POLITICAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIII, Issue 12, 11 May 1912, Page 5

POLITICAL.

A BANQUET TO MR. JOSEPH MoCLUCCACE.

AT WHANGAMOMONA. ' Tho Whangamomoua Hall was crowded*-ou Friday evening on the occasion of tho banquet to Mr. Joseph McCluggage, which proved to be one ot tho most successful ever held m that build’ng. A sumptuous spread y/as provided, and after this s came politics, local and political, the Hon. W. D. J. MacDonald making a long specc.lt on solid matter, while the Hon -George Lauronson scored with a witty anc pleasing address mainly on the lines of his previous speech at loko. The toast of “The King” was proposed by Mr. W. A. McCutchan. Tbe Chairman Mr McCutchan, said upon him fell the duty of proposing the toast of the guest of the evening. “I think it is a truism, he gaid, “that many of our best men have risen in the younger generation from the rank of 'the family home. In Mr McCluggage’s early years hnancia! misfortunes came to him, with the te suit that the young people started out to carve their own fortunes. For nine years Mr. McCluggage worked in a biscuit factory in Dunedin. Later still ■he was engaged on a newspaper in Dunedin. Not a very important position, perhaps, for he was only Belling ■i newspapers. Any one who visited Dunedin in those clays might see a bright smiling cheerful lad, keen and resourceful. The characteristics of the boy were the attributes of tho man ' now. (Applause.) Ho spent some yoais in raining, but they were years wasted, and soon lie drifted to the Jsoith.island, where he was engaged on a run. At that time Taranaki was attracting attention. Mr. McCluggage thought it would be a very good thing to go and look at this country, and tho result being that Mr. McCluggage and his brother settled at Pohokura. 1 hey entered upon work in settlement. That meant the axo and the bill-hook. (Applause.) Then the monthly account came in from tho grocer, it proved so big that Mr. McCluggage saw a capital opportunity.. There wore several g enses—horse-sense and common-sense being among them —but‘Mr. McCluggage was endowed with business sense. He and his brother set out with a pack horse and two cwt of flour. Fntj pounds of this were on Mr. McClngf age’s back, and another fifty on his rother’s. Years went on, and this business grew to he the largest inland business in Taranaki—the largest inland business in tho Domuuon. That business was conducted with sterling ability and mervellous enterprise. Ir /.any man here to-day had in’lns pocket a cheque representing tho value of 'the bullocks and pack-horses that ho had lost, it would be a very comfortable document; (Laughter). It was not strange that when responsible posit:ons wore going vacant the name of , Mr. Joseph McCluggage should have been mentioned; / . / No wiser appointment could have been made, nor any wiser one, because Mr. McCluggage was peculiarly qualified for that position. Mr. McCluggage was also elected a fiiemher of t]ie Harbour Board..;’He had .never* faltered , in his opinion that the Moturqa Harbour was a fete,at; find enormous asset. The speaker wont on to voice his option of tlie 'futlhA of that 'harbour. He considered that in a short while it would be within, sixty hours In the future it would be to New Zealand what Southampton was to England. (Applause. 1 Mr. McCluggage had served on'the-Harbour - Board with ■ marked distinction. With regard to •his business, when he .started ho had no assistants, but when he sold out to Messrs. Court and Cottier he had 30 men on his pay list. “I, myself,” coil--1 tinned Mr. s McCutchanj .; Vhave been living in this district ;! for fourteen years, and. I have come into contact with those employees, but I have never heard them say one Word against Mr. - -McCluggage.” •.*These w'ore the kind J deeds which their guest of the evening had done. , When hearts were failing. true friends Were needed, and Mr. McCluggage had always clone his best to help the struggling settler. The whole conduct of his life had been exemplary. He had been a good settler. ' a true man, and a warm-hearted husband . Of course, he had his failings. But Mr. McCluggage had those class of failings .which only endeared bun all the more to them. (Applause.) He had much pleasure in asking them to charge, their glasses and to drink to the health of the guest of the evening—Mr. Joseph McCluggage. (Ap plause.) , ' ~ Mr. McCluggage, who was unable to proceed owing tc the grea-L'OtStf’jurst of applause, thankhe gathering sincerely and deeply "'"for the groat honour that had been conferred on him, an honour that he ■appreciated very much. /When he looked around the room and saw some of the old familiar faces that came across the Whanga Saddle, he thought of tho tremendous hardships they hac * had to put lip with. They were cut of) from civilisation by 30 mdes of almost impassable track, and then, between the end of those thirty miles and the Whanga settlement there was the ofd Whangamomona Saddle, which was in itself enough to break the heart of any man or woman who had not a stout hearty and a strong determination and an iron constitution. In those days, eighteen years ago, thq setLi tiers hero were shut off from social intercourse and the outside world. They were pioneers e.f the first water. , (Cheers.) People in the backblocks today wore in paradise compared with the Whanga pioneers. Whilst they sometimes heard complaints that reading was not sufficiently rapid, they should remember the marvellonr development in Crown lands settlement throughout tho Dominion, and remember, too, that no Government could have roaded the country without borrowing further millions. The Liberal Government had, by pass ne the Advances to Settlers Act, enablco thousands of farmers to take up land and to become independent of the mon-ey-lenders. Passing on, Mr. McCluggage said that by the lease-in-perpotu-ity, co-operative works, and the Advances to Settlers and Workers, the Liberal Government had made thousands q£men and women happy and prospfßms, who might otherwise have been as he was twenty years ago—on the labour market, with nothing tc do. He congratulated the Whangamomona people'on at last having the railway at their door. Mr. McCluggage made reference to Mr. Hino’s recent utterance at Stratford that lie would not “for, all tho gold in China” he found on tho Liberal side, and to Mr. , Massey’s statement at Whangamomopi na that when he and Mr. Hine got to Wellington they would see that the Government gave the Whanga people a doctor. If either of the Ministers present to-night made such a statement Mr. Massey’s supporters would accuse them of bribery and corruption. NoWi at tho time Mr. Masseymade that statement Mr*. Hine knew full well that tho Government was d'.ing its best to assist Whaminmomnna people to get a doctor, and that they „ could not got a doctor to accept the

