THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN

Evening Star, Issue 12101, 6 November 1908, Page 7

THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN

THJS CITY SEATS. M® A. K. Barclay (Dunedin North) spake tr A,b “V Street Hull last night, Cr H S. White presiding. The only qnes-tion-jmi was m to whether the candidate would support quinquennial Parliaments, nnd his reply was that while the five-year period- might be very agreeable to the members, he thought the people would insist on continuing to have a reckoning with them every three years. The vote of confidence proposed by Mr Edwards and seconded by Mr Wilson was carried with unanimity. Mr R. R, Douglas (Dunedin South) received a unanimous vote of thanks and confidence from St. Clair electors last night. The Hon. J. A. Millar (DimedLin West) addressed a large meeting- in tho Arthur Street School gymnasium, the mavor (Mr J. McDonald) presiding. The Minister exhaustively explained the scheme for building Parliament House, and “housing” all Government buildings under one roof. Building for to-morrow only was a fatal mistake. After the candidate had been questioned at great length regarding his efforts to find work for the unemployed—mainly by those t. Ik> had hem in evidence at hia previous, meetings—the proceedings- were closed by the adoption by a large majority of the following resolution, moved by Mr A. >l. Boonicke and seconded by Mr J. T. Haro : —“That this meeting thank the Hon. J. A. Millar for his address, and confidently consider him to be the most tit and proper person to represent them in Parliament.'’ Mr J. F. Arnold (Dunedin Central) had a splendidly-attended meeting at St. Andrew's Hall last evening, a large number of ladies being present. The candidate was well received. The chief topics touched on were tho second ballot, defence, fair rent, and a recapitulation of the improvements recently made to the enactment concerning old ago pensions-. Mr Arnold pointed out that now an old couple might )>csst«9 the properly in which they lived to a value of £650 without forfeiting their right to receive the pension. After briefly touching upon Civil Service Superannuation Acts, ho expressed the opinion that the time, in his opinion, had arrived when the Government should institute an annuity scheme enabling everybody to provide for the necessities of old age without having roeourso to charity, whether from societies or individuals. He showed to tho satisfaction of his hearers that local matters had always received his prompt attention, while without exposing himself to a charge of egotism he was able to assert that he had been largely instrumental in getting Ministers to recognise pressing wants of the City of Dunedin, and in obtaining votes on tho current year's Estimates. In answer to a question, Mr Arnold said that he was not at all sure that tho proposal to supply books at prime cost to tho schools would prove a success ; on the contrary, he anticipated failure. His own feeling was in favor of a uniform supply. He'did not sec any reason why, it there was to be a free supply of books to the primary schools, such books could not he supplied at cost price to all other schools within the Dominion. Air M. Cohen moved a resolution thanking Mr Arnold for his address, ns well as for the diligent and zealous way in which he had served Dunedin South in the last Parliament, and pledging the meeting to use every effort to place him at the bead of the poll for Dunedin Central on the 17th inst. As one who had had frequent opportunities of studying the characteristics of the City members" he said that Mr Arnold was a'lwavs to he found in his place in the House, while his activity and fair-mindedness in committee work were generally recognised by his fellow-legislators. The last-men-tioned trait in his character was particularly noticeable in connection with the conferences on the Arbitration Bill, where his tact and moderation had succeeded in gaining for the workers advantages that they might have otherwise lost. Experience had shown over and over again that the talkative parliamentarian was'less successful where material interests were concerned than tho member who assiduously looked after his constituents’ needs, anil was held in esteem by both sides of the House. The vote, which was seconded by Mr J. M'Kay, was carried by acclamation. Mr J. W. Mttnro (Dunedin West) addressed a large meeting in the Roslvn Institute, Roslvn, Mr J Haymes, president of the Trade* and Labor Council, in the chair* Tho candidate de»dt exhaustively with the Conciliation and Arbitration Act, with a view to showing tf)at the workers were not 1 ungrateful to his opponent, the Minister of Labor, but were determined to guard their own interests. He urged that tho immigration policy of tho Government was calculated to prove a source of grave danger to Libor. A vote of thanks and confidence m the candidate was adopted, only five hands being held up against it. THE MINISTER OF LANDS AT GORE. The Hon. R. M‘Nah, a candidate for Mataura. addressed a crowded meeting of Gore electors in the local Town Hall last night. He defended the land administration of the Government at length. In speaking of the policy of the future, tho Prime Minister, at Foilding. had stated that what was wanted was —A Cessation of Legislation,— or a rest in connection with legislative matters, and more attention to administrative work. That remark had given rise to some misapprehension. What "the head of the Government meant was that, now that the Land Question and Tariff revision had been dealt with—matters which had been in abeyance for several years—more attention should be given by Parliament to the administrative work There were people who said that If Parliament were to cease legislative work for ten years the country would be the better of it. But let them suppose that the administrative work was suspended, not for ten years, but for ten days. Supposing the railways did not run, the Post Office ceased to convey letters! the Telegraph Department refrained from sending messages, and all the other departments were to stop, what would be tho position? No strike the world had ever seen would be so effective in holding up industries and suspending the operations of everything in the country. What was meant by “ a cessation of legislation ” was not that the work of Parliament should cense, but that the work of Parliament in regard to legislation should bo enormously reduced, and that Parliament should look to administrative work and inquire into administrative problems as its main work. More time would be given to departmental work and to discussing the Estimates and less time to tho discussion of Bills and other legislative work. There was an impression in the minds of some people that the Government as a Government were averse to what went on behind the scenes being made known, and that there were things carried on in connection with administrative work that Ministers might wish to cover over. There was nothing 0 of the kind. What he had noticed as the greatest chaa-acteristic of administrative work was tho difficulty under which .Mints tors labored because they could not get, the correct information conveyed to the people of the country. It was one of the main difficulties in the conduct of the House that sufficient information could not be placed at the disposal of members and under cover of that want of knowledge they got the usual results of ignorance and charges made against Ministers in connection with the different departments. Ho believed that if they adopted the plan now proposed and carried it out in its entirety it would produce an immense change in the political life of the country. After referring to the Meikle vote and other matters, Mr M'Nab defended the —Daily Regulations,— saying that the Government and the Agricultural Department (of which ho was the head) had been abused for having provided that each cow must have attached to it a metal label with the owner's name upon it; The Government had proposed nothing of the kind. Tho word " cow ” had been badly written by a, newspaper reporter in place of the word “ can,” and rente arose all the vilification. That was a sample of some of the criticism they had aad on the dairy regulations. There was ao industry that required such dose control as the dairy industry. The depart-

