THE LAND QUESTION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2686, 6 September 1905, Page 52

THE LAND QUESTION.

THE GOVERNMENT SHIRK A NOCONFIDENCE MOTION.

MR MASSEY IN FIGHTING FORM.

i vffBOM Our Own Correspondent.) I WELLINGTON, August 31. i The Premier's speech on the land question to-night was punctuated with a great 1 deal of ironical laughter, anrl he had not proceeded very far before it became appa- | rent that he was m a very awkward posi- ■ ticn. At the outset Mr Massey challenged 1 the Premier to make the motion one °of : "no confidence," but the Premier relused to do so. He simply said he would conI tinue his remai'ks. ' Mr Ifassey interjected: 'Wery well, , then, you won't gain anything by it." : Mr Seddon <?sked the Loader of "the Op- ! position not to attempt to drive him j (Laughter.) I Mr Massey: How have the mighty fallen t. T Mr' Seddon: At all events, I have been ; mighty. That is more than has fallen to ; his lot. The "Premier went on to say that , this was a greaj^niestion, and one on which . they wanted -cr^ie discussion. As the Pre- ' mier proceeded with one of the poorest j speeches he has ever delivered -in the House j he was greatly laughed at and frequently I interrupted, such cries a-s " Back to the j wall," and '" Where's your back now?" alternating with ironical iaugkt-or. Mr Massey plainly told the Premier: " Your party ought to be ashamed of you." "Where is your back now?" asked Mr Massey. An Hon. Member : Has lie got >hls back to the door? Mr Seddon : Some people haven't got a back to put to the door. — (Laughter.) The Premier, in further references to Jlr Massey's amendment, declared that the only amendment whicli gave him something dej finite to go upon was Mr Taylor's. He read Mr Taylor's amendment, and said, " There you have a Straight-out issue and no quibbling." Mr Massey: The Premier has just used' a word, sir, which you ruled the other day to be unparliamentary. The Premier : I do not apply it -to the ! hon. member. j Mr Speaker: If the Premier used th« j word he must withdraw it. j Mr Seddon: I only applied it to the I amendment, which I said was a .quibbling resolution. | Mr ' Speaker: Ido not see much difference | between what a person writes and what he 'says. Cries of "Withdraw, withdraw!" frcm Opposition members. Mr Seddon : Then, sir. I -withdraw, because, as you have said, it is the ruling of the House of Commons, not supported, by me. — (Laughter.) Mr Speaker: It is enforced by me. Mr Saddon : Yes, enforced by you, but not believed in. In concluding bis speech the Premier compared 7 Mr Massey to a spider who was trying to lure the Crown tenants like flies into a net, so that he could crush them by the imposition of the land tax. " Walk in, walk in." was wl»at the hon. gentleman was saying.- "We will walk into you directly." said Mr Buchanan, amidst .an outburst of laughter. Mi- Massey, who* was in excellent fighting form, gave the Premier an uneomfori:able half kom\ Instead of moving lha amendment which the Premier had just declined to acespt as a want of confidence proposal, he moved a substituted amendment to the effect that the -House had no confidence in the Government. " There," exclaimed Mr Massey. " will the Premier tafco that as a no confidence motion?" The Premier's reply was awaited witoi breathless attention. "When the division takes place," he said. "I will give the- hon. gentleman my reply." — (Loud laughter.) Mr Massey: The Premier's reply reminds me of nothing so much as the bleat of frightened sheep. — (Laughter.) Mr Seddon : Why not call me a lamb? Mr Hawkins : You are not innocent enough. — (Laughter.) Mr Massey: The Premier's speech is the most miserable, contemptible speech ever delivered in that Parliament. The Premier objected 1 to this remark, and >Mr Massey substituted tlie words most miserable and humiliating speech. The Premier: You must withdraw. Mr Massey: Yes, I withdraw. lam only sorry that the* language permitted by the rules of" Parliament contain nothing sufficiently strong to express my opinion of the Premier's speech, of which every .follower of the Government must be heartily ashamed. Tb-e Premier here twitted Mr Massey with not_ moving- his original amendment. "No," was tho response, " the first "was not strong euough." Mr Massey went on to describe th^ Premier's attitude as the most miserable ever taken up by any man in his position in the colony. " I wonder," he said, glancing <o\v;m!s Sir Joseph Ward, " what the Miniver of Railways thinks of it? Ts thjs," ho e -pornt"ullv asked, "the sore of thing for a X C.M.G. to lend himself 1o?"— -(Laughter.) Mr Seddon : The hon. gentloirtan is evidently jealous, and wants to nome over to these members and become a K.O.M.G. — (Government laughiter.) Mr Massey : This sort of position may be al! right for an LL.D.. bul I always thousht a, ICnio-lit was a gentleman who faced his difficulties, and did not run away from them. — (Laughter.) Still continuing his scornful tone, Mr Ma.-sey asked wha-fc about thfv Premier now ami thr> tinsel and warpaint in winch he had gone about the country, claiming to be the Sandow o£ politics?— (Laughter ) The Premier's attitude, he said, reminded him of the Russian eeneral who teleara-phed to headquartera that he had just made an offensive movement to the rear.— (Loud laughter.) A year a<ro tho Promier had told the country t'i*t his back was as;-ain=t; the door in defence of the leasehold Sir John M'Kenzie woiilcl n"ver liai'o taken up such a position. Mr Duthie. You oan't insult the Premier. Mr Ma e soy: No. but I am trying hard to. " The champion opportunist of the colony '' was. he =aid. tho most, fitting term to apply to the Premier Mr Ma=^ey then criticised the leport of the Land Commission. &a*i

