PARLIAMENTARY.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXIX, Issue 164, 13 July 1895, Page 4

PARLIAMENTARY.

I United Press Association.] -; . Wellington, July 12. ' < COUNCIL. , . The Council met at 2-30 p.m. The .New Zealand Institute of ; Surveyors Bill, and tbe Kale of Goods Bill, passed through Com- . nrittee. ; ' TThe Industrial Schools Act Amendment Bill passed its final stages. The Council rose at 5 p.m. * .HOUSE. The House mot at 2-30. ■ In reply to questions, it was Btated V that .steps would be taken to prevent . the ,. importation of prison-made goods ; that the time occupied in -, drafting the Local Government Bills had itaken three weeks longer than was expected, but the measure was now almost ready for the printer's hands, and wonld soon be available ; that it gigs not desirable to amend the Advances to Settlors Act in the direction of .making . it more elastic ; that various difficulties having been • overcome, delay would in future be avoided in dealing with applications • 'under the Advances to Settlers \ct; that the Agricultural Department ' '- .was in; communication with an eminent entomologist in another part of the world with a view of obtaining his services for the colony ; that applications had been received from a ; : number of prospectors to enter the. ' r. r Uriwera country in search of gold, but they were warned that if they „ went there they would be arrested, an their presence might cause friction with, the Natives; that the. : ' Government Licensing Bill wojild be ■ . circulated- About the end ■ of- next • week, it was absolutely incorrect that a draft of the Bill! had been submitted to. individuals, or an ; . organisation outside the Houso, ; that ;.. if it cojjjd be proved that any • solicitors under the Advances to Settlers £(%*■ made charges' not authorised by the Act, the, money •would be refunded ; that the;ques- .. tion of refunding application! fees • -in cases, in which advances are re- ? ffused under the Advances to feet- .;.:-' tiers Act will receive favourable consideration ; that it was' intended to make some modulation in interest- closes on loans^m Government Life "Insurance policies j t. at « it was -proposed to amend the Truck Act. to enable officers to take orders from men oi^o-bperative works to pay a portion^: the giouey earned to the moo's wives; that the' Hospital and Charitable M± Bill .to be '. introduced' shortly woffla probably provide a scheme for utilisin'^he, the labour of indigent and indolent persons in return for their maintenance ; that communication^ had . baen sent to the Australian colonies stating rflftt etringekt regulations ■ would be :enforced^ui the case of . . battle steamers froid^uitralia; call ing at New Zealand ports, and theße .messages had received some ; very • ■•-■ angry replies ; that the ex mem bur for Auckland who was in arrears at Bellamy's had no"w paid the amount. The adjournment of the House % was ;mov,ed, and tire rest of th« afternoon, was spent in discussing matters arisiDg out of replies given / by Miuiste*^to questioLS. ' ' -~ ' The Houb'e rose at 5 p.m. Mr Ward's Explanation, Ibe Eoueb resumed at 7.30 p.m. v ■ Mr Ward moved that the circular issued to •the pudioin London by iho Agent-tfeneral ' ' 'iv tsepect to the 3 p<r cent for £1,500,000 tie laid bef ire the House. In doing to, lie B.id be thought it was to be deplored that att' cks euth aa bad bien made on ibe A.eut-G.)Ler»l , should be.made against a gentl man occupying to high and impoitant a p'.Eition id iLugland. Tbtt iefltotions made on tnmtel£ (Mr ___ v <Ward),.rtß^eotiDg*tiiß iru hwlnecs wuilat in ' London, he took" for what they were worth, ■ - bnt he wp'u d endeavor to defend Bir ,\V. U. ■■ al fiom tLe charge timt ha had'uiade •* ' mil leading statements iv London. He: roler- '" ltd' to the question of the t ee miil.ons securities, a dread the speech he bad.maile before th-.