The Hastings Standard Published Daily. SATURDAY, FEB. 20, 1897. PAYMENT OF MEMBERS.

Hastings Standard, Issue 252, 20 February 1897, Page 2

The Hastings Standard Published Daily.

SATURDAY, FEB. 20, 1897. PAYMENT OF MEMBERS.

For the cause that lacks assistance, Fur the wrongs that need resistance, For the future in the distance. And the good that we can do.

We are apt many a time ami oft to protest at the annual expense of reijuiutii; nmmbers of Parliatuent for services which are invariably well un-ant are sometimes of a dubious character. Payment of members has much to ciiimiii-ml it, hut a<:ain it may be said that the «y*u*tu leads to many abuses and much corruption. In this colony, the abu>e becomes manifest in connection with the Le-.'i -lati\ eCmincil. As iiioiibts of the Chamber are nominal' ■! h\ t!i( (mv rnnn nt <>f the day, ami .i-tlun an no-i*cial imU tiUal.s n< e< • iry to .ju.tlifs a fur noinin.ai'>!i, n f"ih)wih it ihn-t ap pointed to liit- ].>■ <_' i <1 i:i. ■ Council receive their nomination a.- a inia>-iire of reward E* t u-» m-lanci th*- rtc«nt elevati") - M -r- I'.uktrtoti, Ilarn-, and Ivetiv. 1 he democracy at the g«n«ml t-lltUuu refused to repewe U»eir

confidence in the trio, but the rejected of the democracy is deified by the Ministry. A pension of £l5O a year for seven years, with perquisites which all members of Parliament seek to enjoy and do secure, i? the reward for services not to the country bfit to the party with which they had been and are associated. We by no means challenge the right of ministers to appoint whom they choose, but the unwritten law which is oftentimes stronger than the written code, demands that such appointments shall be made with a view to benefitting the democracy. It cannot be said that the latest appointments were regulated by any regard to the abilities or qualifications of the nominees to discharge the high functions of legislators. These three men have been made State pensioners because of their past and prospective services to the party. Nominations of this character have been the rule in New Zealand, and only once has higher motives than mere party interests actuated those responsible for nominating Legislative Councillors. The appointments made by the late Hon. .John Ballance, we refer to the nominations of Messrs Eigg, Jennings, Jenkinson and Bolt, was a new and praiseworthy departure from the old custom, and their nominations were in accord with the principle since universally recognised that working men are entitled to direct representation in the Parliament of the country. Payment of members is accepted in the Australian colonies as a fundamental principle, as it is in all British colonies. The United Kingdom is the sole country in Europe which makes no allowance whatever to its members of Parliament. The members of the House of Commons give their services to their country, and it cannot be said that these services are in any way shirked, or that the results of their labors are below the standard. The British Parliament stands clear and distinct from all other legislatures for the excellence of its work, for the high tone of its debates, and the purity of administration. It is the model for the rest of the civilised world. In Spain and Italy the members of Parliament do not receive any cash payment, but are allowed certain privileges, for instance, in Italy, to travel free on all railways and steamboats of the Empire. Of other European countries, France gives its law-makers from £350 to £6OO per annum, Holland £l7O and travelling expenses, Greece £7O a year, with an additional £55 for a second session, Sweden £7O for a session of about four months, Portugal £1 daily during the sitting of the House, Belgium £l6 16s a month, Norway 18s 4d a day, and the various German States from 6s to 15s a day. In the United States, members of Congress receive a £IOOO a year besides travelling expenses from and to their homes. Brazil and Mexico regard their legislators as well worth £6OO a year, |while Paraguay gives £2OO. In the Argentine Republic, Parliamentary pay reaches enormous proportions, for each of the 116 members of the State Senate receives about £I6OO annually. In •Japan the members of the two Houses each receive about £135 a year besides travelling expenses, and it is stipulated that no member shall be allowed to refuse the money due to him. In Cape Colony the members receive a guinea a day, but those residing more than 15 miles from Capetown receive 365. In Canada the remuneration is £2 daily but there is a regulation to prevent any member receiving more than £2OO a year, while for absence for any cause except sickness a deduction of ydols a day is made.

Payment of members is the universal custom, but there is very little doubt that the higher the salary the greater the corruption. The Argentine Republic and the United States are samples of rottenness and high pay. The honorarium question is recurrent in the House of Commons, but there is very little hope of its coming within the scope of practical politics. The British parliament is not perfect, it is nevertheless the best legislature in the world, and is not liable to improvement by the mere fact of its members being paid.