PARLIAMENT IN SESSION

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 69, 14 December 1933, Page 10

PARLIAMENT IN SESSION

Extension of Immigration Restriction Law

HOUSE PASSES ANOTHER FOUR BILLS Evening Devoted to Further Discussion on Estimates Eleven more classes of the Estimates representing in the aggregate £3,147,244 were passed by the House of Representatives at its sitting last evening. The largest individual vote was that of the Education Department, totalling £2,550,000. Other business trans acted by members yesterday was the passing of four Bills ana tn . consideration of reports presented by Select Committees. - When members resume this afternoon the Public Accounts Committee, to _ which was referred the Controller and Auditor-General s report, - will report to the House. • . Measures passed were the Trade Arrangement (New Zealand and Belgium) Ratification Bill, which represents in legislative form the trade arrangement recently made between the two countries, the Harbours Amendment Bill, giving effect in the main to remits passed from time.to time by conferences of the Harbour Boards Association; the Trustee Amendment Bill, containing certain provisions affecting.trusts arfd trustees; and the Immigration Restriction Amendment-Bill, extending the existing law restricting the injmigration of persons who might become a charge upon the pub- ' lie. The Harbours Amendment Bill was amended to make it clear that sinking fund commissioners of a harbour board arc to be a body corporate for the whole of the sinking funds. ‘ ’ The presentation of a number of reports by Select Committees oh petitions and local Bills occupied some time in the afternoon. The most important was that by the Industries and Commerce Committee on 67 petitions asking that action be taken under the .Board of Trade Act to establish fair trading conditions in the . . tobacco.trade. The committee reported that while it was unable fo recommend the petition for favourable consideration, it recomnerided . the. .Government to give favourable consideration to the removal of tobacco from the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act, provided manufacturers and retailers entered into an agreement safeguarding consumers., _ The Municipal Corporations Bill was passed by the House in the early hours of .yesterday morning.

TEACHING SERVICE Superannuation Payments COST-OF-LIVING BONUS 'A net loss of £106,324 compared with £53,982 in 1932 is shown in the annual report on the Teachers’ Superannuation Fund for the year ended January 31, 1933, presented to the House of Representative? yesterday. Contributors on the roll at the end of the year were 9355, a decrease of 609 from the previous year. Their contributions amounted to £113,764, and Government subsidy and interest made the total 'income £221,901, .compared with £235,560 in 1932. The total expenditure was £328,425, Including £283,738 for retiring and other allowances, £33,478 for contributions refunded or transferred; and £7500 as provision for loss on investment. The expenditure in 1932 was £289,542. The balance at the credit of the fund stands at £1,111,642, / compared with’ £1,218,166 for the previous year. . The report mentions that the payment of the cost-of-llvlng bonus has been continued in necessitous cases. REPORTS ON PETITIONS J ■■ • ■ ■ Several Wellington Matters Reports by select committees on several Wellington petitions were presented in the House of Representatives yesterday, .afternoon. In its report on the‘petition 'of Han-. ■> nah Powell praying for. a compassionate allowance or a pension on account of "her late husband’s .war service, the M to Z Supplementary Public Petitions Committee recommended, reference to the Government for favourable consideration. No recommendation was. made by the same committee - in its report on the petition of Frederick William Simmonds, praying that a committee or commission be appointed by Parliament to inquire into the electrical communications branches of the Post and Telegraph Department with a view to minimising losses alleged to be now incurred./ . ' Reporting on the petition of Thomas F. Simpson, ./who had asked for compensation or other relief for .loss of property alleged to have been wrongly seized under a warrant of distrain, the committee stated that as the petitioner had further legal remedies which had not been .exhausted it had no recommendation to make.. In a report on the petition of W. S. Cooper, praying that he be allowed to appear at the bar of the House .to refute aspersions’allegedly made against him in connection with, his claim for reinstatement -in the Public Service, the A to L Public Petitions Committee recommended that it should be referred to the Government for favourable consideration of the prayer that the matter be sent to tt judicial comr mission for full and open Investigation. HARBOUR BOARD LOANS Position of Sinking 1 Fund Commissioners Thb Harbours Amendment Bill was put through its final stages and passed by the House of Representatives yesterday. ... When the Bill was in committee an amendment was made which makes it clear that the sinking fund commissioners of a harbour board are to be a body corporate for the' whole of the sinking fund. This provision covers the case of the Auckland board and others whose Commissioners have been appointed for sinking funds of one or more of the loans by special Act and not under the general provisions of the Harbours Act.