local subscribers’ terms. Some men in this district were having a lot to say about bribery and corruption, and one man who was circulating this sort of stuff had been glad enough at one time to enlist his (the speaker’s) services in warding oil’ a criminal prosecution in regard to a land and finance deal. If that man were not careful what he said, he would “fire his name off from the public platform, and give him something to think about.” And if ho said anything ho would produce documentary,, evidence to back it up. Mr. McCluggagp then thanked Mr. McCut- ' chan for his kind remarks concerning himself. Of Mr McCutchan the late Mr Seddon had said that he was the ablest man on local bodies in New Zealand. They knew here of the great work that Mr. McCutchan had done in forming the V/hangamomona County and in establishing its finance. Speaking of ids work on the Harbour Board, Mr. McCluggago stated that very soon the Now Plymouth Harbour would accommodate the largest boats, and this would save the district thousands of pounds annually. He regretted, and most of those in the hackhlocks regretted, that the late Government had wiped out the Hoads Department, and ho hoped the Department would he reinstated. He also expressed the opinion that the men working on public works in the hackhlocks were the worst fiaid men in New Zealand. The classification of the men needed revision. Concluding, lie thanked the committee of Indies and gentlemen and the secretaries for the trouble taken in arranging this banquet as a compliment to him. Mr P. Toohey proposed the toast ol “The Now Ministry,” and expressed the pleasure it gave him to welcome the Ministers to Whangamomona, and to congratulate them on their elevation to Cabinet. He believed it to be an ideal Cabinet. Mr Toohey commented on the fact that although the Opposition got only 36 per cent, 'of the votes polled at the last election, they gained <l(s per cent, of the scats. And although in Wellington there were 19,000 votes cast against the Opposition and 15,000 for them, the Opposition won four out of the five seats. He stressed the necessity for the institution of proportional voting, which would have the effect of raising the ideals of the public men and make the aims of the people and the aims of the public men more in unison. Ho considered that every honest man and every working man should support the present Liberal Administration, on account of the great things they had done for the workers. Indirect taxation was pressing unduly hard on the workers, and the large landowners were not paying their proper share of the revenue of the State

