MR MASSEY'S TOUR

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15100, 24 March 1911, Page 5

MR MASSEY'S TOUR

SPEECH AT KAIAPOI.

(Pkb UsiteJ) Pjirss Association

KAIAPOI, March 23. Mr Massey (Leader of the Opposition) addressed a very well attended meeting at iiaipaoi this evening, Mr J. H. Blackwell (Mayor), intromnsd Ura speaker, stating that all respected a man who 1 could fight an up-hill fight well. That wee the position of Mr ivlassey. Mr Massey said he was pleased there were so' many present. He was sorry that Sir J. G. Ward was away from the colony, but he was away on an Imperial mission, and he hoped that those whom, he had left behind would bo able to) defend his party. Hβ was of opinion that the Prime Minister was the right man to lepreseait the colony at such a gathering. Tne Imperial outlook . was not as bright as one might wish, but he had confidence in the Empire and its statesmen. The outlying dominions would have to take up new burdens in coiUKction with defence, especially in naval matters. Some wanted (separate navies, but he Mid the.e should be one navy under one control. He wojnld reply to the charter oi Liberalism put tor ward. There wers seven points, and Lβ would deal with them ,ono by one. The fust was access to the land, with security of tenure, and lliiis Government was tne same as had stated that ncns going on laad should have the {Toehold. Ihis party had locked •up Native landa, this was the party that led its members into the lobby to defeat his motion- for the opening up of Jand and giving security} of tenure. Second : Access to capital at the lowest rate-the State could furnish it. If a man lent money on land he was taxed for it. Ho lent to the man on the lard and wae taxed, but if he lent it to a busine.u man ho would have to pay nothing at all. A man who owned money paid in the firct place, but passed it on. The Government had made it impossible for citizens to h';;d investment in the country. Legislation shculd be remedied to encourage investment in New Zealand. Beferring to access to tho land, he had been on br>rough councils years ago. They could borrow from the Government ior 41 years r>l per cent, interest, and at the end of the period all was paid off. It wee Jiot £0 now. The law was amended so that a local body wanting cash had to pay £4 17g 6d per cent. Access to the mexr.s of transportation was the Government's next plaoik. They would remember how the Government had increased , the railway rats, and to gained £100,000 extra. That did not jqua.re with the principle of access to tlw motive power. The legislation of last session rendered an individual unable to make use ol the streams unimpeded. Stipendiary magistrates should be free from all suspicion of political control, but as things were they depended on the Government of the day fo^ , their salaries. Their salaries should b; gocd, and made incapable of alteration. Two other p'.anke in the platform were access to insurance and to tree education. It wae impossible for a private member tj move an increase of expenditure. Had it besn possible he would have mr.de the latter freer than it was. S;>me time ago, he said the policy of the Government was one of humbug. That term was not liked, so ho would substitute the word hypocrisy. By its actions the Government had showed itself opposed to its platform. Either its policy was one of hypocrisy or it was unable to form one. It was again stealing planks given by the party row in opposition. A Government wee to be judged by its proposals rather than by what it put on the Statute Book. Tins Ministry's first measure hsd been ore prohibiting the freehold.