TRANSPORT CONTROL Amending Bill Passed CO-ORDINATION MEASURE The Transport Law Amendment Bill was put through the remaining stages and passed by the Legislative Council last evening. The Hon. R. Masters, in movng the second reading, said that the Bill made provision for the setting up of a transport co-ordination board which would advise the Government on the possibility of co-ordinating all forms of transport. - At .present thefe was £122,000,000 Invested in different forms of transport, and there was an urgent need for the elimination of overlapping and waste which were adding to the overhead charges of the Dominion. The board would also hear appeals arising out of the administration of the principal Act. ThtT Bill also gave the Minister power to reduce the central licencing authority to one member. It was hoped that the legislation would bring about a better economic position so far as transport control was concerned. The Hon. C. J. Carrington said the legislation was a marked step forward toward. the solving of the problem of transport.

The Hon. W. H. Mclntyre said he welcomed the Bill as being in the right direction. Unless something were done the trade of the country .would suffer. The Hon. R. McCallum said he would again register his protest against expenditure of-unemployment funds on highways competing with the railways. The railways were public property and should be protected. The Bill was ’read a second time, put through the remaining stages and passed. ■ ' MINING PRIVILEGES Larger Areas Intended GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS It is understood that before'the close of the session the Minister of Mines, Hon. C. E. Macmillan, intends to introduce a Bill to amend the Mining Act. The Bill will deal principally with the areas that may be held under prospecting licenses and other mining privileges and with the qualifications of mine managers. It is intended to enlarge the areas that may at present be held. 'The Bill will also give powers of entry on land for purposes of geological and geophysical surveys. It is also understood that the Government does not intend to proceed further than the first reading of the measure. This will enable it to be printed and made available to . interested parties, whose views may be ascertained before ■it is brought forward again next session. MAUI POMARE Vessel Working Well The statement that the Government steamer Maui Pomare is now working better than ever she has done and is likely this year to more .than pay expenses was made by the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, in the House of Representatives last night. The matter was raised during the discussion on the Estimates for the External Affairs Department, by Mr. D. G. Sullivan (Lab., Avon), who asked if the Maui Pomare was working quite well now. “Quite satisfactorily,” replied, the Prime Minister. "It is doing better to-day than ever it did. We hope that at the end of the year, instead of there being a loss, it will be able to pay working expenses and a Ijttle bit. more for the first time in its history.” TRANSPORT LICENSE Petition from Masterton In its report to the of Representatives yesterday on the petition of Arthur Renall and three others, of Masterton, praying that the refusal of the Transport Licensing Authority to grant them a passenger-service license be investigated, the M to Z Supplementary Public Petitions Committee stated that as the petitioners had not exhausted their legal remedies it had no recommandation. to make.

Mr. H. T. Armstrong (Lab., Christchurch East) said that in view of the assurance of the Minister of Marine, Hon. J. G. Cobbe, that independent legislation would be brought down next session, he -did not propose to move for the reinstatement of fne deleted provision dealing with the deposit of refuse in harbours. Mr. Cobbe said it was expected that a conference, would be held between representatives of harbour boards and municipal bodies, as a result of which a satisfactory agreement would be arrived at. This, he said, could be embodied in the legislation to be ed next session.

