PARLIAMENTARY NEWS. (BY TELEGRAPH-(OWN REPORTER.) Wellington, May 19.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 204, 21 May 1887, Page 5 (Supplement)

PARLIAMENTARY NEWS. (BY TELEGRAPH -(OWN REPORTER. ) Wellington, May 19.

Railway Management The Minister of Public WlcnJksdaformed Mr Monk that he has fully pcepaved his bill dealing with railway roauagonient, and \vill bring it down after the Financial Statement is disposed of. That is not Ukely to be within a fortnight.

Lonff - Service Medals Mr Thompson intends to ask >tlae JDeience Minister if commissioned otfi-cers Qf ifche Volunteer force are entitled to loug-senvice medals, and if not will Ministers feel anclined to cany out the rule followed in England — namely, to grant a step in >r»uk to all officers who have served 16 y<?ar<s. :

Tax on tlie Totalisa«or. ; Mr Jones believes he has founds sola-, tion of tho difficulty of finding funds for! ©haricable aid purpose?. He proposes to impose a tax on the totalisator for tb,e ' benefit of charitable institutions.

Mr Failc's JRallway Scheme Mr Vaile's railway system has again been brought before the House. Petitions were presented yesterday from five road boards in .Auckland Provincial District asking that a {trial of the system be made.

Railway Cartage Charges. Consignees are not allowed at present to remove their goods from railway stations in the colony without first paying a cartage for •* ork which the Department does not perform. Messrs Taylor, Hamlin, Guinness av?d other members spoke very strongly against this system ; but the Minister of Public Works held that it was adopted for convenience of the public, and would not consent to .niter it.

Passages of members' WivesThe privilege that members have long enjoyed of i>eing allowed to bring their wives to Wellington with them at session time at the expense of the country has been determined. M»- Fulton, in moving " That fche resolution of September 0, ISB3, be rescinded so far as ifc regards wives of members of the Assembly being" paid actual fares by coach, railway, or steamboat once each way to and from their usual residences," said fehat the Northern members used to be allowed to bring their wives down in the Hinemoafree of charge, and Southerners felt that an injustice was done to them, so it was agreed to pay the expenses of transmission of members' wives once each way to and from Wellington ; but it was now absolutely necessary to retrench, so he thought members should show an example of their earnest desire for economy by rescending the resolution. The motion was carried by 35 to 20.

Gold Duty Kill The Minister for Mines has long felfc that the gold duty should be earmarked, and he is now introducing the Gold Duty Applica tion Bill. The measure will provide for the setting apart of all revenue derived from I gold duty towards prospecting, making I tracks, water races, etc. , for the development of the mining industry solely.

Licensing Statistics The member for the Taieri, who is an ardent supporter of the blue ribbon movement, came in for a good deal of rough j handling yesterday afternoon. He moved for a loner return, asking statistics in respect to the administi-ation of the licensing laws, including the number of persons employed in or about breweries and the amount of wages paid in their employment. The motion was opposed by the Colonial Treasurer, who regarded it as a most inquisitorial return, and said the House might just as well want to know the number of servants "kept in any private house. To his thinking, there would be no freedom or liberty left in the country if a resolution of that kind were adopted. Mr Dargaville pointed out that such a return would bo an expensive one, and it appeared that Mr Fulton -was bent on economy in all directions except with reference to his hobby. Mr Holmes agreed with the Treasurer, and added that the motion was so inquisitorial that- it ought not to be tolerated in a free country. Major Atkinson defended the return, so far that it was most objectionable for brewers to hold public houses. Mr Samuel said he had no sympathy with those hon. members who lost no opportunity of worrying persons concerned in the liquor trade. The objectionable portions of the return were excised on the voices, and the return as amended was ordered.

The Tariff and the Island Trade. Mr Moss tells me that he has pointed out to Sir J. Vogel the mischief that wiil be done to the Island trade in case of the increased customs duties being carried, unless the drawbacks on exportation be increased in proportion, and has been assured that if they are carried the drawbacks which are imposed by regulation under the 9th clause of the Customs Consolidation Act, 1882, wi1l be altered in proportion. No legislation on the subject will therefore be necessary.