ment wae i ni one tinje constantly receijrisgi complaints from Home about the dairy produce, and Mr Cuddle was sent to England to examine the dairy produce on its arrival, and to report on the' complaints. On his return he reported that the great bulk of the complaints in the London market were due to the condition in,which the milk was being supplied nt Iho factories, and when the subject was investigated by a Committee of the House last session evidence was tendered that in connection with probably 5 per cent, of the supplies in the factories the class of material being supplied was of such a kind that it would pay these factories to put the 5 per cent into the sink instead of ill to the vat. ft created nearly the whole of • the second class produce, which meant a loss of £50,000 per annum to tho Dominion. The inspection of dairies was taken up with a view to guarding against the use of that milk, and it was with tho same object that *he dairy regulations were drawn up. The latter might appear stringent in some cases, but the department had to deal with jeople who had defied the factory manager, and the best way to deal with them was to bring them under the inspection of the department and take away the question of control from the factory manager. It was not intended to bring the regulations into operation straight away. The registration would not take place under them until the beginning of the next daily season. It was not required that new premises must be erected where there were premises now in existence; but where premises had to be erected they must comply with the conditions, otherwise the sanitary arrangements had to he looked into in the closest manner possible. It was only by supplying to the factory manager and operators the best class of material that New Zealand would be able to retain its present high standard in the markets of the Mother Country, and be able to make further advances in connection with it. On the motion of Air John MGibbon a hearty vote of thanks was accoidetl to the Hon. Mr -M'Nab fur his address, together with an expression of complete confidence in him as the member for tho district. •The candidate was honored by receiving quite a number of lloral tributes. THE ASHBURTON SEAT. [Special to the Star.] CHRISTCHURCH, November 6. I'ho position in the Ashburton electorate appears to be a strained one. Three Opposition candidates—Messrs D. Jones, Nosworthy. and MasLin—are opposing Mr F. R. Flatman. who is standing in the Government interest. Mr Massey, when in tho South last week, placed his hall-mark on Mr Jones, and the two other Oppositionists are naturally in revolt. Air Alaslin writes as follows to the ' Press ’ ; “ M hen Air John Studhohno decided that -ho would not again contest the Ashburton sea.!, ho wrote to me to that effect, and advised me to let Air Massey know that I would contevst the scat in the Opposition interest at the forthcoming election. I did so, and received his reply expressing his satisfaction at my decision, and promising to do anything' he could to help me. The attitude of Mr Nosworthy and myself to political parties has been clear and definite from the start. Can the same lie said of Air Jones? He has stated on the platform that lie would vote for or against the Government as his conscience directed, but would not pledge himself to support a party that had on many occasions forfeited the confidence of the electors. When I heard that the efforts of a few persons were being directed to obtain for Air Jones the official stamp. I. with the full concurrence of Mr Nosworthy. wrote to Air Massey advising that under the circumstances it woiikl be the more prudent course to allow the electors to decide who, as the Opposition candidate, should go to tho second ballot. I saw Air Alassey on Saturday last, and he agreed that this would have been the better thing to have done, and iie expressed his regret that ray letter had not reached him sooner. I have tho authority of Mr Nosworthy to state that he will go to the poll, and I certainly shall leave my political fate with confidence in the hands of the electors.” Another elector writes; “My advice to the Opposition interest in the'Ashburton electorate is, firstly, to work to prevent Air Flatman [Hilling over 50 per cent, of the votes cast. This will give us a second ballot. Then let us combine onr committees and work together to secure the election of the Opposition candidate for whom the electors have declared at the ballot box. I think this will probably bo the best solution of the difficulty, and result in Ashburton returning a true Opposition member. Air Nosworthy.’’

KTTCTTOX PARS. " The cost of governing the country should full, not upon the income that is within the limits of a, man's needs, but upon the surplus wealth of the country,” said Mr T. E. Taylor on Wednesday evening. “ Until the wants of a. man and his children ami his wife in the matter of food and clothing have been supplied, he should not be called upon to bear a burden of taxation. In the Lnstome taxation today the people are bearing a burden that not one person in a hundred understands.” Healing with the subject of the death duties. Mr M'Comhs expressed surprise that the scale had been left unrevised so long. He said that even in the Old Country the. duties had been largely increased in late years, Parliament recognising the justice of the principal that an estate created under the protection of a country’s laws should return a fair proportion to the State on the death of the holder. The New Zealand duties were exceedingly low, and the Government wore neglecting an important source of revenue in not increasing them. “ I shall vote on every occasion for the conversion into perpetual national endowments of all the remaining Crown lands in New Zealand,"’ said Mr T. E. Taylor. “ I am entirely opposed to the alienation of more land. If people want freehold, then the bulk of the land in Now Zealand is now freehold, and they can buy some ot it. If they want to use land belonging to the State, they should occupy it under the leasehold system, and when the lease is renewed at the end of thirty-three years any increase in the rental value created by the Public Works policy and the general development of New Zealand will come to the State."