POLITICAL NEWS AND GOSSIP.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9088, 23 June 1888, Page 5

POLITICAL NEWS AND GOSSIP.

[BY TELEGRAPH. —SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT. ] Wellington, Friday. ILLNESS OF SIR JOHN HALL.

Sir John Hall is seriously indisposed by an attack similar to that by which the Premier has been prostrated.

RETRENCHMENT.

The retrenchment committee met to-day and made good progress with the Estimates, being now half-way through with the series. They adjourned till Monday. In all probability Mr. oldie will withdraw his contemplated motion relative to compensation to Civil servants, as he has discovered that compensation is abolished by the Civil Service Reform Act of 18S6. That Act provides that the Assembly may vote a sum in aid of the monies deducted from the officials as pension fund. As the Premier's proposed new measure contemplates the Assembly giving a fixed sum as quota to this fund Mr. Goldie regards this stop as a retrogressive one, rather than an advance in Civil Service reform. TREATMENT OF REFRACTORY ORES. I understand that those gentlemen interested in the Parkes' process have been in communication with the Minister of Mines with the view of obtaining a bonus for a process of treating refractory ores, but the Minister was unfavourable to it. Mr. Peacock has also been moving for a modified bonus for any process which will treat such ores at a minimum cost, and after such a quantity had been treated as was satisfactory to the Minister of Minos. This is likely to receive favourable consideration.

PRISON V. FREE LABOUR. Further stops are being taken by Mr. Goldie in this matter, and to-day he moved that it be an instruction to the Inspector of Prisons that in the supply of materials to contractors and others from tho various gaols of tho colony that care be taken that the price obtained bo not loss than the price charged for the same class of goods prepared by free labour, it being undesirable that prison labour should be the means of depriving artisans and labourers from obtaining a fair price for the materials they may have to dispose of.

DEVONPORT MATTERS. Mr. Monk saw tho Defence Minister today with a view of getting some aid to the Devonport Navals in renting a hall for drill, but the reply was unfavourable ; in fact, when members go to the big wooden building now for financial favours for their constituents Ministers at e simply not at home. The hon. member also saw the Colonial Secretary in respect to the new Devonport cemetery site. It seems that as no interment has taken place in it, it cannot be oponed and used as such, being within tho limits of the borough. Had but one body been buried there, no legal difficulty woulcl have arisen. Probably a special Act will be required to fix up matters. The Colonial Secretary has promised to look into tho matter.

AUCKLAND CUSTOMHOUSE. As complaints have reached many of the Auckland members as to the bricks bring used at the new Auckland Customhouse, Mr. Monk asks the Minister of Public Works if he is aware that tho bricks used in the erection of the Auckland Customhouse are greatly inferior to those recently used in the new building at the Auckland Lunatic Asylum ; also what experience, if any, has the Clerk of Works had as an inspector of building materials.

THE NATIVES AND THE LICENSING ACT. The Minister of Justice, I learn, has informed Mr. Kelly that the Cabinet will take into consideration the representations which he has made as to native assessors vetoing the action of licensing committees in certain native districts. He personally thought it undesirable that native assessors should have such powers.

MR. SAMUEL'S DIVORCE BILL. The supporters of Mr. Samuel's Bill are greatly irritated at its being successfully stonewalled last night—or, rather, early this morning—by Mr. Fish. That hon. member said he was good till daylight, and between one and two o'clock in tho morning, Mr. Samuel agreed to reporting progress, rather than punish his friends by keeping them in the House through the night. It is now proved conclusively that under the present rules of procodure, it is in the power oi any one or two members in committee to prevent the progress of any Bill, no matter how important it may be, in the small hours. Sydney Taiwhanga was kept continually going in and out of the House, rallying up members to prevent the House being counted out. The Bill is fixed for recommittal on the 4th of July, which is expected to be the last chance of getting it up near the top of the order paper, as the Government will in all likelihood thereafter seize private members' days. One of the enthusiastic supporters of the Bill informs mo that ho and some others are prepared to fight it out throughout the night till next day rathor than yield to Mr. Fish's stonewalling.

MINING PARTNERSHIPS. A bill is being introduced by Mr. Seddon for defining mining partnerships, and providing regulations under which they may take place and be worked.

