POPULAR PREMIER.

Gisborne Times, Volume LXVIII, Issue 10730, 30 October 1928, Page 3

POPULAR PREMIER.

CAMPAIGN IN ELECTORATE CONCLUDED. MU. COATES ABSOLVED FROM FURTHER ADDRESSES. A SETTLER S TRIBUTE. “HE DOES WHAT HE THINKS IS RIGHT”. (Special To The Times). . AUCKLAND, Oct. 28. The Prime. Minister completed u successful tour of his electorate on Saturday, when he spent the whole of the day and the evening in active campaigning in the lower portion of the constituency, reaching Auckland 'tit midnight. Notwithstanding the fact 'that the time at the Prime .Minister’s disposal necessitated the assembling of the settlers at iueunvenient hours, those responsible for the several gatherings were aide to report that there was practically a full muster of the electors in each case. From them all Mr. Coates received unanimous votes of thanks for his remarks and confidence in himself and the Government, and further expression of these sentiments was made in the % informal chats which the Prime Minister had with his constituents.

Acknowledging the tributes, % Mr. Coates also voiced his appreciation of the k’ndly action of his supporters in other parts of the electorate, who had sent of goodwill and had absolved him from the duty of addressing: them personally, so that he might heed the call of electors elsewhere in the Dominion. The esteem in which the Prime Minister is held bv those who hold Ids immediate political future in their hands, his own constituents, was - expressed very shortly by Mr. Frank Poynton, an elderly settler of Silverdale. “Apart from anything else,” Mr Poynton said, “what we like about Mr. Coates is that lie says what he thinks, whether he agrees with you or not, and he does what he thinks is right. That is the way things should be.” Another sentiment expressed by Mr. Poynton at Silverdale, and repeated by him at other centres visited, was that the Main Highways Act was the greatest monument any government could have of its works for the benefit of the people, and particularly of these in the country They were now getting good roads instead of having the money frittered away in a vote here and a vote there, and also having to go ca.p in 'nand for the grants. This remark was invariably received with applause . VALUABLE HIGHWAYS LEGISLATION. Saturday’s numerous gatherings afforded the Prime Minister opportunities for touching on a wide variety of subjects and of expressing his views on questions raised by the settlers concerning matters which ranged almost through the gamut of legislative activity. At Silverdale Mr. Coates pointed out that he had been responsible for the initiation and drafting of the highway legislation, and that the Highways Board wa.« now empowered in special cases to bear the whole of the cost of road work. Of course, as soon as‘ it was known that some reads could be obtained without cost to the local ratepayer everybody wanted them, but it had to be remembered that the funds were not unlimited. There |was £2, €00,030. a year, and it had to go round. His idea was that the highways funds would provide the main roads, and leave the county councils free to spend their.rates on those roads giving access to farms. It was not possible to do all the work at once, but "in the four'years in which’’the highwavs' Act had been operating exceedingly good work had been done.

UNITED PARTY’S IMPOSSIBLE RAILWAY PROMISE.

The United Party are talking about completing the railways in three years, and not only can they not do that, but it is as well to remember that when some of them were in office they had about 86 lines under construction. The Prime Minister remarked at Silverdale: “I do not want to blow my own trumpet, but it was left to me to bring in the policy of concentration, and to get them finished. That policy was laid down in 11)24, and I said that in four years 280 miles of railway line would be handed over. Two hundred miles have been taken over by the Railway Department, and another 89 miles will be taken over in three months’ time. SETTLEMENT AN IXANGAHUA LINE IMPOSSIBLE. The United Party also sav they will put settlers on the land through which the lines to be completed will be run,” said the Prime Minister. “I would like to know how many settlers they wilj pub on the lu-angahau-Westport line, and the line through the Buller Gorge. Whv a sheep would not be able to hang on to that country. Answering a question, the Prime Minister said the Westport line was necessary in order to provide railway access to the coal fields there. FREE ADMISSION OF CEMENT OF LITTLE USE.