Payments to Land Board members. The fact that five members of land boards have during past year been each paid sums in excess of £100 for travelling expenses caused Mr Holmes to ask for details of the amount so paid. He said ifc appeared that some gentlemen had been paid very largely for their services during the last year, the sum of £142 in one case, while others had only got £10 10s. This inequality of payment needed some explanation. The Minister for Lands said the payments were perfectly legal, and had been made under clause of the Land Act. Those gentlemen who had drawn largely had done so in consequence of having been appointed to value land within the Land District over which their Board had jurisdiction. Mr Samuel expressed the opinion that it was undesirable for members of Land Boards to act as valuers. Such duties should be undertaken by officers in the Survey or Lands Department. The return was ordered.

Reduction of members Honorarium. The motion of which Mr Garrick has given notice to reduce the honorarium to members of the Legislature by £50 was reached shortly before dinner adjournment. The Premier suggested that the proposal be withdrawn, seeing that there was on the order paper a bill dealing with the same subject. It would be absurd to have two bills before Parliament on the same subject at the came time. Mr Peacock pointed out that in the event of this motion being carried an instruction was given to the Government to give effect to the reduction by a bill, and in that respect it differed from the bill introduced by the member for Napier dealing with the game subject. Mr Ormond said he recognined that the proposal ought properly to have come from the Government, and he had only given notice of his bill because the Financial Statement invited members to take the matter into their own hands, If the Government could be induced

to take the ro&tfrer .up rand jpvomise substantial reduction*. Jio vwauldvwithdraw his bill. Mr O'Callaghan .stated .that if the resolution were nab wJUMrawn he would move an amendment that ithje honorarium to members of the House heueduced by £50, and Legislative Councillors toy £100. That he conceived to he ft jpcojaortionate reduction, taking into aoeouat sthe work done by both Houses. Mr JGawaek .expressed his willingness to accept this Amendment. The motion was talked out by Mr Turnbull, who considered the proposal ill-tijaied.

Otago Central Railway. The greater part of the night was spent over the debate on the second reading of the Otago Central Railway Extension Bill, introduced by Mr Pyke. The mover said that a promise had been made every j«ar by each successive Government for the construction of the line ; but each successive Government had failed to construct it. Private enterprise had been going on in the construction of the Manawatu Railway and the Midland Railway, and ho considered it would be bettor for Aho Government to cease constructing .railways altogether if they did not display ,mo.re enterprise in this respect than at pressv&>. He assorted that the Otago Railway would be completed also by private people befpio a very long time had elapsed if they only •got the concessions asked for. He went.a.t length into the history of the line, and showed that the total cost required to complete it was £700,000— a sum which he considered could be raised without going into the I/wdoa market. He referred to the advantages to be derived by the construction of this line, .and the valuable land ib woxild open up for settlement. It was also absolutely necessary that some means should be afforded to settlers for carrying produce to market. The bill itself was on the same lines as th&fc proposed for the Midland Railway, but it was provided that the value of lands to be granted was not to exceed 33 per cent, of the cost of the railway, and the land was to bo disposed of in the same way as other I/mds belonging to the Crown. Another difficulty that would be got rid of by the construction of this line would be the unemployed difficulty, and he pointed out that £100,000 had already been spent on the Otago Central line, although the contracts had not exceeded £50,000. In the course of the debate, the Premier said from what he knew of the country to be opened up by this line, the land was good for small settlements, which was almost the only place in the South Island where land was left for such settlements. He hoped the House would never consent to this bill, and however strongly he felt as to the necessity of the railway being constructed, he thought it better to have it delayed for 20 years than that this bill should pass. It made no provision at all for settling land, and a company of this kind was not likely to tend to pettlement. The bill was promoted simply for the sake of pushing the line two or throe years sooner than the Government would construct it. He asserted that the Government were pushing on the lino with all reasonable speed, and it was not to be expected they could construct all their lines at. once. They were asked to hand over to this syndicate a large area of land, which would mean a losk to the colony in pastoral rents of £40,000 0r£50,000. He asked the House to consider that if they granted the concession they would be paying more than the total interest on the total cost of the construction of the line right up to Wanaka. Ho hoped the bill would not pass. Mr Cadman 1 was of opinion that the construction of a line of this kind should bo slopped. He moved that the bill be read this day six months, After a long discussion the motion for the second reading was carried by 31 to 20.