' Mr. E. Jennings predicted the Ministry would have a long term of oHico if it stuck to its guns and struck out for progress. The lato Ministry had been weak in its failufo to act, in its knack of hesitating, and its indeeisivericss. There was much good work remaining to be done. As for the statement that the members of the Cabinet were divided in opinions, of course, the only men who were united in front were those men on the other side of politics, who stood for the protection of self and privilege. (Applause.) The time had iarrived for providing land for the landless, seeing that the Government was now providing .land for the landless Maoris. The Hon. W. 1). S. MacDonald was the first to reply. He said he desired to thank them all very much for the kind manner in which they had drunk their toast. He was there as a now Minister, and he hoped that this enthusiastic reception which had been given to Mr. Lanrenson and himself would prove worthy of them (the Ministers) as time went on. He first wish-ed-to'l ref or to his friend Mr, Joseph McCluggage. (Applause.) It had been said that the life of a public man was a thankless one. But when a man is so highly honoured by all classes of the community as Mr. McCluggage had been ■ honoured that evening, it must be a large recompense for all he had done for ithem in the past. He felt that for every politician who went straight there was a recompense in the public recognition of his labours. “Ladies and gentlemen, I say this,” the Minister continued, “that whatever may bo the shortcomings or the failings of tin?: new Ministry, wo are out to do our utmost in the interests of the people of this country. (Applause.) We are out to do what is right and just for all classes of the people.” The Loader of the Opposition had said they were a mixed crowd. He (the speaker) said it would be' useless for them to go to Wellington with one man and one man only—that would mean only one section of the community would be represented. They as Ministers represented different sections of the people. £fe believed the Ministry would apt in* unison in what they believed to be in the best interests of tho people of this Dominion. (Applause.) On small matters they might not think alike, but in matters of vital importance the Ministry would join together and there would bo no disloyalty amongst them, but they would work honestly and straightforwardly in the interests of the poople of the country. (Applause.) Mr. MacDonald went on to say that ho was only a young man in the politics of this country, but he had followed, from outside the House, with greht interest the three great Liberal MinisLrios—that of Ballance’s, Scddon’s, and Ward’s. “I say this,” he exclaimed, “that no body of men have ever done in this country more, and for all sections of the community, than those three Ministers have done. (Applause.) And I say this, that in spite of the adverse vote at the last elections, that this country—tlfat the people of this country are supporters of tho Liberal party from one end of the country to the other. ■ Whatever becomes of the now Ministry, if we can only go on with the progress .and development of this country at the same rate as our predecessors have done, then we shall lie doing a great and good work. We are told that there is stagnation in this country—that tho late Government did nothing to open up the lands for settlement or to push on with public works. It was not a fact. There had been very progressive and extensive land settlement.” (Applause.) When the Liberal Government came into power tho position was that practically the whole of Now Zealand warin the hands of the large land owners. In 1899 there were 38,000 men who owned over an acre of land, and to-day ther6 were 80,000 men in that position. (Applause.) In fact, there (md been great and real progress made in land settlement. During the past ten yearg 10,000 settlors had gone on the land. He might say here that in many instances poople had gone on the land' under adverse conditions. Land settlement had gone on at such a pace that the Government were unable to cope with it. They wanted roads, bridges, and railways, they wanted the means of communication, but the Government could not give them that a) once. Ft was not because of lack of desire to do the host for tho settlors; it was because of lack of money. They were- anxious to do their best, but for development they lacked the essential —and that was money. What about the poople who declaimed tint the hi' Government had not pushed on'with the roads, tlfo railways, the bridges, with the opening of the lands for sec-

