ELECTION CAMPAIGN.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 107, 12 November 1908, Page 5

ELECTION CAMPAIGN.

Mr Bowater at Te Kuiti. On Saturday evening last, Mr W. T. Bowater, opposition candidate for Taumarunui electorate, addressed a meeting at Te Kuiti in the New Hal!. There was a good attendance and Mr R. Cashel was voted to the chair. In introducing the candidate the Chairman stated that Mr Bowater was comparatively unknown in this portion of the district, but he had only to be better known to be highly appreciated. He asked for a fair hearing for the candidate. Mr Bowater, in his opening remarks, said that although he was not well known in this portion of the district, he had the experience of sixteen years pioneering in the Waimarino. He felt sure the experience thus earned had fitted him to represent a district which had greater possibilities and required more development than any other in the North Island. He came as a worker, who was willing to lend a hand in that development. In touring the district he was struck with the manner in which the future of the townships had been under-estimated by the Government who had failed to make provision for development. With regard to policy he favoured that of the Opposition which was as follows: — 1. Restoration of Parliamentary control of the public finances by improving the system of public audit, and by restricting the power now possessed by the Ministry of the day, of expending upon one object monies voted by Parliament for another. 2. The establishment of a civil service board, with the object of excluding political influence in making public appointments. 3. The establishment of a sound and assured system of local government finance, with a view to the equitable distribution and economical expenditure of public money, in place of the present system of arbitrarily varied Ministerial grants and votes. 4. The encouragement of land settlement., by restoring the system of granting Crown lands upon the optional plan, with power to sell existing and future tenants to acauire the freehold upon equitable terms, but subject to provisions for preventing the creation of large holdings. 5. The settlement of the Native land question, by the rapid individualisation of all Native titles, and by affording to the Native race the common privelege of disposing of their lands to the best advantage in the open market, but subject (a) To a sufficient area of good and accessible land being reserved inalienably for the support of eacii Native and his descendants. (b) To the same restrictions as to area to be acquired by any one selector as pertains to Crown Lands, with the object of preventing the aggregation of large estates. 6. The maintenance and improvement of our national system of education, and in particular by inrceasing the minimum remuenration and raising the status of country teachers. 7. The reduction of duties on the necessaries of life. 8. The reform of the system of carrying on public works with a view to secure efficiency and economy. 9. Amendments of the Arbitration Act such as will provide a sufficiently powerful deterrent against strikes, or failing that, to secure simple means of conciliation. 10. The encouragement of the immigration of the right stamp of British settler. 11. The improvement of the defence forces of the Dominion, by encouraging every citizen to take a personal share in the defence of his country and his home. 12. The encouragement of private enterprise and individual effort, and the opposing by every legitimate means of that teniency to socialism and dependence on the State, which is sapping the independent character of the people. With regard to the land question the candidate said he was in favour of the freehold tenure. All Crown lands should be opened under the optional system, with reasonable restrictions as to area. The Ward Ministry had struck a decided blow at the national character of the people in the recent Land Bill, for he that the endeavour to do away with the freehold was a step towards making the people dependant on the State. The Government should give the best of tenures ot the man who goes into ths backblocks and pioneers settlement, which is so valuable to the Dominion. He maintained that a man on a leasehold section could not raise money in bad times like the man on a freehold section, and said that even the Govern--1 ment itself when lending money was more ilberal to the O.R.P. tenants or the freeholder than to the L.I.P. man. The Hon. McNab did not understand the wants of the North Island. What was wanted was a Minister for the North who was capable of handling this qeustion. The speaker here paid high tribute to the Hon. McNab as Minister for Agriculture. Remarks by various Ministers w T ere here quoted to show that the Cabinet was a leasehold one. Mr Bowater asked the audience to consider how Mr Jennings would vote providing the present administration was endangered over the freehold question. Mr Jennings had stated he was a freeholder, but he ventured to say that Mr Jennings would as a member of he Government party, vote with his party when it came to a real straight-out issue, and it was necessary to sacrifice either the party or the freehold,

Concerning the Native Land Question the speaker adovcated the throwing open of the Native lands to Europeans with a right to purchase. Sufficient land should be left for the support of the Native. This \vas the chief ques-

tion affecting this electorate, and it should be gripped firmly at once. The Government had been short sighted in not purchasing the townships of Te Kuiti and Taumarunui before the railway passed through. Various other phases of the question were referred to and the candidate said that if returned he would not rest until a great reform had taken place in our Native land matters. (Applause) The close voting on the question during the recent Parliament showed that the Government had to trim to save what might have been a no-confidence motion Agricultural Education. —A firstclass agricultural should be open to the youths of the Dominion, and there should be a number of free places on I the agricultural farms for youths who had gained proficiency certificates at the public schools. Sometimes boys with good certificates from the country went into the city and ousted some of the city boys to the country, and there should be a place where these boys could learn to farm. The days of scientific farming were here, and the settlers of the back-blocks must have a chance to learn agricultural methods, and this chance should be given at an agricultural station. In dealing with the roading policy of the Government the candiditae said the construction of roads and bridges in this district was most important. No country should now be opened up without roads being formed to their full width, and if possible the roads should also be metalled. Money had been wasted on light roads and temporary bridges. Strong roads and bridges should be constructed with best material and money would be saved. With good roads and bridges settlers could hardly fail to make a success of settlement and progression would be rapid. During the past two years the Government had failed to [spend £700,000 that had been appropriated for votes for railways, roads and bridges, public buildings, development of goldfields and land improvement, when on the other hand they over spent on Tourist and Health resorts £7,787, on telegraph extension £44,559. Seeing this was a question that might be asked "Will the Government spend the £250,000 voted for back block roads." Back Block Roads. —The Government are professing to spend £250,000 on back block roads, and most settlers fully imagined this was to be a vote of £250,000 for back block roads in addition to the ordinary road .votes. Going into the matter it found that the increase in the vote is only £81,237, for the total for roads and bridges in 1907-08 was £518,763, w 7 hile the total ovte this year is on £600,000 showing that the increase is as stated above. It is true that £250,000 is proposed as an appropriation this year under the heading of back block roads, but it is true that the ordinary road vote is reduced to by £170,179. It is true that over £21,000 of liabilities on account of last year's road votes is in this year's estimates transferred to the vote of back block roads. It is true that last year's appropriations included back block road items totalling nearly £IOO,OOO. These again appear this year under the heading of back block roads. It is true that the Minister for roads and bridges stated that he could not expend the vote of last year because he could not get the necessary labour. There was labour available last year but men would not work under the present faulty co-operative system. Finance. —The finance of the Dominion wanted very careful consideration. The interest on loans for the years 1907 - 8 amounted to £2,527,970. Twenty-five thousand pounds more than that was borrowed during that period. During the past fourteen years £25,000,000 had been borrowed and this amount must have largely aided the great progress of the country, which the Government are taking credit for. The gross public debt has gone up from £38,832,350 in IS9I to £66,453,897 in 1908. He was in favour of limited borrowing for railways, roads, and briJges, and advances to settlers. In regard to the last named he considered there was considerable room for improvement in the way of letting out the money. The office had not been able to meet the requirements of the small settlers on account of the large sums let out to large firms. The advances to settlers were more for the small man, for the man who had large sums could go outside and get them. He had heard of cases where money had been borrowed from the advance to settlers office and let out at a higher rate of interest. This should be checked and the settlers should receive first and every consideration. The candidate also dealt with taxation, the timber industry, the Arbitration Act and other matters pertaining to the administration. After answering a number of questions the candidate was accorded a vote of thanks and confidence, an amendment of a vote of thanks only being lost by a large majority.