COST OF LIVING

Evening Post, Volume XCI, Issue 128, 31 May 1916, Page 5

COST OF LIVING

WAR AND "EXPLOITATION"

ADDRESS BY MR. ATMORE,

" War Taxation, Exploitation, and the Cost of Living," was the title of an address given by Mr. H. Atmore, ex-M.P. for Nelson in the Town Hall last evening. Mr. J. Vigor Brown, M.P., Mayor of Napier, presided, and there was an attendance of between four and five hundred people.

Mr. Atmore said that he had decided •to take.the step of addressing the people in an endeavour to put the true facts of the position before them. It might he that he would be called disloyal and not patriotic, but- it was, he held, the duty of the true patriot to try to see that everyone got a square deal, and was not exploited by the class which was at present burglarising the community. "They are not disloyal. Oh, no!" said Mr. Atmore, "but it will be called damnably disloyal to draw attention to the burglary."

New Zealand, he continued, was more prosperous than ever, as had been said by the Chief Government Whip in his speech on the Address-hi-Reply, but it was equally true that the bulk of the people had never been so hard up.A voice : Why ?

Mr. Atmore: ■ Because the National Government is not a National Government, but is only masquerading under the name.

Proceeding, the speaker said that it was time the National Cabinet did something to justify its title, instead of protecting the classes of New Zealand. To talk of party fighting in the House— there never was a party fight. The real fight was between the exploiter and the exploited, and in the House they were only talking about it. Mr Atmore then quoted figures by the Government Statistician, which he said ehowed that the -purchasing power of the sovereign had been reduced by 5s 3d, which meant that everybody's income had been considerably reduced, - although they were actually handling ,the same coin. He was criticising, not in a party spirit, but- from the point of view of the general public, and all the National Government had done to stop exploitation was to _ establish a . Board of Trade. Surely, if the merchants could fix prices, the Government was confessing incapacity or ignorance if it said it could not fix the prices for the betterment of the people.

Then again there was the rent question, which was the biggest question Wellington people had to face. This problem had not been tackled by the National Cabinet. The position in Wellington was that it took over 33j per cent, of a working man's income to pay his rent, while in the Old Country it only required l-6th of a man's income. In regard to the railwaymen's demands, he claimed that while tiie men really appeared to ask for an increase of wages, what they .really sought was the removal of the taxation imposed upon them by the exploiters. It was clearly the duty of the Government 'to see that their wages had the old purchasing power.Mr. Atmore referred at length to what he termed the "miserable pittance" being paid to the soldiers who enlisted au<l fought to save New Zealand. He said it was a disgrace to the country, which on its capital value could claim to be the wealthiest country in the world, and pointed out that a 1-^d tax on wool would provide all the pensions required on a basis of 35s per week, while pensions of £3 per week could be given to alj who, had earned them by a tax of less, than 2-jd on wool. "There is no warrant for raising the price of produce in New Zealand," he added, "because men are fighting in Europe. They want cheap soldiers but'they are letting the shipping companies have big dividends." Mr. Atmore referred to what he termed the "enormously increased profits of the shipping companies." He also criticised the intention to raise the next war loan in England, and claimed that on 'the ground of patriotism to the Old Country of putting the burden of taxation on the right shoulders the next loan should be raised in the Dominion.

Reverting to the question of pensions, Mr. Atmore claimed that they were being reduced every day owing to the efforts of the exploiter ' The pension of 35s granted by the Government last year was now only worth about 265, while the 10s pension was worth about 7s 2d. It was for the people to see, while Parliament was. in session, that the fair thing was done to the soldiers. It was all right to call the farmer the backbone of the country, but let the Government take the war profits a.nd pay the soldiers properly.

Speaking of the Military Service Bill, Mr. Atmore said it had been brought down, by a Government fearful of showing the measure of its cowardice and incapacity, and fearful of taxing the squatters. •, He claimed that there was no reason for conscription,, and said that the people only had themselves to blame, as, having been so apathetic in regard to the' proper treatment of soldiers, the Government would naturally think they would not mind the Bill.

At the conclusion of Mr. Atmore's address he was asked by Mr. M. Laracy for his "straight out" attitude on the Military. Service Bill. '

In reply, he said that if the Government had done its duty in taking over war profits and putting adequate taxation orf the proper shoulders there 'would be no need for any compulsion. He was not in favour of the Bill, and claimed that had the Government made proper provision for the men going to the front there would' have been more men offering than were required. A number of other questions were answered, and the following resolution was moved by Mr. P. C. Webb, M.l\ :— "That this meeting of citizens respectfully request the National Government to prove its claim to its representative name- by taking immediate steps to relieve the people from the cruel pressure of the excessive cost of living, and fixing prices • and placing war profits on war profiteers." This was seconded by a, member of the audience and carried. ANOTHER RESOLUTION. Prior to the resolution being put, Mr. H. Holland had asked a number of questions chiefly, so far as they could be heard, relating to Mr. Atmore's attitude towards the Labour Party. He then expressed his intention of moving an' amendment, which, however, the chairman declined to accept. Subsequently, however, the chairman allowed Mr. Holland to move his amendment as an additional resolution, which was seconded and declared carried as the people* were leaving the hall. The resolution was—" That, in view of the fact that the voluntary system has not failed, this meeting condemns the Compulsion Bill now before the House as one of the worst forms of Prussian militarism."