THE PREMIERS RETURN.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1716, 18 January 1905, Page 22

THE PREMIERS RETURN.

MR SEDDON INTERVIEWED. REPLY TO RECENT CRITICISMS. The Premier is back in Wellington again, looking hale and hearty after the Christmas holidays, not indeed that the festive season constituted a holiday in the ordinary acceptance of the term for the right hon gentleman, a great portion of whose time was necessarily monopolised by official business. You have been spending the New Year’s holidays amongst your friends on the West Coast, Mr Seddon? said a “Mail” reporter to the Premier - on Sunday night. “Yes,” was the reply, “as years roll on I find myself in closer touch with those friends, a feeling which I assure you is not due to the position I occupy, but to the sincere regard which they entertain for Mrs Seddon, my family, and myself personally; and whether in prosperity or in trouble that feeling is still the same. Many of the friends of former years have now passed away, but the feelings of the parents seeni to have been transmitted to the younger generation, who- look up to me more as a parent than as Premier.” It has been reported that there was a marked difference in your reception there on the last occasion, as compared with previous years, continued our representative, .» that there was no demonstration of welcome such as you had been accustomed to receiving, no banqueting ? “That is untrue,” was the Premier’s emphatic answer. “As to there being no demonstration, take the Press Association reports, and you will find that from my arrival in Greymouth, on to my visits to Hokitika and Westport, I received everywhere the most cordial greetings. I was lunched at Hokitika, taken to a picnic at Kumara, banqueted at Westport, and entertained to a luncheon at Seddonville; and I don’t know what more we wanted. I was met on arrival at Greymouth by a number of representative men and by a large concourse of people at the railway station. I was invited by the Greymouth Jockey Club to attend its race meeting. I could not do so, as I wished to visit the deathbed of an old friend, and proceeded the same afternoon to Kumara. He passed away on the Monday, and I went up again to Kumara, and did not go to the race meeting. Some comment was made about my non-attendance at the Greymouth races, but my friends knew the reason why, and knowing the close friendship that had existed between him who had passed away and myself, they would not expect the old jovial, hearty laugh or anything boisterous on such an occasion. The ‘ Press ’ reporter might probably have met me on Monday, ard very likely I did not look, neither did I feel as. of old. I was certainly not in a scolding humour then or at any time during my visit to the Coast. The funny part of it is that on the occasion of my orevious visit to Grey-

mouth, when a banquet was tendered to me, this same correspondent wanted to make out that it was not representative. I am inclined to think that my visits to the West Coast bring on him an attack of jaundice.” THE LANDS COMMISSION. Then your stay was rather shorter than usual, Mr Seddon? “Yes, urgent business demanded my pilesence in Wellington, and during the course of next week the Lands Commission will be set up.” Do you think the Commission will be able to make a complete investigation and report before the session opens ? “Yes, decidedly so. Since the prorogation there has been a Conference of the Commissioners of Crown Lands and members of Land Boards, and the report of that Conference, which will probably be made public, goes far in the direction of assisting and shortening the labours of the Land Commission. The itinerary of the Commission has been carefully gone into, and it ought to be able to complete its labours in about three months. It is not likely that the session will be any earlier this year than usual, and there will be practically five months, if necessary, for the Commission to do its work. However, in my opinion, it won’t take anything like that time. At any rate, the promise made to Parliament, that the report would be completed and in the hands of members at the commencement of the session, will be kept. In fact it ought to be ready weeks beforehand.” IN TARANAKI. In the course of further conversation, the Premier referred to his visit to New Plymouth. The committee of the exhibition had fixed upon Thursday last as the official day, and, as was noted by the press, it was a record day for the exhibition. People came there from all parts of Wanganui and Taranaki districts, and the approaches to the exhibition reminded him of Bourke street, Melbourne, forty years ago, a comparison which any Australian would understand. Be spoke in glowing terms of the exhibition itself and its arrangements, observing that the display would have done credit to Christchurch, Wellington, Dunedin, or Auckland. A marked improvement was noticeable in the town itself and the surrounding districts. He had also visited Mount Egmont for the first time, and had been impressed by the fact that there was not as much made of its attractions as if it had been in proximity to one of our larger centres. He. warmly commended the enlightened foresight of such men as Mr Standish, the Hon Mr Kelly, and Mr Carrington in the Provincial Council of thirty years ago, in having set aside a forest reserve from a given line at the foot of the mountain. All that was now required was improved means of communication and accommodation on the mountain itself, and ere a few years had elapsed Mount Egmont would attract thousands of visitors.