NO RELAXATION Maintenance of Control of „ Immigration PRECAUTIONS NECESSARY “It is considered that the time has not yet arrived when the precautions taken to prevent an influx of persons likely to become a burden upon the public should be relaxed,” said the Minister of Customs, Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, when moving the second reading of the Immigration Restriction Amendment Bill in the House of Representatives yesterday. The measure provides for the continuance until December 31, 1935, of the Act of 1931, which would otherwise expire on December 31 next. Mr. Coates said that the Act was passed in view of the economic depression for the purpose of restricting the immigration of persons who might become a charge upon the public. It was hoped at that time that the conditions would have so improved by the end f this year-that the restrictions would be no longer necessary; but, although there were signs that the depression was gradually lifting, it was considered advisable that the Act should be continued in force for another two years. • . “I may say,” continued Mr. Coates, “that it has not been consideijed necessary to bring into operation section, 2 of the 1931 Act, namely, the provision for making regulations prohibiting the landing in New. Zealand of persons of any specified nationality or race or of any specified class or occupation, or limiting the number of any such persons that may land in New Zealand during any specified period or periods. It is, however, desirable that the power to make such regulations should, remain in force in case: there may be need to use it during the Continuance of the Act.” The General Practice. In administering the regulations it had been the general practice not to grant permits to applicants desirous of coming to New Zealand for the purpose of seeking work if it was considered probable that they would become a charge upon the unemployment funds or upon charitable organisations. Every discretion was, however, used to avoid undue restrictions on the immigration of other persons. Persons born in New Zealand, bona fide tourists, commercial travellers, and persons under definite contract of employment were admitted. Statistics of the arrivals and’ departures of persons of British birth and parentage showed a considerable decrease during the last two years as compared with those for the previous year, said Mr. Coates. During the year ended March 31, 1931, the total number of such persons arriving in New Zealand was 28,338, and the departures were 23,267, being an excess of arrivals amounting to 5071. During the corresponding period for the following year the number departing from New Zealand exceeded the number arriving by 2870. During the year ended March 31 last the excess of departures over arrivals was 767. The two principal countries ’ with which New Zealand was concerned so far as migration was concerned were Australia and the United Kingdom. During the year ended March 31, 1931, 3603 more persons arrived from Australia than left for the Commohwealth, while-1084 more came from the United Kingdom than left for that country. During the year ended March 31, 1932, the balance was on the other side. There was an excess of departures to Australia over the arrivals from the Commonwealth of 2233, and of departures to the United Kingdom over the arrivals from that country of 827. Figures for Last Year. During the year ended March 31, 1933, there was still an excess of departures over arrivals, though the disparity was not so great, being in the case of Australia 896 and In the case of the United Kingdom 78. The figures given referred only to passengers of British birth and parentage. The number of migrants between the various countries had, of course, been lessened in recent years owing to the economic conditions. It was anticipated that, as conditions improved, the arrivals in New Zealand would again, as usual, exceed the departures. The Leader of the. Opposition, Mr. M. J. Savage, said that on the face of it the Bill looked a mild one, but it covered the earth and everyone on it. By regulation the Government of the day could exclude anyone, for economic or other reasons, from entering New Zealand. It appeared, however, that the Bill could do neither good nor harm at this stage. He did not think there were many people in a position to travel unless they walked. He supposed the time would come when New Zealand would endeavour to get people to come here rather than stop them.. “Some day,” added Mr. Savage, “all these immigration restrictions and the thousand and one leg-ropes which we have put on ourselves and other people will be removed, and we will alter the foundation of things so that we will be able to cure economic ills by removing the causes." The Bill was read a second time, put through its final stages, and passed. SHIPPING SUBSIDIES Attitude of Government In the Legislative Council yesterday, the Hon. W. W. Snodgrass asked what steps, if any, were being taken by the Government to combat the menace of the American subsidised shipping in the New Zealand trade. The Minister of Education, Hon. R. Masters,'said the Government fully recognised that British shipping was subject to inequitable competition' in the Pacific. The situation in that trade, however, could not be considered as a separate and individual problem, and the Government was still in communication on the subject with His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom and in Australia. He was not in a position to make a more complete statement at present. WELLINGTON FIRE BRIGADE Dismissal from Service No recommendation was made by the A to L Public Petitions Committee in its report to the- House of Representatives yesterday on the petition of T. B. Clark, of Wellington, praying for an inquiry into his dismissal from the service of the Wellington Fire Brigade, or an inquiry by the Department of Internal Affairs or by some judicial, Jjersqq,

