PARLIAMENT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 6269, 24 July 1907, Page 6

PARLIAMENT.

HOUSH OF REP7SHSENTATIV S

I _ TUESDAY, JULY 23. The House met at 2.30. PRIVATE' BILL. The second reading or the Dunedin Suburban Gas Company Empowering Bill was moved by Mr Arnold. It seeks to empower the company to. put gas i mains through the suburb of Cavershaiii and surrounding district. The Hon. Mr Millar pointed out that (lie company’s eoncescion was gran tea twenty-one years ago, and since then Oaveiehara had become part of Dunedin city. Ho objected to this power being given to a ’private company when the city itself was prepared to do the work. The Dunedin City Corporation was opposed to the measure. Mr Barclay opposed the Bill, and said ho would ask the House, if ever the Bill came back from the committee, to join him in rejecting it. Sir Joseph Ward supported the Bill going to the committee. He said a large mm) of British money was invested in the company, and tho shareholders had a right to expect fair and reasonable treatment from tho Legislature. Mr J. Allen said it rights could .be given to the company which did not contlict with the powers of Dunedin city. It should be done, but the unfortunate tiling was that Dunedin city had taken Cavorsham into its arms, and naturally sought to supply Cavorsham with lighting; moreover, Dunedin city owed something to tho Cavorsham ratepayers. Mr Sidey taid unless considerable modifications were made in the Bill he must oppose it. Probably some arrangement might be come to between tho Council and the company before the Bill was returned from the committee. Mr T. Mackenzie said the Gas Company had for years occupied a useful position in supplying gas to the suburbs. These suburbs had their rights, and It was because of tho overstretching on the part of the city of Dunedin that many of the suburbs had positively re- ! fused to throw in their territory within tho city area. They felt they would be entirely under the heel of the city it they did this. It appeared that Dunedin wanted to prevent the company continuing rights granted to Tl by Parliament. Mr E. G. Allen thought if the Bill wore allowed to go to the committee, the differences would be satisfactorily • settled. The company was not a paying concern, and it would not take a very large sum lor Dunedin city to buy the , works. : The second reading was agreed to, and 1 the Bill was referred to tho Local Bilk Committee. j COSTLEY HOME. The Costley Training Institution Act ( Amendment Bill (Hon. Mr i-owds) was ■ read a first time. It extends the powers , of the trustees of the home. j ROTORUA TOWN. | The Rotorua Town Bill, reported from committee, came on lor its third reading. ' , Mr Herries (Bay of Plenty) stated that tho Bill proposed to place all the moneys received - from the town into the Consolidated Fund. This would prevent anyone injured by the department in its capacity of a borough from suing the department for damages. A good deal of the failure in Rotorua administration had been due to divided authority. The figures in regard to expenditure upon Rotorua quoted by the Premier did not tally with his own idea of them. Probably the expenditure upon railway communication was included. If u© chose to make a balance-sheet of Rotorua upon the same principles as the Exhibition balance-sheet, he could show | that Rotorua was the greatest asset tho colony po-eesaed. He criticised thei Tourist Department's conduct of the I drainage scheme, alleging that .£6826 was spent upon the original scheme which j had to be condemned without being used. The waterworks scheme had not altogether been a, success yet owing to defective jointing, while the electrical scheme was not supplying all the curren. desired. He guaranteed that thing; would have been better 'if the Government had had nothing to do with Rtorua. If the petty charges for use of the wharf on Lake- Rotorua were continued, the votes recorded for the Opposition member would go up consider- j ably next election.

The Premier declared that'the member for the district seemed to want Roforua people to get everything for nothing. There was not a Harbour Board in the colony which did not charge dues upon goods passing over its wharves, so as to pay for maintenance and lighting. The people of Rotorua, quite contrary to the impression of ’the hon. member, had so much confidence, in the Government that they actually wanted it to take over the control of the local racecourse. In regard to the water and drainage .schemes, the hon. gentleman quite forgot to inform the House that owing to the extraordinary nature of the soil at Roto* rua it was impossible for the usual material to remain, below ground for any length of time without serious deterioration. Instead of complaining, Mr Hcrrics should have made a congratulatory speech upon the remarkable success which had attended the Government's administration of Rotorua. The Bill was read a third time and passed. The House adjourned at 5.30. EVENING SITTING The House resumed at 7.30. FINANCIAL STATEMENT. The debate on the Financial Statement was commenced (as reported elsewliere), and continued to midnight, when the House rose until 2.30 p.nL. today. ’ i -