IMMIGRATION BILL

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 309, 23 September 1920, Page 6

IMMIGRATION BILL

HALF-CASTE CHINESE IN SAMOA QUAKERS AND THE OATH • The Legislative Council yesterday read a second time the Immigration Restriction - Amendment Bill, 1 and referred it tn the Statutes Revision | Committee. The Bill, which has already been passed by the House, provides thut persons not of British birth and must obtain permits tc enter the Dominion. It also requires British subjects coming into New Zealand from abroad to take the oath of allegiance, and others to take an oath declaring that while they remain in the country they will obey its laws.^ In moving the second reading, _ Sir Francis Bell 1 referred to the-objections of the Quakers to taking an oath or making an affirmation as required by thn Bill. This, he said, was the first time that the Quakers had raised any objection of the kind. Formerly the difficulty with the Quakers had been that they would not take an oath, and provision wag made that they should make an affirmation. Quakers had sat in the British Parliament and in the New Zealand Parliament without raising any objection to the requirement that they should take tho oath of allegiance or make an affirmation. He trusted that nobody would take seriously tho objec tions raised in this case. The Hon. W. J. Geddis thought there was a possibility that the half-caste Chinese population in Samoa might one day prove a menace to this country. He hoped the Leader of the Council would express an opinion upon the likelihood of the half-caste Chinese drifting into New Zealand from Samoa. He had been informed by a high police cfficial thnt there was not a Chinese coolie in Samoa who was not living with a Samoan woman. . \ . The Hon. H. L. Michel was surprised to hear the last-mentioned statement. The information he had gathered was to the effect that the cases were raro ia which Satnoan "womon associated wuh the Chinesn. He wished to lcnovr whether the New Zealand Govrnment had eom-im-.nicated with the Commonwealth Government with a view to haying a uniform scheme fc r " dealing with immigrants in both countries. . , ' " . Replying first to the point raised t by Mr. Geddis, Sir Francis Bell said that -a person not of British birth and pari eiitajrft would be in the snme position whether he desired to come to New Zen' land from Samoa or frc-m Hong-Kong. Tho New Zealand Government would be pleased to act in accord with the Com- | monwealth, but- the position of the Commonwealth was different from the posi' ticn of this'country, and perhaps Australia would consider it; advisable to nass more drastic legislation than tho New Zealand 1 Government proposed. TEACHERS' SUPERANNUATION COMPLAINT OF INADEQUATE ALLOWANCES. When the s.nnual report on the tcachi ers' superannuation fund was presented to the House of Representatives yesterday several members urged that some assistauco should bo given to old teachers who were in receipt of inadequate superannuation allowances. Mr. Smith (Tnranaki) mentioned the case of a woman, asjed sixty years, with 37 years' service m the schools. Her servico had been 1 broken by ill-health and her superannuation was only .£27 a year. Mr. Statham (Dunedin Central) suggested that the proper remedy for these troubles wos a -universal old ago pension. Mr. Yeitch (Wnnganui) asked the Minister of Education to fix a minimum superannuation allowance, abovo the starvation line. The Minister of Education. (Mr. Pari 1 ) replied that retired teachers all over New Zealand had been in communication with him on the subject. The desire of the Government to aid old people could bo taken for granted. The question was 4 how far the Government could go from a financial point of view. The Stato's contribution to the teachers' superannuation fund had been increased recently from .£16,000 to .£<13,000 annually. The teachers' contribution amounted to .£72.000 annually. He (recognised the taistlence of anomalies under the -superannuation scheme. Teachers who had come in under -the first superannuation Act were in a worse' position than tho teachers who received the benefit of the later Act. The fund could not . accept liability for teachers who had retired - before any superannuation generally. He had already made suggestions to Cabinet on the, general question. Tho point to be decided was how large an increase could Iks made in the State's already substantial contribution to the fund. ' PENSIONS FOR THE BLIND MEMBERS ASK FOR LEGISLATION. A petition, signed by over 6000 persons, praying that legislation should be introduced this session providing assistance for blind pcoplo, was discussed in the House. A committee recommended that the petition should be rererrcd to tho Government for favourable consideration. A question of policy was involved, said the chairman of the committee (Mr. Wright), but the committee wished to express sympathy with the prayer of the petition. Mr. U. Hunter (Waipawa) expressed his warm approval of the recommendation. No class of the community was more entitled to sympathetic attention than the blind. Ho understood that there were about 600 of these people in New Zealand, and he hoped that before the end of the the Government would make some, provision for people who obviously were unable to do mucli for themselves. He was sure that tho publio would support the Government in a determination to sec that the blind did not lack the means of subsistence. Several other members also urged the Government to deal with this problem. Dr. Newman (Wellington East) suggested that the Government should seoure the services of experts in order that blind persons might he trained in useful vocations. A high degree of training in many occupations was possible, but tho necessary instruction wns difficult to secure in this country. The report of tha committee wft9 approved.