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THE COMING ELECTIONS.

I MR. HOBBS AT ST. GEORGE'S HAT.T, Mr. R, Hobbs, one of tho candidates for i Auckland City, addressed a meeting of elec- • tors at St. George's Hall on Thursday night. The hall wan well filled, about 400 persona | being percent. Mr. J. W. Shackelford ; (Mayor of Grey Lynn) presided, and inlrop duced the candidate with a few appropriate 1 remarks. Mr. Hobhs spoke for about an hour and twenty minutes to a very attentive audience, and followed the main lines of his pre- ' vious speech delivered in the Ponsonby Hal!. • Mr. Hobbs declared himself a strong oppo- • nent of the present party in power, whoso [ policy he termed Seddonism, which really meant that the matter of policy was subservient to that of following tho leadership of the Premier. He also declared himself in ! favour of freehold tenure of land, and would ■ give a generous support to the platform laid ! v doira by the Opposition last week. A large number of questions were asked and answered satisfactorily, and, on the motion of Mr. G. Knight, seconded by Mr. J.- Catchpole, a . hearty vote of thanks and confidenca in Mr. , Hobbs was carried, amidst applause, only one hand being held up in opposition to tho . motion. A vote of thanks to the chairman [ concluded an interesting and instructive address. At the close of tho meeting a strong working committee was formed, pledged to ' support Mr. Hobbs' candidature for the oity electorate. I . EDEN ELECTORATE. Mr. Malcolm Niccol addressed a largelyattended meeting of the Eden electors at . Cholsea last night, at which Mr. J. Harris presided. Mr. Niccol, who met with an ex--1 cellont reception, spoke for about an hour, ' and at the close was accorded' a unanimous i vote of thanks and confidence. ; OHINEMURI ELECTORATE. [BY TELEGRAPH.OWN CORRESPONDENT.] ( Waihi, Friday. Mr. Mervyn J. Stewart addressed the electors at Waihi last evoning in the district school. There was a large and enthusiastic 1 audience. The Rev. Barnett was in the chair. Mr. Stewart said we had one of the finest i countries and a race not to be beaten any- ! where. The way to settle tho quesi lion was to elect men who would be a credit. It was necessary to elect men with no class or local interest op- . posed to the electors. He claimed to fulfil those conditions. He did not think tho Government's programme sufficiently definite, and would uphold the rights of the people [ on the lines of the late Sir George Grey, and as carried out by the late Mr. Ballance, and 1 by Mr. Seddon till now. As to his platform, he was a iiingle-taxer. Every man had a right, to all be earned, which meant that no one had a right to what he did not earn. Though a , single tnxer, he \fas not a faddist, and would not urgo peculiar views, if not likely to bo successful. Popular self-government was the next important constitutional change. They had representative government, but the people of New Zealand had outgrown that sort of thing, and were quite able to govern themselves. Mr. Ballance's great watchword was, "Trust the people," but he would go 1 further, and say, " Obey the people." It was 1 not for Parliament to wrangle over a question for months; they should let the people decide it with a straight vote. Another desir- . able change was the abolition of the Legislative Council. Another important matter was representation. He illustrated the absurdity of the present sj'slem, and favoured the Hare system of preferential voting, and proportional representation. There should be a • State bank, with solo power to issue notes. Borrowing should cease, and the State should pay for its public works by issuing its own notes from its own bank. He approved of tho Old Age Pensions Act, but said it would have to bo re-enacted at the end of the second session of next Parliament. Every candidate should be pledged to support it. More attention should be paid to the defence of the colony. The militia should be more than a paper force, and' volunteers should ' get every encouragement to make themselves efficient, short of absolute payment for services. He would also like to see Vaile's railway system tried. He was against allowing Austrians and others into the colony. He was also strongly in favour of local government, and would like to see every district manage its own affairs. He was not in favour of public batteries here. An agricultural college in Auckland, similar to that in Christchurch, was required. In conclusion, he said he would do his best for the district in 1 general, and Waihi in particular, for it was • nearest his home. 1 , A, cordial vote of thanks to Mr. Stewart - lor his address, concluded the proceedings, Mr. J. C. Allen, candidate for the Parnell r i m' 0 ' s P oa ' c ' n 'he Victoria Hall, . Mm Terrace, on Monday, and in the Public 1 m rmar ket) on Wednesday. Mr. W. J. Napier will address a public ! meeting in St. Benedict's Hall,- Newton, on Monday evening. , Mr. E. Ford, candidate for Waitemata, ani nounces a series of meetings in anothei col- 1 umn. Mr. R. French will resume his electoral campaign on Wednesday evening next in St. James Hall, when, among other subjects, he will speak ou the recent Police Commission, 1 licensing legislation, electoral reform, etc. • On Thursday afternoon Mr. French will hold ' a meeting,- at three o'clock, in the Ponsonby Baptist Schoolroom.

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Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH18991021.2.7

Bibliographic details

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11200, 21 October 1899, Page 3

Word Count
917

THE COMING ELECTIONS. New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11200, 21 October 1899, Page 3

THE COMING ELECTIONS. New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11200, 21 October 1899, Page 3