Tariffs and protection provided a subject for a roadside meeting at Dairy Flat. One farmer suggested that the duty should be taken off cement in order to assist farmers. “How much cement would a farmer use in a lifetime F” Mr. Coates asked. A voice: A ton at the outside. The Prime Minister: Probably not that, but say he used two tons. The duty would be only £2 spread over a life time.” GOVERNMENT’S CONFEDERATION FOR FARMERS.

“I know the Country Party are talking about tariff burdens on farmers,” ■ the Prime Minister said in reply to another question, “but practically everything the farmer uses is free of duty. As for protection, 1 suppose the farmers enjoy as great a measure as any other section of flie community. We will not allow produce from other countries to. be dumped on the local markets, and there is State assistance for all kinds of exports. In the same way we are not allowing worth-while secondaryindustries to be ruined by letting New Zealand be ,’made the dumping ground for the output of cheap "labour in Europe and Asia.” PREMIER PRIDES HIMSELF ON' CORRECT STATISTICS.

Farmers and week-enders resisted the call of . a beautiful sunny afternoon and an inviting beach to crowd into the hall to hear Mr. Coates at Drowns : Bay! The Prime Minister briefly traversed some of the issues at the. election,, and in. a. reference to the use. of statistics, said, the figures he used were always official ones. “There! is a 'far greater responsibility resting on me, he said, “to use correct figures' than there is on our opponents. I have to speak as Prime Minister, and, after : all, if the word of the. Prime Minister of the country cannot be .accepted, whose word can?” . - BRIGHT FUTURE FOR HYDROELECTRICITY. . .. Touching on hydro-electricity development, • Mr. Coates said 1 he had had figures taken out and had them •checked and re-checked by experts, and. he was .convinced that -by 1940 New Zealand. would haveVa surplus of £8,000,OCX) .a year Over interest and : sinking • funds • from its electrical • undertakings, provided -the . standard rates new being- charged were He believed that as sooj;

as the Arapuni scheme was completed, the demand for. power would be so great that additional generating units would be required, and the product from these units would he clear profit. The .meeting at lvtuneu in the evening was described at the largest that has been held in that district. GOVERNMENT’S SLOGAN—“POLICY AND PERFORMANCE.”

The- Prime Minsiter said' 'that effect had been given to. practically every one of the proposals in thn 1925 platform, and that the Government had come to the electors with “policy and performance” as one obits slogans. Some attention was devoted b v the Prime Minister to the Government’s land settlement .proposals for the part-time farmer and the country workers, and the group purchase anil settlement scheme. He said the preparatory worth wa« already in hand and the proposals would come down next year. They would work up to L 1,000,000 a year for land settlement,. about £500,080 being ‘‘spent next year. ELECTION NOTES.

Some good points were made by the Prime Minister, Mr. Coates, on Saturday, when lie had a number of informal meetings with settlers in the lower portion of his electorate. “This Government knows no section or class,” Mr. Coates said. “We have had terrific power and we have used it, but we have not abused it. “if this government is responsible for bad times then we are entitled for full maiks for the good times which have come along during the past twelve months.” was another remark.

“The Opposition starts all sorts of rumours but they start them too soon,” Mr. Coates said anropros of a report he had received that Public Works men were to be disenerged when the election was over. “Nothing of the sort is contemplated,” he added. “We will discharge our men only when all* our works are finished and then when they can he absorbed into other occupations.”

“I hope personally that the Public Trustee will have some difficulty in lending the money he is advertising. That will heln to bring down the interest rates.” Mr. Coates made this remark when speaking of the recovery of N.A. trade an the availability of money for investment. THE FARMERS’ UNION

■‘My idea of the Farmers’ Union is that it should be a body representative of all branches of the Farmers’ Union, and strong enough to speak authoritatively on behalf of the farmers,” said the Prime Minister, Mr Coates, at Kumeu on Saturday. “Tlie executive and committees of such a body would be able to co-oper-ate with the Government and advise it concerning legislation dealing with farming, and on other questions of nterest to the man on the land. We should be able to submit cur proposals to them, and sav, “Here is what we suggest. What do you think about it i' But it seems now that the men at the head, and the organisers of the union, are budding politicians. There is no objection to a farmer entering politics, but i think he should resign from the union before he does so.”