HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18048, 23 September 1920, Page 4

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

£i lc Honso mo . fc at 2.30 p.m. ■the _ presentation of a . paper on higher education, by the MIOTSTEtf OF EDUCAf\ ato in whioh members appealed for the more generous treatment of superannuated teachors. nIA ['¥i ATHAM . s "Kg ; stod thai a universal old-ago pension scheme was tho real remedy. „ io all such applications for assistance by superannuated public servants. '? remainder of the afternoon sitting wasi taken up with the discussion of reports or Seleot Committees on Petitions. •'■louse adjourned at 5.30 p m.

EVENING SITTING. 'in!° S ous e resumed at 7.30 p.m. ArfiJ 0 !?° , went into committee on tiff ilaster and Apprentices Amendment Bifl 'WORTHY. ferC ° f thcr n ° n ' W - NOS A number of amendments, fha penal clauses and generally liberalising tha ißtroduced by Ad Mr HOLLAND said the Labour Party would oppose almost every clause in thl ' thero was so much i n it that r Tf j °i P ersona l liberty. It waa s:l ?Ply legalised slaverv. J 03 TTrff did not agree with. Mr ?K; liS e f th ? USh V the -o^dfitva „ r f G - to boys brought out under it )-h«Ait* r j a c!laiice of getting in i? 1 ? £ and; , y et ho thought no boy should be brought out unless his parents or and lift 18 KaV ° t ' leir * C( > nsell t to his coming' t Ti«T d to , try lo amend thffc c ause He, however, favoured tho permissive clauses of tho Bill, which were Mr M'COMBS contended that tho Labour < } e towards the Bill was now being endorsed by all parties in tho House, Ho remarked • that it was not generally undon" th? ii? PC ° P ?°f th ? dominion" that ' f bill introduced, an immigrant faimer apprentice would bo liable to "threo ?' 7 I i Sollf ? ry , confinement" for "any. breach' of disobedience, or ill-behaviour in his - service, and that apprentices running away or absenting themselves shall, when found, woupht bsck rmd. compelled to scrv& his master for so long a time as he has absented himself unless he.ma.kes roasonablo satisfaction to His master, failing which ha may be imprisoned for any period not exceeding three months, besides serving tho period of tune for which ho was absent, iliat the emphatic protest of tho Labour i arty was not in vain was evidenced by tha u°jl , Government proposed to drop both theco clauses out of tho Bill, but without repealing them in tho princrpdl Act. lie asked tho Government not only to expunge these clauses from this Bill, but to repeal them in the original Act. • Messrs Lysnar, Isitt. M'Leod,,and Jones gave the Bill support. Tho latter contended that the objectionable clauses in the Bill were already the law of tho land, and had been, so lor many years. Mr HOWARD said tho only dJfTerenco between tho Labour Party and the rest of tho Housa was' one of degree. The Labour Party only saw less good in the Bill thnn, the other members. Mr STATIIAM said tho fcuit of the Bill was that it was an attempt to graft a now law to an old and obsolete statute .of _ The fact was tho law of apprenticeship in New Zealand vras in a. state of chaos, and required remodelling. He recom-, mended the Government to withdraw tho' . Bill and reconstruct it. He strongly objected to tho clause -permitting boys to sign indentures on their own behalf, without the consent of parents or guardians. Mr WITTY' maintained that if boys wero brought out thoy should have a choice of employment when thoy arrived here, and not be sent to employers who might not know how to treat them. It was a better policy to encourage tho rearing of our own children than to import thom. Mr MASTERS maintained that tho labour Party's real objection to the Bill was that they opposed any scheme of immiijration whatever. After the supper adjournment tho discus#sion on the first clause was continued by Messrs PARRY, THACKER, ERASER and Dr NEWMAN, who opposed the .various clauses of the Bill, and ]Mr HORN gava the measure ' a qualified support. At 11.10 p.m. a division was called, for on the first clause, which was agreed to by 48 votes to 14. In clause 2 Dr NEWMAN moved to increase tho ago at which boys oould bo brought out from 15 to 15. The amendment was lost by 33 votes to 26. Mr HOM/AND moved that before a boy leaves England he should know who his employer was to be, and what his employment. was to bo. Mr NOS WORTHY said this was impracticable, and if carried would kill the Bilk Mr SAVAGE _ said the Australian law provided that this should' be done. If it was practicable in Australia it should bo so in New Zealand. Mr LYSNAR said the Australian lawt referred to adult skilled lai>our, and had no application to the cases under discussion. Tlio MINISTER said it was proposed toi put boys on one of tho State farms until suitable employers and employment could be found for them.The amendment was lost by 51 votes to 10. Mr FRASER moved an amendment fixing l the wages to bo paid to boys at tho same scale as was fired under the rural workers' award. The amendment was lost by 40 rotes to 19. Mr M'COMBS moved an amendment providing tnat the terms of contract with boy 3 be set out in the Bill, and not left to bci prescribed by regulation." Tho amendment was lost by 42 to 19. Mr YETTCH moved an amendment that the passage money. should bo paid by tha employer, and not out of tho wages of tho boys. This was lost by 41 votes to 18. Mr SAVAGE proposed to strike out the provision for the payment of a passago by the boy, and the substitution of a provision that tlio boy's wages be paid ■ weekly. I This was lost by 40 votes to 33. The following amendment, moved by tha Minister in sub-cljmse 4 of clause 2, was agreed to: " The indenture shall state tho minimum amount of wages to bo paid by the employer to the apprentice during -tho .first year of his employment in New Zealand, and shall contain a provision that tho wages to bo paid by tho employer to or on account of or for the benofifc of tlio apprentice." After 1 o'clock the Labour tactics of moving frequent amendments was continued. The House was still considering tho clauso when tho OfTVeo closed at 2 a.m. (Left sitting.)