THE OUTBREAK OF SCAB.

In view of the outbreak of scab in the Auckland district, Mr. Walker is moving for the reorganisation of the Sheep Department, imputing incapacity to the present officials.

THE FATHER OF THE HOUSE. Owing to a squabble which took place the other day as to length of service in the Assembly, Mr. Pyke moved for a return showing the members who have served in Parliament continuously for more than seven years. Sir Maurice O'Rorke, according to the return, enjoys tho proud distinction of being the oldest member of tho Representative Chamber, having sab continuously since his election in June, 1861. The other members who have served continuously for more than seven years were returned as follows : Mr. J. C. Brown, Juno, 1870; Sir Harry Atkinson, October, 1872 Mr. Pyke, September, 1873 ; Sir George Grey, July, 1875 ; Mr. E. Hamlin, Juno, 1876; Mr. 0. Beetham, July, 1777 ; Messrs. Moss, Turnbull, and Hobbs, July, 1878 ; Messrs. J. B. Whyte, Barron, Fulton, and Seddon, September, 1879; and Mr. Levestam, June, 1881.

THE TOURIST TRAFFIC. To-day a deputation, consisting of the Hon, J. Ballanco and the Mayor of Wanganui, waited upon tho Minister of Lands, with a view of getting him to open up Field's brack from Wanganui to Marimotu, and thenco onwards, so as to lead to settlement of tho Waimarino block, and promote tourist traffic to Ruapehu, and Tongariro, and the Taupo, ana the Lake country generally. There is at present a good bridle track, but it is desired to make a dray or coach road. The object of the Wanganui people is to secure a share of tho tourist traffic to the Lake country, <fcc., and to get tourists to go into tho Wonderland from tho Wanganui side.

THE CHINESE BILL. As the Legislative Council havo decided te stand by their amendments in the above Bill, there will bo a conference on the matter. Tho members are nob as hopeful as formerly of an amicable or satisfactory solution of this troublesome question.

TARIFF TAXATION. I understand that the Government intend to stand by the tea duty, notwithstanding Captain Russell's motion for its abolition. The fact in that they cannot abandon any items of revenue unless an equivalent is found or given elsewhere, as, owing to the decline in the value of property, the property tax valuation to be made next year is not expected to yield within £80,000 of the present amount, which is £360,000.

POLITICAL RUMOURS. A number of political rumours are 6irculating in tho lobbies, many of which must be taken with a grain of salt. They are believed to be put forth as feelers rather than anything else, with a view of eliciting the intentions of tho ' vernment, if they should be foolish enough to deny them. It is said that although Sir F. Dillon Bell will be re-appointed to the Agent-Generalship when his term expires for another short term, he is perfectly indifferent as to any prolonged tenure of office, and is willing to slip out whenever political eventualities may arise in New Zealand releasing Sir Harry Atkinson from

the cares of office, and ho should dealro to oooupy the post. Perhaps no hotter man could succeed Sir Dillon Bell, owing bo his ability, business capacity, and familiarity with the needs of the colony, and it is understood that in due course he would not be unwilling to accept the position. In the meantime, however, Sir Harry Atkinson is the head of the Colonial Administration, and apparently has no intention at presont of abandoning his post of duty until relieved of it by the vote of the House. THE RUMOURS OF RECONSTRUCTION. It is perfectly well known on both sides of the House that, as soon as tho tariff has run the gauntlet of the Legislature, both political parties will have to consider their positionthe Ministry to see who is for them on all general questions, and the Opposition to count noses, and ascertain the feasibility of making renewed attacks upon their quondam tariff allies. The attempt to force a reconstruction of the Cabinet will, it is said, be made by one of tho seceding Freetraders from the Government party, and will take the form of a motion affirming that the personnel of the Government, as at present constituted, is unsatisfactory. Some members of the Opposition are holding this over till the Government have detailed the whole of their financial proposals and the Public Works Statement is brought down. The political quidnuncs say the Premier would view a reconstruction, if forced upon him, with complacency ; but all my information goes to show that the members of the Ministry will stand or fall together. Another rumour is that the seceding Freetraders are anxious to get the Hon. John Bryce back into the Assembly if arrangements can be made for a vacancy, and to see him in that position which he would have assuredly attained had he been returned at the last general election—the Premiership. It is said the little reunion of members at Bellamy's in honour of Mr. Bryce was brought about in order to cement good feeling among tho mombors of that party _of which Mr. Bryce is also a representative man.