- London Chauib-r of Commerce. ■■Ho mjintaned tea- wuai ho caid initial speeoh was indi.paabiy correct, and that when be si.oke oi tbree millions Bcciirit es the toial amount oi these stourities W-5 uver ' £2,910,000. Some members iri=u to d'Stor* -■.".. tbe oiroumstai.ee in whiub these Bicuriti s wtre cent H.me, and whoa it was diesemi- ." nated through liuiidon that the Land tax wacollected before it was due only to preve t ' the Colony, making default, be Ecoui<jcf- tbe ' idea, *nd quote . the securities usp ooroi hrn assertion. Jit was well k^on n ihosc Beouritiea . wero not rtquittd to Wuatd, und thut; tutie . wbb totualiy to tbe credit of the Cuioi>y , ■ £270,0U0 in o Jth atlheiine.. 'lueUbvern- -■••' mem'liud sent taota S'.ouiifita to London for ' ttxo puipoee of lakintuining the credit 'oi the Colony us a whole, and it wbb regrettable to ' find there wc-ru mea in ihu doust) wh j <tuula - haii with pltaure failure of t-o iiubnci^l op»ratioue, which woald cause urea; dttasitr to ' JSew Zealand. Be quoted thu vise of Viotoria, wboao ievenue in ono year hbd : . f Allan no less than £1,600,000, and we in •'" Nbw Zeal^i had been ou ihj verge' uf a ... great aism, .whiuli hid foriun^te.y' bum .. uvtrttd irom thu Colony. Ho (ilt Ward) asdurted t. at tbj9 S uteu.en gwhich bad bteu uiadu in rtgaru to the fiuttnees of ibe Colony '. t % er= det.iojental tj every (.e'eon in ew '*' ZeftUnd. Ucfeiriog >o the raisiig of the • lorn, ha said iua extraocoiodry oucceta vi the loan was admitted iv finunoi.l oroea at Homa lo be marvtllojg. lhe total amount tbat had bdtn availublu ol the £1,60j,(j0j ' 'wub £1,416,601, idMo hitg taftd b:eb paia for ondeiwiiting it. He cjntcPded that a financial opeia.ion that saved x406 at tbree per oobi for omre oy of loan, or £10 at 3} per cent was oucceaslul, no matter wuut pa^t %f (he world it took plaoe id. Ho did uot ' care nhttbir he waro out of thu UuUie or nor to-morrow, but ho bßßtrta.t tuut tue Btateinentj uiade against him and the loan : were excetdiogiy damagiug to New Z. aland. 'Be beiievid that ho tpoke tbe truth in what • «»be bad elated, and he oartd not whim be ; off en aed or pleased. 'Iho Agent-tiensnu hid made au mißO'.nteuietitj in the loan viroutnr. If the figent-Geueial bad done aoj tiling, ho *• bad erred od tvs eida of modesty, and bad ■ . ehoo-n the portion of tbe GovtrnmoDt to b» £178,000 \bm than h: was jmtifiej iv utatn^ ; Sir B, Btout hoped tbat whatever difference of opinion they bad in politics, they should not be oh rged with a desire to do the Colony harm.' He was pleased st Mr Ward's return, " ' ■ because they hj>d had nob dy on the Govern■meflfcbenohm in tbe Tieasurer's iv-aenic tj -- give thvHousj any info. mation. t.io(S.rß. ; ' Stout) Bti 1 maintained, ufter tbe Treasure's ■ ' "'•peeoh, that wtmt Mr Ward told tbe Lvudon I '' . Chamber of Commerce was not true, and was not proved by tbe papers laid on the table by ■ " Mr Ward last year. It was not tine to say tbat the eednritjes in London were unpledged. Mr Ward's statement was the moat damaging one ever madi against tbe credit of the Colony. The Agem-Ueneral'a circular was untrue and misleading in every paragraph. - Initead of Interest charges having 'dec. eased eiflce the Government took office, thry had increased, and every penny ot the £tO0,0Ot) of 4 per cent deteoturea, Baid by 'ho circular to beetill in possiEßion of the G vernment, ■ had been spent jtars ago. Bir R. Bert aUo pointed out other misstatcmenta in tho cii- . cular and contended v.ore was no justification for bulsleriiig up tbe Colony in tbe way „ ibe igtnt-Generftl Lad d <rie. Why d.d the lreabur^r not. tedthe pocplo in London what he told iho House last year, namely— that it theJCoiony had the money tho Guveinwent would not be takiog the conrss t>.ey were doing with re'Bpeot io .the LanJ Ux. The - statements ffii.de in London by tne Treasurer : would not agree with those he made in the ny 'Hodie last 'session, and a/b;o# had been ,' ; , : itrook" at tbe credit of the Colony nhioh would -require great'oare o extrioit it, from.' l \ ! ;"f'Xhe Hon.' Mr Reeves said that' there wis ,;i a.time when .many loyal friends of Sir R. Stout would have refused -to believe that the hon gentleman would have resumed his eeat amidst applause of the Tory party af t«r making an attack on a Liberal ministry. Sir B. Stout had stated that £800,000 of . •_-. debentures had all gone, but the fact was ;-. .• that £476,000 of these were lree, and were ';■ i; held: by 'the Government, wliilob the re- ■";.:".; niaiuiiig. £334,000 -wore held by the I'ost :'- : C * : ;Op«e ' j)eptwvujwit, aud gould be used in ■/':'. th? event of a great nationfil crisis suoh as & : l&*«^£'*>-~*£--iOA:\-.'-' -. „.-•' 'fi?>:*.^i-&--..vy "-72.^7. >v>rf 1 ;.-.;. „■"'.<--.-..-, „

