PARLIAMENT.

Southland Times, Issue 15076, 23 October 1901, Page 3

PARLIAMENT.

[Pbb United Press Association.] LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. Wellington, Tuesday. The Council met at 2.30 p.m. Egtnont National Park Bill read a second time and Council rose at 3.30. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House mot at 2.30 p.m. COUNTIES BILJ- ABANDONED. The Committee on Counties Bill reported that they had resolved not to proceed any further with that measure.— Mr Ell, although a city member, regretted very much the failure of the Committee to come to a conclusion on this bill. H8 favoured another committee being set up immediately to go on with the bill.— Mr Settdon also regretted that the committee had not come to a more favourable decision, but he must say the committee's report was the best thing that could have happened to tbe bill in its mangled form. — Mr Symes thought the best thing was to blot the bill out in its present form. — Mr 'Tanner could not sac why the committee could not have devised some simple measure to reduce the number of local bodies in the country. — Mr Herries said the Committee, under pressure from the constituencies, bad had to put the small local bodies back into the bill, I and consequently the whole understrocture , of the bill was knocked out. It would be far better to have some simple separate consolidated measure than to have it thrust into this bill. The Committee found the bill almost superhuman and that there was no general desire for the abolition of the small local bodies. —Mr Hogg said there was no inclination on the part of the Committee to make any proper advance with regard to the bilL One stumbling block that he had : had to face was thequeation of thefranchise. — Mr Thos. Mackenzie did not think the country would receive the report of the Committee with many feelings of regret.— Mr Flfttman said the Committee had net reached the franchise clauses, and had not considered them. — Mr W. Fraser pointed out that the Committee was hampered by the statement ot the Government that no assured finance would be given to these local bodie3. —Mr Buddo said be did not see much hope in the future for a bill on the lines of the one tbe committee had been considering. Small local bodies were required as large ones tended to become uuwieldly.— Mr Lang did not think the work of the committee was lost and the information they had received would enable the question to be better dealt with next session. — Mr Monk said there was most strenuous opposition in his district to the abolition of any of the local bodies, but what was desired was a form of government that would give these bodies a system of automatic finance.— Mr McGuire said the committee had had amply demonstrated to it the opposition that was felt throughout the colony towards any interference with many of the existing local bodies. — Mr McGowan said the report was not satisfactory and the committee apparently was not able to deal with the question in the manner desired by the House. It was evident the Premier would have to take the bill into his own hands.— Sir Jas. Allen said that utterance was not fair to the committee. Mr Martin, solicitor to the Municipal Association, had reported that owisig to tbe reinsertion of the smaller local bodies the bill would require redrafting, and there was not time to do that this session. The report of the committee was ordered to lie on the table and the evidence to be printed. MAORI DRINKING. With regard to the petition that full enquiry be made into certain* allegations as to excessive drinking indulged in by Maoris in the Taranaki district at tangis, etc., tbe Public Petitions Committee reported as follows : — " That the evidence given before the committee shows that alcoholic liquors are largely consumed at tangis and huis by natives in the Taranaki district ; that there appears to be no difficulty in obtaining liquor in large quantities ; that the orgies that sometimes occur at tangis and huis are disgraceful, and the general effects physically and morally degrading to the native people. The committee therefore recommends that legislation be introduced with a view of restricting the sale of alcoholic liquors to the native race." QUESTIONS. Ministers stated that they would be only too pleasjjgi to hear the opinions of small farmers collectively or individually regarding the Commonwealth tariff and the fullest consideration would be given to their suggestions That the Government intended to put the Teachers Salaries Bill through all its stages this session. That the Government had represented to the Colonial Office that it would please the people of the colony if Lord Ranfurly's term ef office as Governor could be extended. — Mr Seddon said he could not say yet whether the request would be granted but he hoped it would be. That the Government did not intend to cancel the appointments of members of Parliament on Land Boards, but in view of the resolution carried by the House when the Estimates were being dealt with the question of their reappointment would