NEW ZEALAND POLITICS.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume II, Issue 279, 30 October 1912, Page 5

NEW ZEALAND POLITICS.

THE LAND BILL. Wellington .Oct. '29. In the Legislative Council, the Land Laws Amendment Bid. introduced from the House, was read the first time. The -<•< end reading was taken pro forma, and the bid referred to the Lands Committee. The Council adjourm d. EDUCATION' COMMISSION S REPORT. Wellington, Oct. 29. In the House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Education Committee reported that the evidence taken before the Education Commission could nut be printed this session. The Committee therefore deferred reporting on the Commission's report until next session. Several Opposition members objected to the postponement of consideration of the Commission's report. The "Minister said there were some questions m the report which required very considerable attention and could not possibly be dealt with this session. A great number of the recommendations of the Commission had already been put into operation. The new organisation was now under way. and before long ■ would be in full swing. Members| knew that an Education Bill was to j brought down this session, when ; a number of other important matters would be provided for. Attention would be paid to physical training and to the training of girls to fit them for their duties when they reached womanhood. Ho was about j to appoint five lady inspectors and j five men for that purpose. The re-1 organisation of the junior cadets, was already tn operation, and he in- j tended to submit a syllabus to a con-I ference of inspectors in the New [ Year. He hoped before long to see) every child with a card setting out its physical condition. OTIRA TUNNEL PETITION.

THE CONTRACTORS’ LOSSES

Mr. Lee moved the adoption of the report brought down by the Committee set up to consider the XJtira tunnel petition presented on behalf of Messrs. McLean Bros. After referring to the conditions of the contract and the loss sustained by the contractors ,he said the estimate of the Public Works Department was entirely at sea. It was absolutely impossible to carry out the work for the money. The contractors had estimated that it would take from £130,000 to £140,000 over the tender to complete the work. Mr. Seddon advocated that the Government should complete the work. Sir Joseph Ward contended that it would be unbusinesslike to cease work. Something like £1,800.000 had been spent already on the Midland Railway, including expenditure by the old company. He averred that tne non-prosecution of the work would amount almost to insanity. The trouble which arose in the tunnel'amongst the men engaged in the work was due to the conditions under which they had to work. If the contractors had lost £53,000, as had been said, he asked whether anything would be gained to the country by compelling them to go into liquidation. He thought the contractors should be relieved on the lines of the Committee’s report, and the work carried out by the Government.

Mr. John Bollard said the Government engineers’ original estimate should have been £700.000 instead of £500.000. The contractors had done their best to carry out the contract, but were hampered by employees. The contractors were new absolutely ruined, and the House should be merciful and give'them £15,000 or £20.000 and cry quits. After further discussion. Mr. Fraser said the whole question was a matter for the Cabinet, which would do its duty to the country. Mr. McKenzie favoured the return of the £5OOO deposit to the contractors and the release of the surety for £25,000. The House adjourned at 5.20 till evening. PUBLIC SERVICE BILL. ; On resuming the amendments ■ made by the Council in the PublicService Bill were agreed to.

RAILWAYS REFORM. NEW BLOOD WANTED. On the morion to commit the Government Railways Amendment Bid Air. Herries said there was no disguising the fact that there was dissatisfaction in connection with the management of the rai!way«. \\ lint they intended to do in the matter ; i the general manager of railways wr.s to get the High Commissioner to call for applications and artange f< r personal intern lew. They recognise d ed that £3<.m>o would not get a firstclass man. but it should secure the services of a young man (35 or J J ). who held a responsible post in so'i ? of the big eompatnes in England. Ireland. Scotland or Canada. It w.-s recognised that the traffic dept':, nient was the most important m ti e service. Dealing with the salaries i railway servant-. he said the increases provided for the sei-ov.d division mot with tie appr< a d oft! c A'sooiated Societx of Railway Servants. He regretted that the increases for ’he tit st division d:d n: . satisfy tim Railway Officer-’ It’sttt'.ite. but be w. -i'ii not do more tins year. He hoped to get ;>' per cer. . interest out of the railway;?. that would allow «.f concessions which could not be allowed when 1 per cer... was looked fm. The increases fir the first division would cost £6410 the first year, £13.75<i the seimr.d year. £1 4.520 the third year aid £11.1*05 the tourih year. I ho increase veil'd come into force t .1 April Ist the new inc: eases would amount to £53,000 a year. When the iiow manager arrived next year he weald be prepared to open the whole matter and set right anv He ec.neludcd by saying thar ue thought the eouritiy might well be proud of its railway servk:-. Sir Joseph Ward attributed any

dissatisfaction that existed to the present administration endeavouring to get 4 per cent, out of the railways. He disagreed with the suggestion to import a genet al manage! for railways, pointing out that there were many who hail spent years in the service and were naturally looking forward to the [hums in the ser vic-?. He proceeded to enumerate a i number of officers to show there was ‘ ample talent in the service. He ad i vocated a board of experts, consist iing of the heads of the maintenance and engineering departments to act in conjunction with the Minister. j Mr. Myers opposed this suggestion as inimical to co-ordination and coI operation. He maintained that not one of the gentlemen named by Sir Joseph Ward was capable of being appointed general manager, as tic lacked the necessary opportunities to quality for such a difficult position. though he was a worthy man tor othei important work. He believed also that it would be profitable to import an expert to report on engineering matters and thus save thousands of pounds. Mr. Russell contended that the person whom the Minister had in his mind's eye would never fulfil expectations. He would move the following amendment : —".And the House suggests that the Government should bring down an amendment to grant the concessions to the first division as from April Ist, 1913. which were recommended by the Railway 1 'ommittee. " It would, he

