PENSIONS FOR THE AGED.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCIII, Issue 10566, 28 January 1895, Page 3

PENSIONS FOR THE AGED.

TO THE EDITOR. ' Sir,— As,your correspondent “ Argus,” in your issue of Jan 24, avers hia sincerity ia his ‘ remarks on .the above question, I crave your well-known courtesy to allow me to reply to his remarks. And, first, it seems to me that Mr Bussell's constituents possess, at any rate, a small modicum of that commodity “Argus” seems so lamentably deficient of, , viz., common sense. They at least discern that .£lO pet annum is more than equal to the munificent allowance doled out by the . Charitable Aid Board in this district, viz., 2s lid per week in rations. Secondly, beyond doubt the people are anxious about this matter, and so were our members before the election, but that astute man the Premier seems to have altered their views on the subject, so that they clean forgot all about it, with the honourable exception, I believe, of Mr Bussell. But “Argue” displays hia ignorance of the subject he writes about whan he condemns all the poor as unthrifty. I could take him to scores of cottages where clothes are washed end patched till you can hardly tell the original piece; and as there are neither tcamcars, places of amusement nor other means of wasting money, and the parents strict total abstainers, I absolutely deny the poor aa a class are unthrifty, and call “Argus’s” statement a foul calumny. I presume from “Argus’s” statements about tramcars, &c., he resides somewhere near Christchurch. If bo, will he kindly publish the number of indigent poor over sixty years of age who patronise the circus. Then we may be able to judge* Hia scriptural quotation is correct, but he seems to forget that a labourer before he can carry out the injunction must be able to obtain work. Can “ Argus ” point out where this can be obtained ? Much more to the point is the suggestion over the signature “John Woodward” in the same paper, as to paying JB2OO out of their savings to the Goverment, they undertaking to keep them the rest of their days. There are several old persons in this district who have evidence of thrift ,in possessing small bits of land with comfortable houses on them, which many of them will have to sell or mortgage to exist at all, without matters improve, which, of course, means their becoming paupers, and who would gladly hand them over provided they were allowed to occupy them till death kindly relievos them of the anxiety of getting a subsistence, “Argus” is unwittingly aiding the causa of old-age pensions by his selfish and false charges against the deserving poor.—l am, &0., ONE OF THEM.

TO THE EDITOR. Sib,— The following has been going the round of the papers lately*.— I “The ‘New York Weekly is the authority for the statement that many of the people of New Zealand are seriously medicating the poisoning of all the residents after they have attained their seventieth year.” For ‘poisoning’ read ‘pensioning/ and the 1 statement comes nearer the mark. The ; idea of poisoning off those wicked people, the aged poor, and possibly converting the resultant waste to some useful purpose, has a flavour about it which reminds me of your correspondent “Argua.” With that sprightly" touch which marks hia effusions, he has probably suggested the above method, ironically, in order to sting into action so inaay of our legislators who are trying to shirk this question. The member who will formulate and bring ; forward a practicable method of providing decently for the aged poor will not need to be anxious about the safety of his seat.. in Parliament.—l am, &0., VETERAN.