THE MACKENZIE MINISTRY.

Colonist, Volume LIV, Issue 13382, 3 April 1912, Page 4

THE MACKENZIE MINISTRY.

MR ATMORK'S VIEWS

Interviewed yesterday by a "CoJonist" representative in regard to his opinion of the Ministry formed by tho , Hon. T. Mackenzie, Mr. Harry Atmom M.P.. ;-;nkl he believed the people won]<l judge tho.new Cabinet on the policy they were going to pursue ratligr tliait th;. personnel. "Jf the Cabinet is propared," said Mr. Atmoro, "to tackle? the biggest question of all in my opinion, the cost of living, there is iio reason why they should not last, with perhaps one or two slight alterations." In regard to thorn being practically all new I men to office with the exception of the. l"rim f , Minister, ho said, the.Opposition would, bo'in. a still worse plight if calli-t? upon to form a Ministry from thatI standpoint as they con Id not put one j man in who had held office before. Gon- | soquontly if the people required men for j the Cabinet who have had previous ex- ; perieueo of-Cabinet work, the Ministry | must of necessity b? formed from tb<> Liberal^ side of the House. So far a.s the Prime Minister was concerned, while perhaps not the strongest man, |he was certainly the safest at the- present juncture and the fact that ho was a freeholder wouldVive the small fann|Cr a certain amount of confidence in Li,s ; Administration. i ".IT." said Mr. Atmore. "the GoveriK meirt doeidesto tackle the question of ; tlu* cost of living in a- whole-lieajtcd manner by .giving increased facilities for land settlement and thus increase !tbo number of primary producers, tlic.ro jis no reason why the lot of the worker and the small farmer alike should not be vastly improved." "When the public obtain, par medium ■of the platform, full and true accounts o! th« recent no-confidence debate, :> Mr. Atmoro continued, "then I feel sure that a. revulsion of feeling must :ot in throughout the Dominion Against the Opposition. Take one instances Th<?. j opinion wan very prevalent, and still is in many quarters, that the Opposition, not only on the platform prior to the. election, severely condemned the Government borrowing policy whereby £18,000,000 was :uUKI to the national, debt in six years, and I consider part of the revulsion of feeling will com^ about when the public learn that th« Opposition did not vote against the loans, but in almost every case vote<l for them, and therefore, if it was-reck-less borrowing as the Opposition alleged, they were equally guilty with the Ga~ i vemmt'rit." fn regard to the land question, Mr Atniore said tint the return he asked for in the House dur.ng the recent session showed that there was £13,800,000 worth ot land was held by Europeans, only taking blocks of the 'capital valuo of £25,000 and over, consoquently tlxv real land question of New Zealand was. not the Native land question, but■ limy to bring nearly £14,000,000 worth of land hold by Europeans into closer settlement. I.n the minds of most people thoNative land question was the land quesItiou of New Zealand, but the foregoing figures showed that this was- not the. case, as there Avero only £2,0fX),OO0" worth of Native lands that could be cut up for settlement, and not that much if provision was made for Natives who at present were not working their land. Various Opposition leaders had referred, consciously or uuoonsciously, to'the Native land question as the principal; question, and the public had become imbued with the idea that there was an unlimited area of Native land awaiting settlement. If all the Natives were foiled to live on their lands in small, holdings, there would be very little left over on which to settle Europeans." "I cannot find," said Mr Atraorc, "that Opposition members in their speechea have referred to the £13,800,----000 worth oi' land constituting the areas held by Europeans, but on almost every ! occasion you will find reference in their speeches to the smaller area he'd by Na-tive'-i One cannot insist too strongly upon tho necessity for the Natives to bo set! led uiwn their land in small holdings, for at the prtsont time if th<v Mauri is allowed to sell his land outright a'ld you entrust him with the money he will probably fritter it away in tho purchase of motor cars and other'luxuries, and in a few years' time h-> \vi!) have to bo kept .by the State."

I? '« iiing .i_un u> the Cibin»t Mi. -\llll n 'iicl. ' I v n'-idoi the pul)lic ij<i 'iot o miicii ni(]i;i il to wuni^lo ovo iln [mm (,im 1 oi tb( .\lnustn as to look t.j^i'iH foiw i;d t.) lJic kind oi mosures the ( 'nint )-, likt'h 'to biniu, forward. In '■!')!. the* |/f ip '. 1 belit \'•, wi]\ Mid ,c U> Cabin ton it» iduii 1, not mi iN p i"ijiiiiol "

\-I\mJ ts to lik own p j^ition, i\Ji Mm i. ' .ixl lie v .is i i< pared to suppoj t ii \ _i) -ii i>iin ilnt "»as bioupJit ioii\ ,• ! ii le&ppdivcl ot ])aity corsid^iatui'v llkic wfi< ibk' miii a tin 11 ii- •to 'I * v hole lnt oi u^f- ■ ill v i U il |)>it\ "-h^cklf"- did not in— t ifiie with tlk'U u( »iuln"«- > ond lio (on !-li ii it .' ' li ■ »"lii >on lart^ i* oi ' M i n °(j n. ,i fifh f' im an •JpP' 'I 1° ]" < >u»tn rould not a<iiro .if >') l K\f(iitiw, .Mil .i('r ; r .)Jii°]'!!ifi, O^U ui.uiglosoi o'u» sido, 'frappli* \i;th ii . im''■i.ioiK -w^itnij, t"ttieiinMit.