—(Noise.) He was glad to. sec that Government supporters wore there ready to recognise t.ie leasehold policy. It was more ten .the -Government itself did. Settlers build--ing and improving their homes would keep on wondering until they decided that the only tenure giving them full security was the freehold, \yhen 'the present Government came in it found a fairly satisfactory land system —the optional system, though under tho l.i.p. a. man ' could never \get the freehold. Tho l.i.p. had been knocked out. Now a man worked hard and knew that when the first term was up he would have to pay more rent. He emphasised tho right of purchase for all land. The bill of last session was the most amazing, ever put before the House. It provided for the Government taking land for leaso and at tho end of 10 years, if it was good, the Government could keep it; if it was not good it could hand it back to the owner. The principle of compulsory leasing was involved. He declared that that was bad. The Land Bill had provided that a man who, having 400 or 500 acres, found himself short of feed and agreed with a neighbour to use his land, should be liable to a penalty for this. It was an offence carrying a £500 fine or five years in gaol. The land did not even need to be leasehold. A worker or a merchant could work where he liked; all wero encouraged, but in the case of some settlers if they acquired an acre in another part they were criminals. It was not law and never would be, but it was a Government proposal with Sir J. G. Ward's name at its head. He would not deal at length with the amendment which he proposed last year, but one point he would make. Each settler should have the right of repaying the principal. Let them pay into a fund to reduce the amount borrowed for the original State purchase. He did not know at what rate borrowing had increased under Sir J. G. Ward, but the debt had increased by £20,000,000. Mr Ballanco had said that £500,000 a year was enough to borrow. Ho had admired Mr Seddon when he said a million or a million and a-half was enough, and that he would rather go out than spoil the country's credit. Not so Sir Joseph Ward. He believed in five millions. He (Mr Massey) would distinguish between extreme and moderate borrowing. Ho would not say that the Government had not the power to borrow five millions. If had come again and again by instalments, but few had thought that Sir J. 0. Ward would preI judicc tho .credit by borrowing five mil- ! lions all at once. The speaker thought that no one was more astonished than Sir J. G. Ward's colleagues. When he nsked was the news true ho was told it was a wrong question, etc. Later, Sir J. G. Ward changed, and told them vhat the Government had borrowed at 3j per cent, and had floated the loan at 98|. It had been underwritten, but they now knew that there were other expenses besides the lJ; per cent, paid for floating. Thoso who elected to convert four years' stock to stock repayable in 31 years got a 2 per cent, bonus. These things amounted to 7 per cent—to £350,000—they would have to pay for this, which had given them nothing. He had ■ faith in this country, and its credit should be as good as any—belter than that of Australia and equal to that of Canada. It pained him to s.iy it, but after that loan we had stood below the Australian States. The country was right, and its administrators were wrong. The Government's answer would be, " what would you drop?" His answer was to borrow as little as possible, and spend where it was most needed. He would ask them to note the increase of taxation. He knew extra, taxation was required by the new Defence Act, but for each pound necessary for that taxation had gone up £3. It had gone up by the death duties and customs duties. The customs duties wero increased a few years asjo. It was only to be a surtax, and a short time, afterwards when affairs were buoyant he had , suggested that they should be removed, but the Government said no. It wanted to get as much as possible out of the people. So it was in other matters—banks and horse racing. There had even been a suggestion to raise the rent of the Crown tenants, but that had been abandoned. 'Pome believed that it was all rigiht so long as it foil on the other fellow.' Take the case of tho banks. Did anyone think that tl\c oxfra tax on banks' was raid by tho shareholders ? It wont on to those who we customers of tho institution, and k> tho income tax was passed , on. Similarly all these taxes wero passed on to tho pfonle. The effect of all these taxes had been to reduce tho peonle's income No country was eveT benefited by heavy taxas. At present the taxation