THE AUCKLAND NORTH RAILWAY.

Mr. R. Thompson informs me that all his investigations go to show that until the State Forests Act is repealed, and furthor native land legislation is passed, but little progress can be made with this enterprise. He will use his best efforts in that direction.

THE VACANT JUDGESHIP. The Post says on this matter :" lawyer in New Zealand has a claim comparable to Judge Ward for the position, always setting aside the Attorney-Gene-ral's right. Mr. Travers iB next, and after him public opinion would put Mr. E. Hesketn, of Auckland. Several other names would intervene before Mr. Haggitt was reached." The Press takes the same view as respects the claims of Judge Ward and Mr. Haggitt, and objects also on financial grounds to Mr. Haggitt's appointment. It says >r~" The Government cannot dispense with Mr. Ward altogether. If ho is removed from the Supreme Court Bench, he must be restored to the District Court with a salary of £900 a year, though there is no need for such an appointment, Judge Broad doing all the work of the District Court quite efficiently."

VAIN LEGISLATORIAL REGRETS.

The Hon. Mr. Mantell has given notice of resolutions affirming (1) that a fair interpretation of the Honorarium Act,, and the advice of tho Attorney-General, on which the Speaker certified to the vouchers, fully justified the Wellington members in receiving the £25 of honararium paid fchem after last session; (2) that, as the AttorneyGeneral refused to give an opinion as to the legality of the payment, and as no independent legal opinion was sought for, the action of the Government in demanding repnyment was unjustifiable, and that it is a matter for regret that the money, was repaid without tho question being tested in the Supreme Court; and (3) that the Government should introduce an amended Bill to prevent a recurrence of such an affair by removing all ambiguities, real or imaginary, in the Act.

THE TARIFF. As was announced yesterday, the tariff was made the first order of the day. Tho Premier was still unable to be present, and the Minister for Public Works took charge of the Bill. A few petitions were presented, and ten minutes after the House met it had got into committee on the tariff. Captain Russell, who is assuming a prominent position in the Freetrading party, took occasion to formally intimate to the Premier his inability to support the Government in their tariff proposals. At the outset he gave notice that in committee he would move the following amendment, " That the item ' salt,' except rock salt, £1, be struck out; and that the item ' tea,' 6d per lb, be struck out, with a view to inserting tho previous rate of 4d per lb." The Freetraae section cheered tho hon. member on his giving notice of his intention. Item after item of the duties were carried by large majorities, until at last Mr. Peacock stated that it was simply a waste of time to challenge further divisions, and Mr. Beetham endorsed the view. Throughout the whole afternoon sitting not a single alteration was made. On coming to the item " Galvanised iron manufactures not otherwise enumerated," reference was made to the position of this industry in Auckland, and the explanation as to the duty was satisfactory. " Grindery " (heel and toeplates only) was struck out, but Messrs. Goldie and Peacock referred to this industry isi Auckland, and the Minister explained that the lino would be placed along with another class, to which it properly belonged. Mr. R. Thompson made a strong appeal in the interest of the Northern farmers to got the duty on barbed fencing wire rcduccd ono • half, but the claims of the Southern manufacturers would not be ignored, and after a long wrangle the duty was sustained. When tho items, "iron, galvanised corrugated sheets," and " iron, plain galvanised sheets," came up, Mr. Goldie said ho had seen the Premier, and also consulted with the Hon. J. Ballanco in regard to the galvanised iron industry. Mr. Parker, of Auckland, desired that the plain galvanised sheet should carry 35s per cwt., and tho corrugated 503. Neither of the above members could fee what was to bo gained by such a proposal, because it must surely bo in the interest of tho galvanising industry to have the difference between the plain galvanised sheet and the corrugated as small as possible, so that the former may not be introduced as at present, and simply corrugated with littfo or no labour. In musical instruments, organs, &c.," Mr. Reeves made an appeal on behalf of "some unreflecting Free Trade constituents of his who had sent to England for an orcjan," to have the duty remitted, bub the Minister declined to consider the request, and the Protectionists pointed out that there were organbuilders in tho colony. Tho duty on preserved milk wae strongly supported by Mr. Hobbs, but opposed by Sydney Taiwhanga, who, on the item, "millinery, trimmed hats, caps, and bonnets," caused roars of laughter by stating that he would vote for a reduction of the duty, as he was in favour of the fair sex. In "photographic chemicals, and photographic goods, an effort was made by Messrs. Peacock and Moat to meet the views of the photographers, but it failed. The former desired the Minister to note that although the lenses could nob bo made in the colony, the camera-boxes could. The Minister promised to consider the advisability of putting a duty on theatrical bills, advertisements, and programmes. It was pointed out that some theatrical companies brought the whole lot complete into the colony, only filling up the dates, which were left blank. Up to the supper adjournment, the Attor-ney-General was in the Lords' Gallery, watching the progress of tho tariff, and listening to the debate. Close on midnight tho committee got to the line. salt, except rock salt," when Captain Russell moved his motion for its abolition amid cheers. The Minister said ho would amend the lino. by making it read " salt, except coarse and rock salt." Thereupon Mr. Seddon said that there was evidently an intrigue between the Government and the ultra-Protection-ists that the Government would modify the salt tax if the latter would support the tea duty. Ho named as one of the conspirators Mr. W. P. Reeves. Mr. Reeves emphatically denied the charge, a? also did the Opposition whip, Mr. Walker. Mr. Fish said that if any intrigue was going on it vis between Mr. Seadon and tho Freetraders, and he warned the Protectionists to stand firm, and see the tariff through. Mr. Soddon proceoded to narrate a couvercation which book place with tho Minister