Mr Buckland and Mr Dargaville Mr J. C. Buckland asserted in the discussion on the Otago Central Railway Extension Bill that the Helensville North vote of last session would not have been passed but that the Otago Central line hung in the balance at the time. Mr Dargaville subsequently refeired to the remark as a scandalous libel upon the district. Being compelled by the Speaker to withdraw the expression, he proceeded to slate Mr Buckland, severely describing him as a degenerate son of a worthy father, from a political standpoint, and as one who, though a native of Auckland, was utterly devoid of patriotism.

Eight Hours. Sir George Grey moved the second reading of the Eight Hours' Bill, and said the House was perfectly acquainted with the provisions of the bill, which was simply to define what was a proper day's work. Sir R. Stout cordially supported the Bill, and hoped that Sir G. Grey would move a new clause, that barmaids should- not contract for more than eight hours a day. Mr Turnbull said he should move to exempt persons employed in agricultural and pastoral industries. Mr Guinness supported the bill. Mr Duncan and Mr Samuel opposed it. The latter moved, "That the .bill be read this day six months." Mr Bevan strongly opposed the bill, and hoped they had heard the last of the Eight Hours Bill. Messrs Dodson, F. H. Fraser, Taylor, Moss, and Reese supported it ; and Messrs Hursthouse, Hatch, O'Callaghan, Bruce, and Monk opposed it. The motion for the second reading was agreed to by 23 to 17. The House rose at twenty minutes past 1 this morning.

The Representation Bill. Wellington, May 18. Eighty-seven voted in the crucial division last night, leaving eight unaccounted for. Messrs Dodson, Holmes, O'Connor, O'Rorke, and Wipere did not vote, and of the remaining three, the member for Tuapeka is at present in England, Avon seat is vacant, and the official returns for the Northern Maori District are not yet to hand. An analysis of the two divisions on the question of the reduction of members shows that Messrs Ivess,Thompson (Auckland North) and Rolleston, who had previously voted for seventyone, now , voted for the retention of the present number of members, while Messrs Hobbs, Hursthouse, and Thomson (Clutha) went over in the opposite question and tried to get the number reduced. Mr Reid, who stood pledged to vote for a smaller House, voted with the ayes through a misunderstanding of the Chairman's ruling, otherwise the wordß "ninety-one" would have been struck out. The controlling influence of the Treasurer in the Cabinet has been shown at the various stages of the Representation Bill. Sir Robert Stout, in introducing the measure, said he would only support the reduction to eighty-six members. The Committee, however, fixed the number at seventy-one, and the Premier thereupon said that he loyally accepted this decision. Yesterday afternoon he again seceded from this position by announcing that he would introduce a new clause pro viding for 86 members, and ! at night further evidence of his vascillatirig conduct was given when he proposed the retention of 9i members, Sir Julius Vogel has &U along

been strongly of opinion that these should not be reduced, and there- can be little doubt that the Premier's change of front was due to the cause I have assigned, though, Sir Julius Vogel could not succeed in getting his two colleagues -Larnach and ToFe—to reverse their votes on the seventy-one question.

Mr DargavMes Vote. The member for City West states, in explanation of his vote last Friday night on the Representation Bill, that he had received an assurance from the Premier that the measure would be made the first order of the day on Tuesday. This of course will modify what formerly was said condemnatory of Mr Dargaville's action.

Ostrich Farming. The petition of Victor Nissen, of Otamatea ostrich farm, has been reported on by the Petitions Committee. They ref commend that a bonus having been offered for the importation of ostriches in 1882, mid as the industry is one that would be likely to be of great benefit to the colony, the petition has been referred to the Government for favourable considera turn.

Coniintiuication Between Auckland and Taraiiakf Colonel Trimble asks the Ministers for Public "Works to-day whether he has carried out the promise made last session to have an alternative route surveyed leading from Taranaki to a point on the North Island trunk line of railway with a view to ultimately making either a road or railway to connect the West Coast districts with Auckland.

