PARLIAMENT.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 10586, 15 October 1910, Page 1

PARLIAMENT.

(Per Phess Association.) -Wellington, October 14. LEGISLATIVE, COUNCIL. , The Council met at 2.30 p.m. | —lndecent Publications. — - The Attbiney-Geneial moved that the Council disa'giec with the amendments made by the House m* the Indecent Publications Bill. . In cdause 3, sgecilying the offences, the House had added the woids "knowing or'having reasonable means or knowing .that such document is indecent." The clause, as it leit the Council, was perhaps a little'too drastic, but in, its amended form it opened the door to the very evil the} desned to check. He suggested that the House might be induced to aglee to make the clause r,ead in a way that would hit the evil aimed at. A moi_e senous alteiation was that ' made jn flause S, which onginally provided that absence of guilt\ knowledge should he no defence. The House had added a proviso, ' unless he pioves he took, all icasonablo means to asceitam the natuic as legards decency or indecency ot such document." It was easy to see how this opened a wa> ot escape. Absence of 'guilty knowledge 1 was no rlcienee m ,othei classes of offence, and ought not to be in this one. The Act would break down altogether if the rlause as amended was allowed to stand Ho hoped the Council would support him in getting the clause in its onguial foim letained. The motion was earned, and a Committee set up to prepaie leasons ioi disagreement with the amendments. —Defence Bill.— The second reading debate was resumed and further adjourned. The Council rose. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House met at 2 30 p.m. —The Estimates. — TJie House went. Into Committee of Supply. Internal Affairs, £235,098. Considerable discussion arose on the electoial vote £6774, regaiding the anomalies ot'the electoral lolls and the system generally. Mi Buddo, leplymg, said since last general election the corrections m the electoral rolls amounted to 30 per cent. It would be madvisable to practice cheese-paring economy in connection with the Electoial Departemnt. Mr Fisher moved that the item £SOO (printing and piepaiation of lolls) bo ieduced 'by £1 as an indication that greater freedom should be allowed the 'Electoral Commissioners m order that I they might conserve that community of interest which is so essential right jthroughout the districts. Mr Arnold moved as a prior amendment that the item be reduced by £1 1 as an indication that tho present sysitem of compiling the rolls was unsatisfactory. • ' Mr Buddo, replying to Mr Massey, said the Legislature Bill was intended to pass this session. It made provision not bnly for purging the lolls but for an electoral census, and that a, door-to-door canvass be made to ascertain if the people on the roll were actually resident in the district.

Mr Arnold's amendment was lost'on thevoices. Tho House lose at 5 30 and resumed at 7 30 p.m. Consideiablo discussion took place on the resumption of cousideiation of the Estimates. ~ Upon the vote foi thp High Commissionei's Office, £8375 — Mr Buchanan contended that the Dominion was not getting an adequate i c tin a for tho expenditure. Mi Wilfoid wished to see the vote loi office equipment, including pubhea'uoi's, inci eased from £SOO to £2OOO, which he would spend m disseminating infoimation legaidmg the conditions ot lalm in the Dominion The immigration officers ought to be instructed that ihcic was no loom foi cleiks and aitis.ins here

