ELECTION CAMPAIGN SPEECHES

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 112, 7 November 1935, Page 22

ELECTION CAMPAIGN SPEECHES

LABOUR ATTACKED.

LAND PARTY'S POLICY

SPEECH BY MR. NICOLAUS

A strong attack on the principles and policy of the.Labour Party was the feature of an address given by Mr. E. W. Nicolaus, Commonwealth Land Party candidate for Wellington East, in the Taia Hall, Kilbirnie, last night. Dr. R. O'Regan presided over an attendance of about 75, and after an attentive and uninterrupted-hearing, the candidate was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence. Mr. Nicolaus said that underlying every social problem there was a social wrong. To solve the problem, they must seek out and remove the injustice. If, on the other hand, the cause was not eradicated, the problem persisted and multiplied itself, and all the evils that went with it, until one day : that particular catastrophe, which went under the dreadful name —revolution —occurred. Dealing with the problems which beset the people at the present time, Mr. Nicolaus said that the theories were worse than useless, one man's guess being as good as .another's. The facts must be dealt with, I and it was the facts with which he was going to deal. The outstanding fact was that one man had to pay another for the right to occupy and work land, which meant that men had to pay others for the right to live. This was the gravest injustice in the civilised world. The Governments of the different countries had completely obscured this fact, and endeavoured to carry on by guessing. One thought that the way out was to incur large debts by erecting public works; another that by taxing industry they could help industry; another that by passing laws for the alleviation of the workers from the most inhuman usage of man's labour, that thereby labourers would be saved the degradation of seeking charity, and by a process of bargaining be able to get higher wages. Now all these processes did but enhance the price one man had to pay another for the right to occupy and work land, thus making the position worse than before. It seemed unjust to have to say it, but apparently the members of Parliament deliberately passed laws to uphold this fundamental injustice. All the processing taxes which had been foisted upon labour and working capital, had had the effect of enhancing the rake-off which the owners of land received. A SHELVED ISSUE. "There is not one other candidate in this whole election who cared to bring out these facts concerning monopolists," said Mr. Nicolaus. "The question is shelved. I would like to hear what our leading newspapers have to say on these matters. It is their job to educate the public in anything which is bearing on the effort of labour and working capital, and to lend their weight to remove it. The business man discreetly shuts his eyes to this great robbery being enacted on him and his and to curry favour the very men who impose these burdens on industry are lauded and knighted, held up as 'leaders.' Let the working man and' his wife question why it is that even the Labour Party keep sileni on these subjects. Let him question himself why it is that there is not om plank in the Labour Party's platforrr attacking the smallest and meanesi monopoly, the beer monopoly. Is i 1 not the straw which shows the waj the wind is blowing? "The wrongs which have created the impoverishment of the human race arc plain to see, by whoever cares to looi with honest eyes. The solution is tc abolish these injustices, no matter whe goes under in the process. No on< . should be allowed to stand in the ligh of justice and equity. The Common wealth Land Party strikes straight a the root of these monopolies in lan guage plain for all. to understand. W< hide nothing, we have nothing t< hide. In our reading, of the wrong! from which society is suffering, then is no theory; in fact, no theory i needed. The theory is only needed b; those who either do not see, or whi will not see" the causes. All reasoi rejects the idea that wrongs can b< rigiited without removing them. LABOUR AND VESTED INTERESTS. "It will be noted by all that th Labour Party have made no attemp to undo tire wrongs pressing upon th workers. Not only that, they hay planks on their platform which ut hold those wrongs. They vot-> for ther in the House. The Auckland Mun cipal Milk Bill, the Auckland. Wate Supply Bill, the item giving •th brewers a gift of £150,000. The Lat our Party and vested interests are han in glove. Labour cannot deny it.. Th road to power gained by theassistanc of funds drawn from monopoly, an the votes ;of those whom monopol despqils is; one from which there : no return. inevitable consequenc of such? a means to an end can onl be the bitter disappointment of th masses who have, put their faith in tr ' Labour Party. "Mr. Semple has stated that tt credit of any country is the weali produced-by the people. Mr. Savag on behalf .of the Labour Party, hi stated-that that party will control tt credit of the country, that means ■ say that-the workers' wages will t subject to control. When a ruler tak< over the control of the wealth of country, when his is the last word ; to what" shall be paid to labour, capital, and to. the rentier. The La our Party has been pledged to upho all equities in land, this is the rentie and is going to subsidise him shou labour and capital, hot be able pay sufficient. Now the only meai whereby the rentier can be. subsidisi is by taking wages and interest fro industry. The Labour Party is de nitely pledged to do this unjust thir Mr. Savage has said that all tho who are necessary to-the econoir life of the community should be i sured of a decent livelihood. Yet will first give that assurance to o who is not a necessity to the ecor mic life of the country. "PLACE-SEEKERS." "The land owner or mortgagee len no aid in production; he only appi priates from production. The bre ing interests lend no aid to the ti hotelkeeper by being owners of t hotel site, yet all the earnings hotelkeepers, except a bare "living, to the brewer-owners of the land whe on the hotel stands. The industrial! who lobby Parliament for tariffs le no aid to the consumer; on the oth hand they penalise him for everythi he buys, whether it is made in N Zealand or elsewhere. Yet the Labc Party.makes no mention of doing ai thing to abolish these monopolies. is time that the workers began to 1 their own brains instead of rely: on those of a party of political pla seekers." In reply to a question as to how change-over in the ownership of Is to the' State would be effected, ] Nicolaus said that on the day Commonwealth Land Party got i power a Finance Act, which the Up] House could not touch, would be pas: and a declaration would be made storing the land to the people. 1 revenue would be the rental value tho land, the owner of the land h me to pay the rental value to the St; All equities in land would be al ished; the only equity would be

the products of ' labour. Everyone would be on the same footing, and the Government would manage the common estate to the best advantage.

A voice: How would you assess the value of land for rental purposes?

Mr. Nicolaus: You would have a fair idea of the value of your land, and with the help of an expert valuer you would be able to assess a fair thing. If a man deliberately tried to "have" the Government the land could be put up to public auction and its value found that way.