Smuggling. It is the intention of Mr Peacock to ask the Government whether they will bring in a bill to alter the law with regard to the liability of owners of vessels to have their property seized on account of smuggling by their employees in cases where it can be thoroughly proved that the owner is in no way a party to such acts. The question relates to the seizure of the barque Gazelle, at Auckland.

Trade with New South WalesWhen Mr Lance (the members for Cheviot) was attending the Stock Confez-ence at Sydney last year, he interviewed the New South Wales Governnment with a view to seeing to what extent any reciprocal arrangement could be come to between that colony and New Zealand for the exchange of commodities. His mission, however, was entirely unsuccessful. Since then there has been a change of Ministry in New South Wales, and Sir Julius Vogel has communicated with the Parkes Government on the matter, but has received no reply. He thinks that a difficulty in carrying out any reciprocal arrangement would be found in the fact that we have no articles on which duties could be removed so as to make such an arrangement advantageous to the sister colony.

The Jury System. The Minister for Justice intends introducing bills for the total abolition of coroners and giand. juries. They will not be Government measures, but introduced by Mr Tole in Mb private capacity as a member of the House.

Direct Mail Steamers. Mr Joyce did not get much satisfaction j our- of his question placed on the trder paper for the purpose of having a quiet shot at Port Chalmers. He wanted to know whether in, consequence of the recent failure of the lonio to communicate with the port and other delays in landing of Southern mails by direct steamers, Ministers would reconsider the offer of Bluff Harbour Board to tender the steamers for mails and passengers in Foveaux Strait. The PostmasterGeneral replied that the Government had no control over the mail steamers so far as making any particular place the first port of call was concerned ; furthermore, the lonic did not belong to the Company which had contracted for the direct mail service with the Government, and consequently the : Government had no control over her.

Audit of Public Accounts. The Colonial Treasurer has had under consideration the propriety of introducing a bill for the purpose of dealing with the whole question of the audit of public accounts throughout the colony, but has found it will be impossible to deal with the matter this session. The Government will, however, give the question attention as speedily as possible.

Jottings. Mr Swanson wants the totalizator to be available for foot races and sfmilar sports. Mr Dargaville intends to stand for Marsden at the approaching elections. Mr Locke is agitating the reason of the immigration to the coast of the North Island. Sir George Grey has given notice of a bill preventing the Attorney -General from appearing in a law court while the House is in session. Dr Newman is asking the Government to alter the regulations so that when the telephone is burnt the cost shall not be charged to the colony. Mr Fisher is asking the Colonial Treasurer to state the cost of floating the last loan. Mr Grace arrived laat night, and paired on the Representation Bill. "This is his first appearance this session. The Bill to abolish Waste Land Boards has been read a first time. Mr Buckland i introduced it in the absence of Sir George I Grey. j The House has ordered a comparative | return of the expenditure on hospitals and charitable institutions under Government management, and since they were taken over by the Board. Mr Samuel's Divorce Bill was at the bottom of the order paper, but he has had it made the first order for June Ist. Ministerialists consider that the prospects of the Government getting through the session are improving. Mr Joyce is asking the Colonial Treasurer to consider the advisability of levying ad valorem duties on tea according to quality. Mr Buchanan is anxious that firewood should be used instead of coal on the railway locomotives. The Waikato portion of the King Country, recently passed through the Native Lands Court, is now being subdivided for the different hapus. The " Poßt " says in the event of the defeat of the Government, the house will refuse them supply for an appeal to the country. The Minister of Lands says he would relax the • residental regulations of a small farm association if it was found that dummyism could not creep in. The Minister for Justice has had an application from Auckland for the appointment of a second R.M. Nothing has been done in the matter in view of the retrenchment now proceeding, and it is unlikely that I anything will be done. I Mr Seddon asserted in the House yesterday afternoon that the Female Franchise Bill has no chance of passing this session. He added that gallantry to the feminine sex prompted membera to vote for the second ! reading, but they knew at the same time : the bill had, very little chance of getting i through,