tlomcnt, with activities? Those very people were the ones who made an outcry against the Government's attempting to raise a loan in London to carry out these works. What prosperity ‘nail they caused? They had certainly not helped the Government to raise money at reasonable rates to push on the development of this country! He had been in the backbloeks all Ids life, and he had taken a very great interest in land settlement. He recognised to the full the difficulties and liardsldps with which the settlors had to contend. To g’ve the settlors the fa- * cilities required, the Government must have money. “I say at once here,” the Minister exclaimed, “that I have always been in favour of raising money (Applause.) The Government had borrowed largo sums of money. They wore told that that money was a hardship upon the general taxpayers in New Zealand. They said it was non-produc-tive. Yet the greater part of the money was paying interest, and it was not a direct charge upon the general tax-payers. Large sums were borrowed by the’local bodies, and they wore paying interest, as well as interest on a sinking fund. The Opposition said they wore heaping up the national debt and were going to double the burden upon the people of this country. The Opposition, however, realised that for the development of this country one must have money. “I say,” said Mr. MacDonald, “that as a member of the present Government, that I am one of those who are not going to he dismayed at the national debt cf tins country. When money is required for development purposes, for education, and for all those facilities so necessary to the country, I am going to advocate raising money every time, (Applause.) Ho wanted to say this', that so far as lie was concerned, he was a farmer, and lie knew the difficulties of pioneering, especially in this district, where the reading question was an acute one, and tin* holdings were small. It had been stated during the evening that the Government had done a wrong thing an doing away with the Roads Department. He had on every occasion advocated that the Government should retain that department. (Applause.) In the Stratford electorate during the financiiU year just* ended Parliament had authorised for expenditure on road works and maintenance, some £19.005, of which at the 31st March, 1912, £15.246 had been expended, leaving a balance of £3OOO ocld at'll available, and the local bodies being unable to expend this amount, which comprised throe votes of me thousand, pounds each on throe /roads. The Government had taken the Work in hand, and the resident engineer had been given the authority to carry out this work as expeditiously as possible. (Applause.) Throughout the country the roads wore receiving more attention than the railways. There were only three thousan men working on the railway, while on the roads on construction work alone there wore four thousand men. A Voice: What about the wages? “I dare say,” replied Mr. MacDonald, “there are probably men, who know more about the payment of cooperative workers than I do. I know something about it, too.” As regards this district, it was the first time that any complaints from this, district had been brought under Ins notice. It had novev been brought under the notice of the late Minister. They wore now. going into the whole system from A to Z. (Applause.) Although ho was a backbloeks settler, he was also in sympathy, with the co-operative worker, tor lie recognised that ho was just as big a pioneer as any backbloeks’ settler. though he worked under different conditions. He held this opinion, in spite of the view taken by those in Oppos tion that'the men were picnicking and the Government wasting money. Ho had given certain instructions to have various returns prepared of the co-operative system in this country. They could rest assured that as long as he was Minister for Public Works ho was not going to take one hour’s work from a co-operative labourer, unless that labourer got a fair return for bis work. (Applause.) The Hou. Laurcnson said lie was proud to be here to do honour to Mr. McCluggage, a man who could take a boating and come up again. “Don’t you make any mistake about old Joe. Joe’ll be in Parliament before many Srs are over.” The late Ministry got the worst of it at the previous election, but it was on the ground of personalities, not politics. He roundly condemned the tactics used by Sir Joseph Ward’s opponents in the election contest, and fiercely rated those people who had prejudiced him because of Jus religion. Mr. Laurcnson said that the new Ministry was said to bo divided, but it was not divided on one matter —it was one in its determination to take drastic steps to break up large csates. He recalled that recently, passing through some of the finest land in New Zealand^—in Hawke’s Bay—and in nineteen miles lie had .soon five dwdfnghoiises, two children, and one school, a state of affairs which was a disgrace to a young country like this. Mr. Laurcnson said that one.of the greatest problems that faced the civilised world to-day was the move eon Stable distribution of the wealth of the people, and yet to preserve to eacii man the fruits of his labour. It was not right that there should be heaped up wealth at one cud of the social system, and poverty, starvation, and destitution at the other end. In a young country like tin's such things could !»o, and should bo, prevented. Mr. Glceson, in proposing the toast of “Local Bodies,” advocated the extension of the Parliamentary franchise to local bodies’ elections.

Mr. McCntchan, replying, said they wanted simplification, the abolition of road boards and hospital boards, arid tin; abolition of the system which enabled some men to draw quite a decent income in travelling expenses to attend meetings of several local bodies. Mr. McCntchan made reference to the Local Government Bill. That Bill had been drafted by a very clever man, and was .issued to the country, not as indicating the ideas of the Government on local government, but with a view of obtaining the criticism of the country. He believed that out of the conference to be held at Wellington shortly there would bo evolved a comprehensive Local Government Bill. Touching on the matter of the qualification of voters on local government affairs, Mr. McCntchan said ho believed in the extension of manhood suffrage to local bodies. He had for many years held the opinion that ratepayers alone should vote on these matters, and the reason which had caused him to change his mind was that to’ refuse men a vote merely because they were not directly ratepayers was to deny them that right which underlay British jus tice, the right of not being taxed w tliout representation. Here in this district the Whangamomona earned a Government subsidy on rates, and tf; that amount the men living in tents on the roadside had contributed their share. Very often those men contributed very largely to the consolidated revenue, for it was a fact that amongst the workers the largest families were usually to ho found. A single man contributed £8 10s per annum; married .07 per annum, and £8 10s for every one of his children. He had in mind a family in this district who pa : d in this way £2B out of an annual value of £SO a year of his holding of

about 100 acres, Ihe speaker said that the Ministers had mentioned graduated taxation. At present they had graduated taxation from below, hut it should start at the top, and come down, hut he felt from the Cabinet members’ speeches tnat this state of affairs was going to he done away with. (Applause.) The usual complimentary toasts also honoured. The evening concluded witn dancing, which was kept up till the small hours of the morning.-