Mi Bucldo said the piescnt was not 1 the tune to deal with immigiation f Mi Laiiienson said it would be ! foolish oi the Dominion to spend r laigc 'i sums ot monev m bringing out people i to settle on the land The land }n the Dominion was limited and the local de- l mand could not be supplied <' 1 ifr Massey =aid the debate, while 't 1 had been a little tedious, 'inought home to the Minister the tact that there was a giowing feeling m the House and countiv that the administiation cf the High Commissionei's office was exLiavagant He'was in accoid witli Mr Laiiienson in tho opinion that it was undesiiable to encourage farmers to come to New Zealand His lea&on. how- ' ev;er, diffeied v fiom Mr Laureuson's, being , based on the fact that the Dominion could not offci faimeis a secuie ten in e. Mr Poole emphasised the necessity ior inducing the pioper class ol emigiant to c6nie- to the Dominion, but no obstruction should be placed in the wa\ ot those desnous ot impioving their ( position in life. Young men used to oleucal life came heie and weie piepaied to "do anv thing, and ultimately w became good settleis. ■ At the Museum item £2411 — Mr Wilfoid moved to reduce the vote . liv £1 as an indication that the Museum should be" vested in a board of trustees, and an annual sum "of £2500 gi anted -for their expenses. "Mr Buddo said the matter was a question of policy.' He did not think the , suggested reform would be an improve- , Advertising Office, £1339. Mr Massey asked tho Minister if the Government intended- to pursue the policy of punishing newspapers which cutici&ed it by refusing such journals advertisements. , . - Mr Buddo said'the amount devoted to advertising was, limited, and it was impossible to advertise in all the papers. After a long discussion the vote was i passed jinaltered. * Mental Hospitals £89,004. . ■> ' * Mr Wilford commented on the tact that the report of the Inspector of Mental showed that a large -number of female patients (7 per cent, of the total) were admitted through complaints ansmgJErom childbirth. He * attributed the catise of these diseases to v the use of corsets. ' , ' Mr Buddo said'Jrthe causes of insanity amongst women were set forth m the jsnort mentioned. , , the' conditions under vvhich~the attendants at mental hospitals worked. ~ The hours were long and the conditions-a'rduqus and lestnctive. * , Mr Buddo the work of the attendants, was exacting 'nature, but> so; farr-fas. possible eveiy effort was made to shorten their hours ,of labor. 7* " Mr Hogg moved that the vote be reduced £1 as'arT "indication that h j, the , conditions",should be bettei ed. " ' t ,' After further discussion on the wages < tlieiiimendment was put and carried by 32 to 20. - * Sg" '.■kfy " t ',; (I Public Health,. £17,540., J

Mr Lauicnson, lefeiring to the item of £IOO for quarantine expenses, assumed this was for the upkeep ot the lepers on Quail Island, t He, considered 'tjio Island an undesirable place for hypers, seeing that prize t stock were landed theie. Ch& \ote was passed. Miscellaneous services (£25,306) raised a ronsidci able numbei i>f questions. Sevcial membeis cnticised the item of £7OO, being the cost ot the official histoiy ot the New Zealand Exhibition. Mi Andeison moved that the item be reduced bv £1 as an indication of dis-1 satisfaction at the workihemg solong delayed The amendment was lost by 22 to 'lB. In the House after two o'clock Mr Massev moved to ieduce, an .item oi £3OO for publications, including newspapers, by £l, as an indication that the House was not satisfied with the Mmistei's icph to tho question as'to how the amount ot £730 had been spent undei this head last year. The amendment was lost by 31,t0 18. Customs and Marine Dcpaitment, £120,135, was passed without alteiation. On the Labor vote of £22,827, Mi Wilfoid moved a i eduction of the fiist item b\ £1 as an indication that the Laboi Dcpaitment was not conducting its business in a pioper maunei. There was no doubt the administiation was unsatisfactoi vyboth irom an emplovei's and an cinplovoe's point ot view The laboi unions in vauons parts of the Dominion had expiessed lack of confidence in the Department He desucd to know the icasin, foi this Dcpaitment was clcaih not doing its duty in refusing to obtain luteipietations of awards when lcquested to do so bv unions He lcfenad to tnc lelations of the Fuinituie Union with the employeis" and alleged that the Dcpaitment ha 1 failed to do its duty m regaid to this union. A piosecution had "been laid against a Napici hint who weiq not bound bv an aw aid, at the tunc, and be alleged that Mi Gobns, inspectoi of laboi,'had wutteu to the fii m asking tnem if Ihcy liiicnded to plead guilty In anothci "case the same union had asked the Department to take a pise up with a, view to obtaining an interpi ctation ot the awaid, but this was refused, and the union had to undertake the case itself In other cases t'lo Department had lefused to take action and the union was obliged to do so In one case. a penalty of £ls had .been imposed. Mi Millar went over the <;ases refeired to and said the Department had taken 523 cases during (last year. The Dcpaitment would not take instructions fiom any union as to when cases should 'be taken One case which the Depait-* Imeut had refused tq_Jji* up was a one'between the joiners > and the furniture union, another Qase was that ot an appi entice whose mdeiituies had been destroyed by file. Other cases were of a kind in which action could not be taken for various reasons Mi Moiianty, secretary of the Furniture Union, liad desired to be in a positibn to" demand that the Department should take action wlien he desired it if, the unions were 'not satisfied he was prepared to amend the law so that the onus of taking' action should be with the unions'

The, amendment was lost on the voices and the vote passed. The House lose at 4 10 a.m.