on the Supreme Court Practice ' and Procedure Amendment Bill, staged that no further amendments .appeared to bo' necessary. ;••'{ .;■; \ ■.-[ ./i 1,, The third reading'was set down for-to-r'-tlay. •,. . ~. t !

, :-ji-i:i LOCALS BILLS, m '~. \ • . : The Hon. H. Feldwick moved the suspen"""'Bion of tho Standing .Orders for the remainder of the session, so far as to allow local Bills, after being reported from the Local Bills.^Committed/ pass thoir•, remaining Stages at one sitting. ; .Carried by 18 to 12.' The following local Bills, which hnvealtcady passed through, the Lower Hoiiso, .. were, read ■ a .second time:—Taranaki Botanic' p!,.ißarderi;. •' Amendment .•'.. : .(Hon:' 0.,. Samiibl)',* "'"'Wanganui Harbour (Hon. J; : .'E.'.Jcrikinson), lovin-Bor'ou'gh Reserves Vesting: and Empowering (Hon. J vR;- Sinclair), Gore Agricultural and Pastoral Association Vesting and Enabling, (Hon. Colonel Feldwiok), ' \Vbangamonj3na County;(Horn , Nelson* , "''Hospital s 'a'nd'''Charitable Aid Board Empowering (Hon.F. Trask), Thames Harbour Bbard(>(Hqn;>-',W. C.' Smitbpfor Hon. ,T. Thompson), Tapanui Serve 'Vesting 3 (Hon. 'J.' Bi , Sinclair), f Otagb v ,;llarbouri:Boardv.Empowering (Hon. J. R. ;; fginclair). . ■ , ./ •• ' . «*'•■ The Gore Agricultural and Pastoral Association Vesting and Enabling. Bill, and the .' —Nelson , ' Hospital and Charitable ' Aid Board ■Empowering Bill passed through Committee later in the afternoon.

I^^^OAL I 'iv!INEs''A!WEWMENT"EILU ; PARLIAMENT. Snß; THE ARBITRATION COURT. v V>Me.}BANK^t6' v BANK ;, CLAUSE. The adjourned debate on the motion to go ' ..into , . .Committeo on -'tho Coal-.Mines . ; Act ""'''Amendment, Bill .was resumed. When .the .was: last boforotho Council, strong .^.protests..were .m'ado against the , , Bill by the 'Hon. J. R. Sinclair ami ;othcrs, on tho ground that to incorporate the eight hours bank to S-i'^n^'plaus^in-.tnb.prpyiSi'pns.p^a'vJßiU/.wJrald '■"*'sc an overriding ~of the (unctions of tho 'Arbitration'; Court'.■. ,'A :niirabcr, ,, '..df l on that iOcciision-took part on both, sides of 'the .question. .'/When tho/dobate.'was'rcsunK'd yesterday, --~ .. The Hom','J'.Vß. Callaui (Otago) defended

.the Bill. Ho pointed, out. that the Arbitra-W-'tiori Court..diffured ;fronj other .Courts,'.ijias--4ißUch.'a s ,.there .was ; n6.i appeal * from; its; de--1 :,cisions.' The' Council, ought ..to , placo.. coal " f, "miners ; and gold miners en an equal footing j )(1 = t eithor,by. giving : the;.'bankvto bank; clauso vto ,-th'e. coal ■ minors,' or taking ■■ it., away. from "" tho gold miners.-. 'Coal mining' was, udmit- ;,■ tcdly; more arduous • ; and'' dangerous' L tlian .'. gold*mining.' ;. • .y'i. : •■'• ■■; v; 1 . '' .'' : The' Hbn. ( JiVAnstoy: (Canterbury)' said _ho trould opposei tho Bill.. hecaiißo' the question involved was/; proper to r bo decided by the » ..iArbitration ..Court, and; tho decision, of. that '''"Court having been - given, it was wrong to to Parliament to try to got that decision reversed. , ■■ . Tho Hon. H. Scotland/ (Taranald) opposed *>ho Bill. Tho CO3I minors had not. exhausted

their Ipg-il remedy They could go to tho Arbitration Court again and agnin. T(ie 1 B!ll Committed. Tho motion to go into Committco on the Bill ins earned by 18 to 11 Tho Bill having been committed, Tho Hon. G. J. Smith (Canterbury) I'-kod if a clause would be arcopted directing tho Arbitration Couri to gne the workers the benefit of the;bank to bank clause : at si future date.

'flip Hon J K Jcnkinson, «ho had chargp of the Bill, declined to accept the amendment The bank to bank .sjstem should bo introduced at once / The Hop G J Smith then-suggested that, in order to avoid the dangers attending legislation for special cases, a clause .should bo added;to the Bill, providing that either of tho parties to an industrial award might, 'if'dissatisfied,-appeal to Parliament. '; '.The .Hon.' R. A. Lough'nan.'.■(Wellington} agreed with the suggestion that a date should .be .fixed.for the termination of the\present award. •,'. ,■'.-',■■.';.',-■ ■ ,":.-" ■•; '. ■ .. ■ '..'!. !The.State of the taw. > ',■■;■. .. ', The Attorney-General explained tlio position of tho law.. He quoted Section 37, of tho Coal' Minos. Act, ,1903, i.which enacted tho bank to' bank clause', subject .to .the. provisions of any/award jjf, the Arbitration Court in force. The same section was incorporated in the compilation Act of 1905,' dealing with gold mining. , ■.The.latt6j , :Act was. very soon amended by making the bank to bank clause independent of any award of the Arbitration Court. ~Tho present Bill proposed to make a similar amondment,in-regard to coal mining. . The award,which would bo affected by'the Biirhad expired, and there could bo no objection\to the, employers' or tho Union applying to ,thp Court to-morrow to. havo the. matter reconsidered. .: ' . ~. ' .