TOBACCO TRADE Petitioners’ Request RETAIL CONDITIONS Proposal of Committee Sixty-seven petitions praying that action be taken under the Board of Trade Act, 1919, to establish fair trad ing conditions in the retail tobacco trade to develop the tobacco industry, and to protect consumers against monopoly prices, were reported upon by the Industries and Commerce Committee in the House of Representatives yesterday. The report, which was presented by the chairman, Hon. A. D. McLeod (Govt., Wairarapa), stated that while unable to reommend the prayer of the petitioners to the Government for favourable consideration, the committee recommended the Government to give favourable consideration to the removal of tobacco (including cigarettes and cigars) from the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act, 1910, provided the manufacturers’ wholesalers, and retailers, entered into an agreement safeguarding consumers. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. M. J. Savage, said he regretted the mittee had not seen fit to go a little further. Pie himself was a member of the committee, but he disagreed with the report it had made. Petitions dealing with the same subject had been presented last year, the petitioners asking to have tobacco removed from the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act. The committee turned down that proposal, but now recommended that tobacco be removed from the schedule. He was still waititng for'a reason for that change of form. Attitude of Oil Industry. When dealing with oil, the committee made a recommendation that the Board of Trade regulations be used if necessary, but with tobacco was not prepared to do so Cj , Why?. The retailers in the tobacco trade were being asked to hand themselves over to the manufacturers. In justice to the manufacturers it must be stated that they had not asked for such action, and had been behind the retailers in an attempt to secure fair trading conditions. In the event of the recommendation being adopted, the manufacturers would fix prices conditionally on certain retail prices being charged. They would be able to tell the retailer at which prioe he must sell and the grower at which price he must hand over his product. If the committee’s recommendation were carried out it would simply create a monopoly in the hands of manufacturers, and have the very effect that the Commercial Trust Act had been passed to prevent. At the same time he desired to point out the manufacturers had not sought that. Last year the committee had suggested that the Industries and Commerce Department should get the parties together. That had not been done. Mr.'McLeod: Something has been done. . Mr. Savage said the effort had been a pretty weak one. He wanted the Government to accept the responsibility and put into operation the law on the Statute Book. Competition in Trade. The Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes: There is competition in the tobacco trade. Mr. Savage: That is why something ought to be done. Mf. Forbes: There is no competition in the petrol trade. , Mr. Savage: No competition! That is not so. The Prime Minister should take a day off and examine the position for himself. Mr. A. Harris (Govt., Waitemata) said that the petition had been before the House on quite a number of occasions, but in a somewhat slightly different form. Some time ago the committee was of opinion that it was desirable that tobaccd should be removed from the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act. Last year, however, it. recommended that the department should make representations to the manufacturers, the retailers, and the wholesalers with a view to arriving at a satisfactory basis on which prices could be fixed as to prevent the admitted hardship under which small .retailers throughout the country were suffering. Trading methods were changing with the times, and the tendency to-day was toward monopolies, lie said. This was not necessarily an evil. The big stores had established that they were making a reasonable profit on their turnover, and it had not been proved that they were cutting prices so low as to exclude the small man. The fact, however, still remained that unless something was done a very large number of small retailers would have to go out of business. Whether it would be wise to allow that to happen was a matter for the. Government to take into serious consideration. The public welfare must be' paramount. The committee felt that opportunity should be taken by.the .department, to bring all parties together with a view to arriving at a satisfactory solution of the problem. In reply, Mr. McLeod said that if the committee was not unanimous certainly a large preponderance of the members were opposed to the prayer of the petition. While tobacco was on the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act it was impossible to fix a price higher than that at which any trader was prepared to sell. The committee’s recommendation would give the opportunity and also provide the Minister with a lever to bring about negotiations for an agreement by the parties. There would be a threat over their heads that unless they came to an agreement their commodities would be removed from the schedule of the Commercial Trusts Act. FILMS FOR CHILDREN Proposal by Petitioner The report of the A to L Public Petitions Committee on the petition of Marian C. Algie, Wellington, praying that special picture-houses for children be Instituted and that unemployed youths be settled on Crown lands and financially assisted, was tabled in the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon. In respect to the request for the institution of picture-houses, the committee stated it was satisfied with the earnestness and sincerity of the petitioner and recommended the proposal to the consideration of the Government. In connection with the settlement of youths on the land, the committee stated that as a matter of Government policy was involved it had no recommendation to make. j