of Justice and two members in the lobby, which went to show an arrangement. Mr. Fergus gob up and stated that Mr. Seddon had ontirely misrepresented the facts. Some heated speeches were then made as to bringing- lobby conversations into the House. Mr. Cadnian remarked that the tax would bo only a ninth of a penny. Colonel Fraser said he had stated from the outset that he would bo dead against salt and tea duties, and he would so vote. Mr. T. Thompson said the tax was so small—a ninth of a penny on fine salt—that the trade would nob put it on to the poor man. Mr. Hobbs strongly protested against thfe duties on fine salt as injurious to the farmer. He warned Ministers of the consequences of cerbain Canterbury members working the oracle with the Premier and the Minister of Public Works to get items arranged to suit their industries. He could name a dozen such items in the tariff. Mr. Peacock hoped the Government would consider the matter, and relievo the dairying and curing interests. Mr. R. Thompson suggested to the Minister the exemption of fine salt and leaving ib on coarse salt, but ib was not accepted. Mr. Lawry supported the tax, as the moro salt was used by the butter-makers tho greater his profit. The tax bo the working man would bo about fourpence a year. After a long debate the Minister carried his point, and then moved the amendment that the tax be reduced bo ten shillings per ton, which was also carried, being tho first reduction of duty throughout tho whole sitting. A number of items are held over for consideration. There is likely to be a wordy fight on Tuesday over tho proposed abolition of the tea duty, and tho duty on jams. The Tariff discussion, tonight, attracted a good deal of public interest. The public galleries were crowded, and some of the "Lords" occupied their gallery, while tho ladies were in great force, being anxious to know how " millinery, ribbons, hats, feathers," and other imported feminine accessories would fare at the hands of the Protectionists. There was a full attendance of members in the House throughout the whole Tariff debate, which excited the keenest interest. AUCKLAND ASYLUM.

The Colonial Secretary has received Dr. Cremonini's report, reviewing and replying to that of Mr. Ewington, the official visitor. It is under the consideration of the department. The reports on tho petitions of inmates of the Asylum are settled, but were nob brought up to-day, owing to the Tariff discussion.

KAUAERANGA BLOCK. Mr. Pratt is endeavouring to ascertain' from the Government what action they intend to take in connection with the representations made to the Native Affairs Committee on the petition of W. H. Taipara, graying for a rehearing in the case of the [auaeranga Block.