.-.The Hon. .T.Rigg said the bank to , bank ■principle had jbeen .affiimed;by tho other House four times, and by; the Council three times, the ; first ; occasion' ! being ■in 1903, and it was high timo for it to come into full operation. . '' •The Hon.'G; J.' Smith moved :to amend the Bill by providing that the award should not continue in force after February next. This was supported, by; tho Hon. 0. Samuel. An Evening Sitting. ' ; ks. tho ' liouf .o'clock ap--proached, ' ..discussion 'arose :'. as.; .to whether the Council I'should sit , 'in the evening, tp continue the, , debate,:- .The x».i,torney-General; said- , that' if an evening sitting were held, he. would, ask ,the' Council to oxenso him from attendance, but he would bo within call. While the Hon. C. Louisson was speaking on the question, tho clock struck five.' This, according to the Standing Orders, settled the matter, and tho Chairman' •immediately announced that ho would re,Bu'mo the .chair at. 7.'30. : f ; ', . . .:.' ' .' The Closure Attempted. When' the Council resumed, the Hon. W. Beehan moved': ; " That' the question bo now put , ." .This was defeated, and - the (motion to'report progress was ,then' put; : and lost !by 6 to"16. " .■"■'; V /. : ■':'.'\: The debate' was .continued.!,by , the Hons. G. J. Smith,'R. A. Loughnah, and! W. W. M'C'ardle. ', ' '

; Tho Hon.: Gf. Jones said the amendment moved by the H6n;iG.; J. Smith would bo, equally. , with ..tho clause in- the Bill,.an, interference with-,the 'Vwafd ofJJiq'Court.".Those hon. gentlemen who had such-an excess of judicial mentality, woro really proposing to insult the Court. :

The Hon. O.' Samuel moved that the Chairman leave tho chair... Speaking at. somo length, tho lipn.:. gentleman mado further appeals J.' % 'Jcnkinson,'praised the; stpnewa'lliiif' '.acliievenients' of ■ the' late Mr; Seddb'n, an'u'throateric'd'to read the full text of the Arbitration Court award/iwhich had bew,vprpviousjyj alluded.',to, ,ahcl 'to' 'accompany the reading "with'i copious explanatory comments. . „■ •'. ■'. : ' : >',\ : The Att6rney-G«noral offered to place'the Bill-first on the Order Paper to-morrow, if the hon. gentleman in charge of tho Bill would acccptthe motion-that the chairman .leave the chair. : . . j

'The Hon. J. E; Je'nkinsori accepted, this offer.' He added 'that ho had no , part in the : action 'of the Hon. 'W, Beohari in attempting .; tb Vapply. .'the, closuro 'by ,: moving lhat,,the 'question..be now put. „Th 6 :: nature of'the discussion'had riot warranted sijch a .step. . •'.'', The Hon.- W. Beehan iiaid he had •' acted entirely on his own'initiative, and ho would be prepared to do, the same again when ho thought an ■■attomptVwas being made to. sot up. a stonewall. ■.. v ■':,'■ , : ,■ .••,■,■,_. Clause 1 was then passed on tho ..voices, and 'progress was reported oh.the' motion < of the Hon'. J. E. Jonkinson.'' '-' ; ■' .. : '■:;-■"■„'

Final Stages. ' v- , ;"-' The Gore Agricultural and Pastoral Association Vesting and Bill and the Nelson Hospital and Charitable Aid Board linpowcri'.ig Bill,: wore, read a third timp and passed.. ..' ..: ..,,. . ..,,-,.. Motion for' Adjournment. . : : w The Council divided on the Attorney-Gen-eral's motion; for . the . adjournment, which was lost by 12' votes to 13.''' PROTECTION BILL; ; ■; ;'SHPOTING LICENSES OPPOSED., : The Animals Protection Bill. was'further 'considered in ; Committ'eo. ;.....' .s'TJie 'Hon. •J: ; E. v Jenkinso'n said' he.would 'now,drop jhis , "opposition .to • Bill,'! and -mbrolv, move' the amcndm'onts which ;.ho■ h\id .: placed on, Order 'Paper.-'. •'■ '..' i! ■ The: next of these *' allov/ shooting to begin'-nt'4.a.m. instead.of 6 a.m. —was then put, arid lost by. 12 to 13.'. •'■: 'The Honi. J : . E. Jenkinabn: moved to strike 'out "the first word of Cluuso 8, which provides that imported game shall not ba.taken or killed"wjth6ut.;a licenso: Ho explained that, his object , was'to,kill the clause. The Hon. J.Anstey supported the amendment on the ground that tho ; clause woiild be hard on tho small farmed

Tho Hon. .0.. Samuel -drew Mr. Anstoy's attention to Claiiso'23, which provides that a person may tako' or.kill imported game on land ia>hisiO'wii'*.occupntion J without a licerisq. The Attofney-Generiil siiid.tho effect of the amendment would bo to; kill ■ the. Bill and to destroy game of, all kinds'throughout tho "Dominion. , . '■' ' : '■■ ' -..';'■.■

After further discission' tho ' amendment was.lost on tho voices.'.. , . . ,■ ; ~ Progress was then v reported on the. motion pf the Attorney-General, and the Council rose at 10.30. p.m. ,; ; ,"' .' .