DEPUTATION TO WELLINGTON

Taranaki Daily News, 19 July 1932, Page 9

DEPUTATION TO WELLINGTON

CRITICISM AT STRATFORD.

WHANGAMOMONA MEMBERS REPLY

Strong exception was taken at yesterday’s meeting of the Whangamomonu County Council to th© statements made by the chairman of th© Stratford County Council (Cr. T. R. Anderson) and Cr. Levi Bunn to th© effect that the deputation which recently visited Wellington to place th© question of obtaining relief for settlers in the backblocks with regard to th© new payment of rates in abandoned Crown Lands and soldiers’ settlements was badly organised. . As a member of th© Farmers Union and of the deputation ■ Cr._ M. P. Ford said he would not agree with the opinions expressed at Stratford. If any member of the deputation had not been satisfied with the arrangements he should not have accepted them. In any case both Crs. Anderson and Bunn left the room while Or, Cleland, chairman of the Whangamomona County Council, was speaking' and before the Hon. E. A. Ransom had made his reply, so that,th© speaker did not know what those councillors referred to. The Dominion conference of the Farmers’ Union, which was sitting at Wellington at the time, came with the deputation to hack it, and though Mr. Ransom’s reply had not yet come to hand the speaker hoped that as th© result of the deputation some legislation, would be brought down that would relieve the situation. -

The chairman considered that the two Stratford m en bad been hasty in their remarks. -The Minister had listened most attentively to the deputation and he felt that the representations would have just as good effect as themgh the deputation had been better organised. Every on© was given a fair hearing and some fine arguments had been put forward. The Stratford representatives each had a few words to say and then had to leave to keep another appointment, so t.hey were not well qualified to speak as to what occurred. Reporting on his visit to Wellington with the deputation Cr, Cleland said the deputation had received a sympathetic hearing. The Minister recognised their difficulties but pointed out that if the financial position of the counties was bad that of the Government was much worse. He promised to look into the position, remarking that he thought it was a matter for the Cabinet to go into with a view to bringing down legislation to give relief. Cr. Ford complimented the chairman on the manner in which ho put his ease before the Minister.

The paragraph to which exception was taken was as follows; —

: “The deputation to the Minister of Land was organised by the Farmers’ Union and by Mr. W. J. Polson, M.l’., and though I am a member of the union I say that the whole thing was badly organised; if the union cannot do better than it did then we shall get nowhere,” said Cr. L. Bunn at the meeting -of the Stratford County Council on Saturday. • “That is right; I was there, too,” said the chairman (Cr. T. R. Anderson).