be considered when the term of their present appointments expired. That it was not deemed necessary to introduce legislation defining the public positions for which Ministers of the Crown and members of Parliament are eligible, bat Mr Seddon considered that the Disqualification Act required alteration in so far as it affected payment of members of Parliament for public duties fulfilled outside of their ordinary parliamentary work. That no step woula be taken in regard to the proposal to impose an export duty on bulk timber until after the sawmillers' conference had considered the question. That it was the intention of the Government to submit proposals to the House for a line of steamers between N.Z. and South Africa, and if the House went as far as to subsidise the line to the extent of £30,000 a year the service would be worth it. The Government were in the meantime ascertaining what could be done. Vessels of the "tramp" class were wanted, not fast passenger ships, and it would also be necessary to establish cool stores at the Cape. That the Government was not in a position at present to state what steps they proposed to take to meet the altered position of small farmers as the outcome of the Commonwealth tariff. That bylaws were being passed by the Maori Council to enable them to put a stop to excessive drinking among natives at tangis, bet it might be necessary to pass an Act this session giving Maori Councils more power in that respect. —Mr Carroll would make personal enquiries into the matter after ti»eolpß6 of the session and discuss the subject with tbe natives. OUB VISITOR. Mr Seddon read the following telegram he had received from General Sir Hector Macdonald: — "Your kind wire has given me much pleasure and I thank you very warmly for the hearty welcome of the Government and people of New Zealand, which I hilly appreciate and shall ever treasure.—Macdonald." The House rose at 5.30 p.m. Eveniho Sitting. The House resumed &t 7.30. Mr McLachlan was granted a week's leave of absence on account of serious illness in his family. HtmSYIKG UP. The Deputy-Speaker announced'|that on and after to-morrow he would allow bills to be taken through all their stages at one sitting. Mr Seddon moved the second reading of the SCHOOL TEAOHEBS' SALARIES BILL. He said that in the interests of the rising generation it was necessary that improvement should be effected in the salaries paid to school teachers, and in his opinion the country was rips for and Parliament wasjwilling to approve of a national scale of salaries for members of the teaching profession. At present the Government was paying an equal capitation grant, but the distribution* was Hot at all iair or equitable. That was not the fault of the Education Boards, but was due to the different conditions existing in various districts, and things had drifted until no system at all existed. .He went on to say that this bill was an honest endeavour to meet the situation. Under the bill the salaries of women teachers were raised to a standard that had never before been reached, but the colony could now afford to pay thy increased capitation proposed, The bill would enable more considerate treatment to be given to both teachers and children in outlying districts, and it could not be denied that the children of the pioneers should receive every facility and encouragement to obtain proper education. The bill would nob interfere in the slightest with the general functions of Education Boards, but

the Boards would hail with delight the fixing of salaries by an Act of Parliament- He referred to the inequalities that existed in salaries in various districts and said this state of things was due to the exigencies of the Boards. He paid tribute to the work of the Royal Commission that had recently considered this question and said the Commission in its report had placed the position in such a way that they with confidence could follow the lead it had given. He asked the House to pass the bill and allow its defects to be remedied afterwards. He had known some female assistants to be equal to first male assistants. — Mr Hornsby : Why not give them equal pay for equal work ? Mr Beddon replied that he had oited exceptional cases. Women were not physically equal r« the work of male teachers. The total of the salaries under the first scale of allowance to Boards corresponded to a capitation of £4 on the total average attendance in all the schools. The Government had been asked to give a further increase and that recommendation would be given favourable consideration. Under tho second scale the capitation would be £4 2s 6d per annum on average attendance. He indicated that the reduction in salaries which would result in some cases would not come into effect for two years and the teachers affected would therefore have time to look around. He with confidence recommended the House to pass the bill and pass it this session. It was his deliberate opinion that to postpone it till next session would cauee heartburnings among members of the teaching profession. Mr Hogg considered that under the