REVALUATION WORK Five Years’ Achievement BOROUGHS AND COUNTIES “During the last five years 64 per cent, of the cities, boroughs and counties of New Zealand have been revalued,” said the Minister in charge of the Valuation Department, Hon. E. A. Ransom, when replying to discussion on the Estimates of the department in the House of Representatives last evening. Mr. Ransom said that, considering some local authorities did not want revaluations, a good number had been dealt with. Mr. C. H. Chapman (Lab., Wellington North) said that private valuations were taking up too much time. He suggested that because of this the major revaluation work was held up. The department received fees for private valuations and it almost seemed as if it. were so eager to undertake these valuations in order to secure the fees that it neglected the more important general revaluation. Mr. Ransom said that private revaluations were very often made with extra men engaged by the department. It was certainly not the object of the department to try and obtain these valuations for the sake of the fees. Replying to other speakers, Mr. Ransom said that unquestionably the operation of section 45 of the Valuation of Land Act was affecting local bodies very seriously where property owners were permitted to call on the ValuerGeneral to reduce their valuations or to acquire their land. He had recently made an attempt to secure two properties at their owners’ own valuation, but as soon as he took action excuses were quickly made. It was proposed to*amend the'section in a direction which he thought would be acceptable to the House. Amending legislation was also proposed to avoid the rush of applications for revaluation which customarily came in at the end of March. . „„„„ Mr. Ransom said that since 1926 the unimproved value of all counties in New Zealand had been reduced by £37,500,000, which was equivalent to a reduction of 16j per cent. POLITICAL RIGHTS Labour Members Critical POLICY OF GOVERNMENT An incident arising out of the Lyttelton by-election was recalled in the House of Representatives last evening, when it was disclosed that a. departmental inquiry was being held to consider the action of certain young Civil Servants who had asked questions at a meeting addressed by the Minister of Finance. Mr. P. Fraser (Lab., Wellington Central), who raised the question, said he would like to know’ what attitude the Government was adopting toward its opponents. He referred to the byelection Incident, and contrasted the position with that of the Commissioner of Taxes, who had been allowed to make a speech in which he had made some remarks not altogether complimentary bo Parliament. He understood that in this case no action had been taken. Was there to be one law for departmental heads and another, for the rank and file? Was it in the interests of t-he country that people who had taken part in a by-election in which the Government had ben defeated should be hounded down? Mr. J. A. Lee (Lab., Grey Lynn) said that he, too, was curious to know the policy of the Government toward its opponents. He knew of a case In which a Civil Servant had declared that the contribution of Mr. Coates at Ottawa was a brilliant effort. Apparently if somebody had said the same thing about the Opposition an inquiry would be held. “Are we' to bake it that a person is at perfect liberty to extol the Government and to do as much harm to the Opposition as he likes?” asked Mr. Lee. “If that is the position, then it is not altogether fair. If a school teacher stands up and says the Government’s policy is everythnig it should be, then nothing more is heard about it, bub if another gets up and says the policy of his Majesty’s Opposition would lift New Zealand out of the depression an inquiry is ordered.” Mr. D. G. Sullivan (Lab., Avon) said that he thought it only fair to say that the Commissioner of Taxes had expressed regret for his remarks. This he had done not only verbally, but in writing. VISIT TO SAMOA Labour Member Curious “I’m disgusted,” commented Mr. A. S. Richards (Lab., Roskill) in the House of Representatives last evening when he unsuccessfully sought an explanation from the Prime Minister as to why no report had been presented to Parliament on the visit to Samoa of the Public Service Commissioner and the secretary of the Department of External Affairs. Mr. Richards said that all members knew about the business was that two officers had visited Samoa. He thought the taxpayers were entitled to more information, as they had to bear the cost. The Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, said it was very necessary that departmental officers should keep in close touch with the districts under their jurisdiction. He thought it was only businesslike to make a tour of inspection once in a while. Mr. Richards: Yes, but what about the report? Mr. Forbes said that the visit to Samoa had been well worth while. ■“I am sadly disappointed at the Prime Minister’s evasion of a simple question,” said Mr. Richards. “I quite agree that the heads of the Department should go down to Samoa. I don’t dispute that for a moment, but surely this House is entitled to a report? The Prime Minister has evaded the issue.” BILLS BEFORE COUNCIL The following Bills were passed by the Legislative Council last evening: The Transport Law Amendment Bill, the Victoria University College Bill, and the Canterbury University College Bill. The companies Bill was read a second time and referred to the Statutes Revision Committee.