V-y i.7

that alluded to by tho Hon. Mr. Ward. As to the raising of the loan he said that the total number of people applying for it was only thirty, and they consisted of astute brokers and financial experts, everyone of whom knew well what he was doing He replied at length to Sir. R. Stout's criticisms of the Agent General's circular, and went on to say that after going round the world and saving the colony in such a special degree, which was recognised by impartial people throughout tho colony, Mr. Ward came baok to the House and found his bitterest opponents, not in money lenders bnt in members of tde House, who Bhonld have behaved in a very different manner. Mr, Geo. Hutchinson said that the two Ministers who had spoken had trated the subject with flippancy, and without argument, and the Col. Treasnrer had bluffed the House as he had bluffed the country. He asked whether, if it had been known that the Treasurer was prepared to pledge the Trust Funds of the colony, he would have been trusted by London financiers. Certainly not, and not one of the- thirty would have lent the money. As to the securities, could any man say that they were unpledged when thoy belonged to the Insurance Department, Post Office, and the Public Trustees ? Was it ever seriously contemplated to make advadces against them ? Why, for less than that men had undorgono terms of penal servitude. Mr Montgomery said that the AgentGeneral had, no doubt, put the position of the colony in the most favourable light, but he was quite justified iv doing so. Dr. Newman said that the circular in parts was deliberately incorrect, although tho Treasurer had stamped it with his approval. Mr McLachlan contended that it was all moonshine to say that the Colonial Treasurer's mission had not been a complete SUCCCS3 c"i Mr Buchanan considered that the' Agent circular would throw grave discredit ou the colony and its administrators throughout the civilised ivorld. Capt. Kussell complained that tho Treasurer liad given the Honse no information at all, and he believed that the country would not submit mneh longer to be hoodwinked by those half-truths that were continually uttered by Ministers. It was stated in the Agent-General's circular that our exports were steadily increasing, when, as a matter of fact, they had, from one cause or other, been decreasing for the last five years, and only slightly increased last year. Ho thought that it had been conclusively shown that the Colonial Treasurer had made two opposite statements to the House and to the 'London Chamber of Commerce. He moved as an amendment that the Agent-General's circular bo referred to the Publio Accounts Committee for investigation and report. Mr Seddon said that he could not accept the amendment. He could only take it in one sense, and that as a vote ot censure on the Colonial Treasurer and the Government. The Agent-General's circular was compiled tern publio documents and blue books, and it~tlid not contain one word that could not be found in these. The same figures appeared in the Official Hand-book, of the colony, and it would bo just as reasonable to impeach the Registrar-General, who compiled the hand-book, and himself, and the Honse who gavo him authority to do so. He justified the Colonial Treasurer's statement with regard to the securities, and deprecated the unpatriotic way 'in which the Opposition had treated the whole matter. After further dobate, Capt. Russell's amendment was rejected by 37 votes to 16. Mr Ward having replied, the motion that tltflfccircular be laid ou the table was agreed to on the voices. | The House rose at 2,50 a.m.