bill the teaching profession would be elevated and made more attractive. The bill would not weaken the powers of Education Boards, but would take a great deal of responsibility off their shoulders and leave them freer for scope, — Mr O. J. Smith said though the majority of teachers wanted the bill there were objections coming to it from all parts. He hoped the principle of equal pay for equal work would be given effect to when the bill was in committee. Mr buddo complained that the bill did not fix a minimum salary for teacherß of aided schools. The Premier had stated that the bill would improve the status of back block teachers, but he (Mr Buddo) contended it would not have any such effect as the schools in back blocks wers invariably small aided schools. — Mr Jas. Allen opposed any impairment of the powers of Education Boards and school eomroittees. Ha feared the bill was only a nVst step to taking away from boards something more than what the bill already took away. The bill might be a good one, but it should be deferred till next session in order that its effect might be enquired into. —Mr G. W. K assell said the effect of the bill would be to say to the boards ' ' open as many new schools as yon like." Under the bill the Government agreed to hand over to the boards the amount required for salaries for any new school established. The boards' present responsibility, which limited the number of new schools, would be taken away and the effect of the bill would be to greatly increase the number of schools and the cost. He traced in the bill a future attempt to take away tho powers of the boards and centralise the administration. — Mr Massey considered the proposed scale would be grossly unfair to country schools under 20. He would not oppose the bill, but would leave the responsibility with the Government and endeavour to inoprove^the bill in committee. — Mr Laurenson said I tbe demand for a colonial scale had been ! almost universal. He was not surprised that the member for Bruce should oppose it, for Otago was the highest paid district in the colony and if any district in New Zealand was to be prejudicially affected by the uniform application of a colonial scale it would be Otago. He (Mr Laurenson) considered the failure to recognise anything higher than the Dl certificate was one of the most serious blots in the report of the Commission. — Mr Bollard thought it unfair that teachers in country districts should depend on the average attendance for their salaries.— Mr Thos. Mackenzie regretted that tbe Government had not accepted the £4 2s 6d scale as the £4 scale was inadequate. — Messrs Meredith, Witheford, Bennet, Fisher, Ell, Monk, Pirani, Collins and Gilfedder also spoke. Mr Seddon in the course of his reply expressed very great pleasure at the manner in which the bill had been received by the Honse. The difference between scales No. 1 and No. 2 represented £10,800. He believed the colony could afford that amount and when they had had an experience of the working of tbe Act they would be able to gee how they could best expend the money. In the past whenever an Education Board was in difficulties the teachers had to suffer and were the victims of the Board's mismanagement or extravagance. This bill would prevent that sort of thing. He did not think there i was much in Mr G. W. Russell's contention that the bill would lead to a multiplication | of smaller schools, because the Government had the power of limiting the building j grant. There was nothing in the bill to ! prevent Boards requiring any certificates they thought fit for the various positions. Second reading agreed to ou the voices and the bill set down for committal uext day. The House rose at 1.35 a.m. [by telegraph.] (from ocr special retortek). | jottings. As reported by the Goldfields and Mines Committee clause 3 of the Coal Mines Act ; Amendment Bill, which provides for an exj tension of the right of inspection by miners, has been struck out. A now clause has been added fixing eight hours as a day'a work, which is known as the "miners' eight hours from bank t« bank." The decision of the Local Government Committee to recommend the abandonment of the Counties Bill was arrived at by a two to one majority— l 4to 7-— The Premier voted with the majority. The days of members of Parliament sitting on Land Boards are numbered. The Premier says that the only reduction on the Estimates being intended as an instruction to the Government that members of the Legislature ought not to sit on Land Boards, be would give effect to the wish of the House. It is not iutended, however, to cancel existing appointments. THE PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT. was laid ou the table of the House just before the supper adjournment this evening. Contrary to the usual practice it was not accompanied by the estimates showing the votes for roads, bridges, etc., for which members were thirsty. Enquiry revealed the fact that the estimates which had been subjected to late revision at the hands of the Cabinet would be printed and circulated before noon to- morrow.