olid, onlv take 'in expenditure of £12,C00 to allay seething discontent among a large body of men, and that amount could be raised by increasing the freight on wool by 4d I a bait'. | Mr. Russell’s amendment was lost I l>y 37 to 2C. i The question of whether the raili way manager should be imported or 'not, together with the general provisions of the measure, was discussed at length. Mr. Buddo moved an amendment to the committal of the bill, ‘’That the House disagrees with the proposal to pay £3OOO a year for a general manager of railways who is to be imported from outside New Zealand.’’ Mr. Isitt suggested that an expert be secured from Home for a year for say £5OOO. The amendment was lost by 38 to 25. The motion for committal was carried on the voices. The bill was reported from Committee unamended. A HASTINGS PETITION. THE POKOWHAI SPECIAL RATE. [BY TELEGRAPH — SPECIAL.] Wellington, Oct. 30. The Public Petitions, Etc. Committee to-day reported on the petition of Paul J. Murphy and 29 other people asking that legislation should he enacted to enable the Hawke’s Bay County Council to charge the Pakowhai special rate to the county fund account. The commit-, tee recommended the petition to the Government for favourable consideration.

! TAX ON RACING CLUBS HOW CONTRIBUTED. [BY TELEGRAPH—SPECIAL.] A return was presented to Parliament yesterday on the motion of Mr. Atmore (Nelson) showing how rhe total tax of £75,611 odd. levied -a racing clubs for the 12 months ended 3rd October, 1912, was contributed The return gives the amount contributed by every totalisator club in X.Z. Those contributing over £lO3O are appended (shillings and pence omitted): —Auckland Racing Club, £9502; Canterbury Jockey' Club. £BOl6 ; Wellington Racing Club, £5280; N.Z. Metropolitan Trotting Club, £5039 ; i Wanganui Jcckey Club, £3599; Dunedin Jockey Club. £2964 ; Mariawatu Racing Club. £2125; Hawke’s Bay Jockey £2067 ; Auckland 'Trotting Club. £1492; Canterbury i Park Ti otting Club, £l2Bl ; Eg:mont R.C., £1192; Feilding J.C.. ■ £'1670; Fcrbury Park Trotting Club, j£1993; Napier Park Racing Club.' i£1472; Otaki Maori Racing Club.: i£1535; Takapuna Jockey Club, I £1755; Taranaki Jockey Club.! I £1032 ; Wairarapa Racing Club. | .£lll2. '

HOTEL AND RESTAURANT WORKERS. A SIX-DAY WEEK. Wellington. Oct. 29. Mr. Massey’s Bill for a six-days’ week for hotel and restaurant workers provides that assistants exclusively employed in or about bars or a private bar. or in restaurants which do not carry on business on Sunday, shall have one half-holiday f: cm two p.m. in each week as at present. AH other hotel and restaurant employees are to receive in each week a whole holiday of £4 hours, commencing at his usual hour for commencing work. In lieu of a weekly holiday thirteen days (including Sundays) may be allowed in every three months. An assistant required to work on the day cf Irs holiday is to receive either a whole day's holiday on some other day in that week, or mi equivalent extra holiday in the next succeeding week. ' UNIVERSITY COLLEGES. The report of the Inspector-Gen-eral of Schools on the four university colleges was referred to the Education Committee of the House of Representatives for consideration. The Committee reported today that the time at the disposal of the Committee is inadequate for the due consideration of the report, and recommended that consideration be he'd over till the commencement of next session. This was agreed to. VETERINARY SURGEONS AND FARRIERS. ■ The Agricultural Committee re-; commended to the Government that ' veterinary and farriery instructors.

should, as far as possible, be placed I within reach of the farming community. The Committee made no recommendation on the petition of the Taranaki Master Farriers’ and Blacksmiths’ Association that a shoeing-smiths bill should be introduced this session. RAILWAYS’ MANAGEMENT. MR. HERRIES’ PROPOSALS. Wellington, Oct. 29. The Minister for Railways (Hon. \\. Herries) spoke at some length tn the House of Representatives tonight on his proposals for the more efficient management of the department. He said lie believed in encouraging native industry, but it was useless to overlook the fact that there had been intense dissatisfaction throughout the country with the management of the railways. He believed that there were in the service faithful and true servants of the country, who were doing their best according to their views. The dissatisfaction expressed by the public might be undeserved, but there was no doubt that it existed. Had he shown himself on one cf the previous day’s race trains he would have run the risk of being lynched. Even those members, continued Mr. Herries, who were loudest in their condemnation ofthe proposal to import a general manager suggested that the New Zealander whom they considered should be imported should be sent to the United Kingdom and the L nited States to learn how the railways were run m those countries.. The Government proposed to engage a traffic man, not a maintenance or locomotive man. From lis knowledge of the railways he was convinced that it was the traffic department which required most management. He hoped the House would agree to try the experiment. The salary proposed would be “not exceeding £3ooo,’’ and the engagement would be for five years. The Minister pointed out that the same proposal was part of the policy of the Mackenzie Ministry, and when two Ministers of Railways agreed upon such a proposal there must be foundation for asking the House to .approve of it.

Sir Joseph Ward said he thought a mistake was being made in importing a man for the position to which men trained in the service had looked for five or ten years. The Hon. Mr. Heraies: You ini ported a defence expert. Sir Jcseph Ward : That was necessary until New Zealanders were educated. Sir Joseph then mentioned the names of eight men g 1 wide experience already' in the service, who were being passed by foi an imported man.

The ex-Minister for Railways, Mr. A. M. Myers, said that he agreed almost entirely with the views put forward by Mr Herries.