of New Zealand 1 was heavier than it was in any State in Australia, and, he behevod, than in. any other Stato of the Empire. He had facts and figures; and would prove, his statement. The canso was unproductive investment. The cost of such came out of his and their pockets. • •

Last year the public works vote was £2,000,000 and this year it was ' £2,800,000. All the members had to do was to vote it all in tho hands t>l tho Minister, who was a despot, wrong in almost all capes, especially as to roads and bridges, The private members knew nothing except of their qwn district. The system led to abuses, and was wrong because they could have no check on the spending. That wae ■ a matter on which people should insist on a change. Last year they had spoken of a new Local Government Bill. Boiled down, it meant that school boards and education boards were abolished and their pawer was transferred to the Jpcal bodies, who would have to find the funds. Such money should) come, as at present, from the consolidated revenue. Education was ' a national benefit, and should be subscribed' by the whole people. He had spoken of the Works Department as a despotism. Ife might go further and ' say that the whole. Government of the country was a despotism. In customs,, as provided in the act, the Minister had the right to say whether certain articles were dutiable or not. The Public \TV venuo Act said that in certain caflas where a man's salary was set ,by the Act it should not be altered, but this had been done by the voting of a gratuity. As to postponement of Parliament, it seemed to him that it saidi that there was only one man fit to 'be Prime Minister. He believed- that all that was < left for the people of this country was the right to bs taxed. The executive ■ : had usurped the power belonfrinjr to Par-' liament as the direct representative of the people. If reform wae necessary, how atowt the Legislative Council? Members had as much say as members of tlie Lower House, but wctb responsible to only to the party that put them there. He believed in a Second Chamber, but it should bo independent. This quality was lost when the life term was abolished. A man voted as he thought, and when hie seven years were up he went out. That was the gate of the independent man. Tiro j remedy was to have tho members selected by a system of proportional representation. With such a system it would be necessary to run several electorates. The objection was that they would be too big j for a poor man to canvass. Let the men be elected on their records. For years they_ had tried to secure reform of the Legislature. It should come from -withia. They would remember how a scheme Uβ '•" the reform of tho Legislative' Council had • ■ been passed by lira Lower House, but had not secured one vote in the Council. When the question of reform came up . there'would be a hard fight between the two Houses. The civil service was one of thebiggest in proportion in the world. ' ; The civil servants were as good as any I in the world. The majority held their place because of political interest, hi this, as in the matter of the Upper House, we were 50 years behind There should be a Public Service Board as in Australia, so that there should be equal chances for the 'children of each and every man.—(Applause.) He believed the system would be better for. the railways, where there was too much patronage and - too little expert management. All over ■ the land there were too many who voted on the strength of • the belief in favours to come. He would ask any Government supporter what was the policy of the Government. If he didn't know it why : , did ho support it? But he only know . .: what it was from afternoon to afternoon. He did not say, a Government should not ' changs its mind, but when a Government changed its mind so often as to make it clear that it merely-wished to hold office : at any cost the people thought it unstable. ■'/', The Government should put forth, its ,'.', policy and stand or fall by it.—(Ap- ! plause.) Here were the opinions of Go- ■ vernment men. Mr Ross on November 18 had stated that the Government was ' departing from all Liberal staudards. Mr • Graham, of Nelson, had said this was the most incongruous Ministry he had ever seen. Mr Pool, of Auckland, declared % that some Ministers were very respectable ■•., and some were not so reputable. Some he would trust with all he had and some ■;' with very little.—(Laughter.) Mr Bar- ,;: clay, ex-member for Dunedin, and a Government supporter, had said that few could deny that the Ward Ministry was an utter failure. Its members jumped to ■ save their skins. Sir Joseph Ward would \ be known as the india-rubber minister.— (A voice: "A good name, too.") In concluding, Mr Massey reminded / them that his speaking and their listening > wouki be of no value if they did not think themselves. If they believed that the Opposition was honest and had done V,.its best, and believed like him that a ' ;-. change was for the best, , then let them . ,- give the other fellow a chance. Replying to . questions, Mr Massey ■' stated that he believed that taxation ' should be according to what an individual ; could afford, that he feared, the sinking " funds would be taken by an impecunious treasurer, that the country should encourage investment, as in hard times a . State department ran dry. Referring to the five million loan he said the first dayj ■".. next session he would ask for full particu- : ' lars. Ho would ask the people to back .: him up in his question., He did not ob- .-.':• ject to the immigration of boys of good class. ■ ■;. A vote of thanks, was carried on the ■•■•'.' motion of Mr Edward Saunders, seconded -. by■Mγ S. Eenaldi. Mr, Massey, in return- ,■•, ing thanks, said he would speak again, ,:■: setting out the party platform. ,