LOBBY AND GALLERY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1747, 30 August 1905, Page 41

LOBBY AND GALLERY.

THE WEEK’S WORK. The beneficent legislation by which the State fathers the worker and keeps an inspector planted on the doorstep to see that not more than eight hours a day are occupied does not apply to Parliament. . Parliament in this the century of enlightenment and indulgence for the democracy is nothing more than a huge sweating machine for those members who care to carry the burden. Those -who come under this category are very limited. The hulk of them invariably retire by midnight, but a handful is left to wrestle with the affairs of State. The ventilation of the buildings is shocking. If the scene that the House presented at 3.30 a.m. on Saturday could have been photographed, and all its attendant surroundings truthfully depicted, the country would have an extraordinary notion of Parliament and its methods. But the country can never realise, the exact nature of these methods, for the democracy is snugly asleep when its representatives are watching the clock slowly go round from dinner to supper, and from supper to close on breakfast time. • And the question arises, is this kind of unnatural existence necessary, with about twenty-three members in the House and the other fifty-seven in bed or elsewhere? The system is vicious in the extreme. The grave yawns prematurely for those< who see it through. The week has been chiefly occupied with the Electoral Bill, which had two long nights in committee, and the Estimates. When it is considered that the

Electoral Bill contains something like two hundred and thirty-three clauses, and about one hundred and thirty clauses have been passed, it may be said that very fair progress has been made. There was a “ ray of sunshine ” after midnight on Thursday on this bill, and it was the only bright gleam that lightened up the matter-of-fact .proceedings. The leader of the Opposition desired to show sympathy for the patients in hospitals, and to place them on an equality in the matter of voting with seamen and others who have the privilege of exercising electors’ rights when away from home. He moved in the direction of giving persons incapacitated by illness the power to vote, the elector’s right to he attested by the medical superintendent. . Then arose the humours of the situation.

“ The leader of the Opposition would try to kiss the nurses,” mildly suggested the Premier, who- pictured the nossihility of infectious disease being conveyed by voting-papers sent out from the hospitals if such a proposal were agreed to. “We have established! maternity homes,” said the Premier, and. after a pause, added, “ You might orematurely fill the cradles —you might not know what would happen.” After the laughter had subsided, the member for the Hutt imagined Mr Aitken hurrying up to the hospital on election day with jellies and beef-tea —he would be invincible. r

The Premier has had experience of electors’ rights. He told the House how miners’ rights were hawked about from one district to another—one could have them at so much a hundred. In one particular election, a superinten-dent—-this was evidently in the old provincial days—was elected by an interchange of miners’ rights. Such a proposal as suggested would lead to bribery and corruption. The leader of tihe Opposition did not think it was half as bad as Ministers going about the country and promising roads and bridges. The incident related by the Premier led Mr Taylor to remark that Mr S odd on “ in his youth must have mixed up withi some very wicked people.” The Premier did not like the idea of people be-ing-worried on sick beds by talk regarding candidates or the elections. Mx Massey was beaten by one vote—-the Maori vote, he alleged, and he indicated the possibility of trouble when the Maori representation question and its system of voting came up on this bill.

On the Education vote, when the Estimates were under consideration, a persistent plea was put in for the conveyance of back-blocks children .to school. In some districts, it was claimed, this could only be done by means of balloon. “We may have aerial cars in time,” suggested Mr Symes, “tut meantime it is the duty of the department to see that these children get primary education.” The Minister of Education was emphatic on the point. If any Board could show him that the amount allowed for this purpose .was not sufficient to meet the cost of bringing these children to a central school, he was quite prepared to increase th« amount,, but he must first of all have the necessary information. If Education Boards neglected these was, he thought, criminal neglect, simply because of the expenditure of pounds, the Boards of Education must take the responsibility.

Members put in a claim ror rural education, seeing that the cities had such' advantages in respect to technical education. Mr Hogg placed a new aspect on the question. Members, he said, complained that the ch'ldren were not getting agricultural education. Why, some children were asleep on the forms, because they had bee* up at 4 a.m. milking cows, and did not get to bedl until 8 p.m. If that kind of practical education was not sufficient, he did not know what was. That was a great deal more education than they were likely to get from any schoolmaster. Mj Hawkins wanted to know whether it was not possible to grant an allowance for forage for horses provided by the back-blocks settlers to convey their children to school. He had seen aa many as three children on one horse at a time, going to school. The Hon Mr Duncan said he had seen four. “The condition of things at the present time in this Chamber,” observed Mr Taylor at 3 a.m., “reflects the condition of things prevalent” in the Education Department. The Minister is fast asleep “No,” replied Mr Seddon, metaphorically “winking the other eye.” “The Education Department is in a comatose condition,” alleged Mr Taylor. “It is about as near fast asleep as any department can possibly be.” The Premier, however, was wide awake, and watchinj* things with one eye shut.

The Premier welcomed the criticism. It showed the interest taken by members ; n the education question... As Minister of Education, he was very much encouraged, because there seemed to be a general consensus of opinion that there should be an increased expenditure upon education. But, he asked, would members realise that this session they were increasing the cost of education to the extent of £IOO,OOOP

This was a very tig leap. For a ocnin.try like New Zealand, with, its small population, that was a pretty fair increase ; but he was happy to say the finances of the colony would stand it. On the subject of rural education, he believed they had been backward for some time. Nature study was a compulsory subject under the new syllabuß. The first thing to do, however, was to train their teachers. The Farmers’ Union had asked the Government to assist in the matter of rural education, and he wanted Education Boards as well to assist in respect to this question. He believed that Lincoln College ought to be used as a training school to assist in the teaching of nature study and the science of agriculture, for that was where practical knowledge could be given.

Challenged on the question that he held too many portfolios, and could not therefore give adequate attention to the duties of Minister of Education, Mr Seddon said he realised that the position of Minister of Education was the most -important in the country. He thought if members were just, and would take their minds back to the last three or four years, and note what had been done during that time, and the advance made, they would admit that a marked improvement had taken place. Comparing our position with other -countries, he did not think we were dragging behind; indeed, he believed we had not so very much to learn.

The Education vote, like other* votes, got through unaltered. The House on the Estimates in the early hours is a remarkable thing. The drowsiness and incoherency of members and the emptiness of the Chamber are souJUstirring.