COMPANIES BILL Before Upper House GREATER PROTECTION More Consideration Urged A greater measure of protection to shareholders, prospective shareholders, and creditors of companies, was stated to be contained iu the new Companies Bill by the Minister of Education, Hon R Masters, when moving its second reading in the Legislative Council yesterday. Mr. Masters said the real reason for the Bill was to bring the New Zealand company law into harmony with Imperial legislation. It was more than a consolidation of the New Zealand law. Outstanding among the provisions for the protection of shareholders and prospective shareholders, the Minister said,' were those as to prospectuses which ensured that a full disclosure must be made of the position of the company, and of the financial Interests therein of the promoters. It had been suggested in some quarters that the Bill contained too many provisions enabling the affairs of companies to be pried into. The view of the advisory committee was that any publicity required under the Act was necessary in the Interests of the shareholders, the creditors and the persons dealing in shares. The principle was laid down by the committee that even the smallest private company was not the same as a partnership, and that in assuming the status of a company, it must also assume certain responsibilities. The Companies Act could be a tremendous instrument for fraud, and the public would be in a most unfortunate position at the hands of unscrupulous persons if the safeguards in the Bill were not provided. Sellers, Beware.” The Hon. M. Fagan said he would have liked to see the measure brought down many years ago. Under the present law it was a question of “buyers, beware,” but with the passing of the new Bill, it would be “sellers, beware.” Most countries'were tightening up their company law, particularly the United States and Belgium. In the case of the former country, he almost thought the tightening had gone too far. He thought once the law had protected the buyer to a certain extent, the onus then rested upon him. In recent years in New Zealand hundreds of thousands of pounds had been Invested in concerns of no worth at all. He had never been able to see the difference between a mining promoter who made misleading statements to the public, to unsuspecting invest 1 'S, and straight-out confidence C‘ien. The Hon. C. J. Carrington said the development of New Zealand had been retarded by the obsolete company laws operating in the past. In the north many retired Civil Servants from overseas had been enticed by misleading prospectuses. He welcomed the new legislation because he considered such would be stopped to a large extent. The Hon. R. McCallum said he had no faith in companies and would not Invest any money in them. Out of all the companies formed, not five in a hundred paid dividends. Company promotion up to the present time was only a scheme for despoliation of the public. By fraud and chicanery, those responsible for the formation of certain companies had taken down the public. If he never said anything, else in the Chamber, he hoped he would get credit for having warned the public against their exploitation. The Hon. D. Buddo said the Bill was a good one, and had been long looked for. Further Consideration Urged. The Rt. Hon. Sir Francis Bell said that but for one unfortunate accident he should have been disposed to agree to the course suggested by Mr. Masters, that the Bill should be passed as a formality. In the last days of tl'-l appearance of the Bill in another Chamber, however, sheets of amendments were brought down, not after long consideration, but matters suggested at the last moment by members of the House, without the possibility of due- consideration. He would be happy to support the Bill as originally worded subject only to such alterations as the Crown law officer desired. The Bill would not come into force until April 1, even if it were passed now, Sir Francis continued. In the last hours of the session the Council was Invited to debar itself from consideration, not of the language of the English statute, but of language which somebody had thought fitting to propose for the New Zealand’statute. He did think the Council should have the opportunity of considering the Bill in view of the amendments. The position was entirely different from that which would have existed had the Bill come before the Council as originally drafted. If the Bill were put through without the consideration he suggested, he desired to make it. perfectly plain that he accepted no responsibility as a member of the Council for the contents. "So far as I know, there is nothing outstanding in the amendments made that require reconsideration,” Sir Francis said. “I do not know it is so, but I do not know it is not so, and if the Bill is passed without consideration by the Council, then I hope it will be said, at any rate, it is not the fault of the Council if ill-considered matter appears.” Minister’s Reply. In reply, Mr. Masters said that while the Bill was before the House of Representatives, the whole of the amendments which had been proposed fiad been referred to the expert committee before .they were accepted by the Government. He wanted to make it perfectly clear that there was no hurry and no rush about the matter, and all the suggestions and all the proposed amendments were before the advisory committee for one month. The committee went through all of them, and any amendments were made upon the suggestion and upon the recommendation of the advisory committee. When the Bill went back to the Lower House, no alterations were macle. He wished to make that point clear, as it had been suggested that the Bill had been altered by the committee of the House. In view of the large amount of legislation to come before the House in the next few days, he was desirous of pushing ahead With the business of the Council. He had no objection, however, to allowing the Bill to go before the Statutes Revision Committee to report .the next afternoon.

The Bill was read a second time and referred to the Statutes Revision Committee.