»sted what was the good of setting up a j commission if it was not to report in accordance with the evidence. He also referred to "several of the commissioners, and the reasons why, as he said, they were appointed. Mr Seddon: What about Mr M'Cardle? Mr Massey: Oh, I will deal with him later on. He said that when Messrs Fowlds, Laixrenson,' and Taylor were conducting their land nationalisation • campaign last year the Premier telegraphed to them wishing them success. He contrasted this with his present position. In the course of some farmer remarks Mr Massey quoted a newspaper extract to show that a large number of settlers had left the country because of the insecurity of temvre. He said that every leaseholder should be allowed to acquire the, freehold by paying of sums of £25 or over at any .time. Mr* Hawkins : The Premier will collar that if* you do not book it. Mr; Massey: It will not be the first he has collared. •Mr D.uncan, Minister of Lands, who followed, made a speech remarkable only for it-s weakness. Mi' Duncan, however, made it clear "that he does not agree with Mr Seddon's proposal that the freehold should be granted to the holders of leases acquired under the Land for Settlements Act. Mr Kirkbride,* who followed .the "Minister of Lapds, strongly attacked the " series of ' generalities " by which term he .described the Premier's .proposals. The "strong man" who Had- boasted a ye'ai ago that his back wa^ aeainst-'the -door" iir defence of the leasehold had - now his ear to the ground* and/was goin? back' on the leasehold. They had Tieard of the.- 'Vietr cf Bray ; well he sits there '(pointing to'' the Premier) <.n _the Government, benches. .?/*. Mir Seddon :'- No, he' r is braying, there.— (Mijiisterial;laughter.) .f. f Mr Kirkbride': Tarn not going to be idebafrcd from continuine; my speech by a'nv rude remarks' , from the Premier. The Premier: I am not rude. Toil compared me to the Vicar of Bray, and I said you were braying. The Speaker here intervened with the remark that these interjections were becoming too frequeni on both sides of the House. ' The Premier: I suffered very, much from it when I was speaking. The Speaker:' I will see that you are protected in future. . Mr Kirkbride likened the Premier to " facing both- ways." Mr'Wilford said the lion, member was reading hie speech.- - Mr Kirkbride: I am reading an extract from 'BunyanV "Pilgrim's Progress. — (Laughter.)" , ' x Mr Flatman: What lias .that got to ao \nth' the land question? The Speaker skid if members did not desist from these interjections he would have to take stringent measures. ■ Mr 'Kirkbride said that the character well befitted 'the Premier, who, instead of leading the 'House* asked the House to give him a lead. „ "*! - „ , -THi-E.'-'M. -Smith,: who -was the next spek^r : piitjupl.by . r the Government be■wailed tfie'iact that he iad not had. the.; "iiiteUectaal/teeat^- which he hard ex-,,! necte'd^from' tHe^LeadeiAdf the Opposition: j '%c are^having .it'now^rjinterjeeted^ ati , Opposition .member. , ~Mx 'WiHo£3; : Lwho a followed, quite, lipsefc gravity of the J House by declaring, the Premiers | •'propQsals*"wer«:',' a" bold -and. decisive step. ' Evei?-'the" Premier, 'could--" not. repress- a' emile, and. the Opposition members liter- j ally roared. / I After a speech -by Mr Ell Mr James , Allen delivered- a stronsf criticism, of the Premier's proposals.' which, he said, were ' deo-rad'ing-tdthe digriitv of Ministers and j Parliament. What would the Government i do when proposals came out of com- J The Premier: Time will Hell. The Pre- j mier haying hazarded some remarks, as to j Mr Allen's views. 1 / } Mr Allen said tho question was not -what | his own views were, but- what were the . views of the Government. They had no indication" of this. The Premier: I am going to vote for the reneal of the lease in oerpetuity. Sir W. Russell and Mr W. Fraser. who are suffering from indisposition, applied to tbe Government Whips to-niprht for nairs on the land debate. In each case, however, the application was refused.