The Premier next touched upon his visits to other parts of Taranaki. On Saturday he covered a distance of thirty-four miles on horseback to Inglewood on a prize horse kindly lent him by Mr Lynn, and there, as elsewhere, he was very warmly welcomed and entertained at a banquet. He had also visited the Waitara Freezing Works, wdiich are being rebuilt at a cost of £30,000. The buildings, etc., he described as up to date, and showing a confidence in the productive powers of the district which was worth no-ting.

Road metalling and construction was one of the questions submitted fo him, and he regarded the question as one of paramount importance for Taranaki, and one the necessity of which Parliament should recognise. It was apparent to anyone desiring to do full justice to the settlers that a much larger sum of money should he appropriated for road construction, and he had told the people at Inglewood that at least- £500,000 should be appropriated for the purpose next session, even if the expenditure on buildings and other conveniences had to be curtailed. FINANCE.

There was an air of sound prosperity in Taranaki district, and as far as he could judge from the returns in the last nine months the same state of affairs prevailed throughout the colony. The month of December had been a record month for Customs returns. The estimated revenue had been fully realised ; money for public works had been raised on better terms by one-half per cent, than in the case of New South Wales, and, relatively, there had been a much larger public subscription. Yes, but Natal raised its money at 3£ per cent? queried out representative.

“I should be very sorry for New Zealand to have made such a mistake,” was the Premier’s reply. “I am informed on reliable authority that the Natal loan had to he taken up by the Sinking Fund Commissioners, and that it was scarcely touched by the public, and only netted £93 15s. Of course, there are always some who can do better than the Colonial Treasurer, hut the Colonial Treasurer, as far as finance is concerned, is sitting on velvet.”

Is there anything in the report that there has been a small loan raised in Australia ?

“1 have seen what has appeared in the paper and I take it that the reference is to some loans we have which are falling due in Australia, and what is referred to is renewals or the raising of money in Australia to meet debentureholders who require cash. To be able to raise money at par, .at 4 per cent., as I understand has been stated, speaks well for the colony, and will not be found fault with. -It is somewhat amusing to me —and I should bo better pleased if I thought there was more sincerity—to see the anxiety evidenced in respect of obligations regarding debentures which are falling due this month. I have no anxiety ; I never had ; and I hope this statement may relieve at least the professed anxiety of those pessimistic croakers who, lacking confidence in themselves and in their country ? by their loud-voiced misgivings do injury to the colony they profess to assist. I feel satisfied that in respect to financing our loans and renewals the Colonial Treasurer will have a very pleasing tale to tell Parliament, and this has been done with little assistance from within the colony itself.” INDUSTRIAL ARBITRATION. I see you have been making a statement about an amendment of the Conciliation and Arbitration Act in the direction of the State being brought under the act? “My remarks do not apply generally, but specifically, and to remove anomaly that now exists. The employees in the State Coal Mines are working under the Arbitration Court awards. They cannot cite the Government, nor can the Government appear before the Court in case any dispute arises. What I think should be done — and intend to submit proposals in that direction—is that in respect to the State and coal mining that the Government should be placed in the same position as any private colliery proprietary. This 1 mentioned at Seddonville when a deputation of the Miners’ Union waited on me, and they expressed their satisfaction witli the reasonableness of the proposals.”