GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Temuka Leader, Issue 2406, 1 October 1892, Page 4

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. The Council met at 2.30 p.m. on Thuredsiy. BILL PASSED. The Local Bodies Loanß Act Amendment Bill passed its final stages. SECOND RBADINGB. The Water Supply Act Amendment Bill, the Hukarere Native Girls High Bchool Bill, the Westland and Grey Counties Vehicle Licensing Bill, the Factories Act Amendment Bill, and the Native Land Purchase Bill were read a second time. i DAIKY INDUSTRY BILL. Tho Dairy Industry Bill went through Committee with verbal amendments. MININO COMPANIES. The Mining Companies Act Amendment Bill was committed. Several new clauses relating to winding up companies were inserted, and the Bill as amended was reported. GOVERNMENT LOAN BILL. The Government Loans to Local Bodies Aet Amendment Bill passed through Committee without amendment. At 5 p.m. the Committee adjourned till 7.30. THE LAND BILL. . . The Land Bill was further considered In Committee. A sub-section wa» added to Clause 187, providing that the holder of a run of a carrying capacity of 20,000 sheep and 4000 head of cattlo may become lessee of an aggregate area sufficient to carry Buoh number of sheep or cattle.—The sub-section was agreed to by 12 to 1, the latter vote being recorded by Sir P. Buckley. Clause 199 was amended so as to give mortgagees power to sell a mortgaged run within two years from the time such power shall have accrued instead of twelve months. The Bill as amended was reported, the third reading being made an order for next day. LAND FOE SETTLEMENTS. The Land for Settlements Bill was passed through Committee without amendment. SHOP AND SHOP ASSISTANTS. The Shop and Shop Assistants Bill was considered in Committee. Euentually it was agreed to report progress, to enable the amendments made by the Labor Bills Committee in the measure to be priuted. The Council rose at 9.40 p.m. Tho Council met at 2.30 p.m. on Thurßda,y. BILLB PASSED. The Dairy Industry Bill, the Mining Companies Act Amendment Bill, the Land Bill, the Hukarere Native Girls' School Bill, and tho Water Supply Act Amendment Bill, passed their final stages. VEHICLE LICENSING BILL. In Committee on the Westland, Grey, Inangahuaand Buller Counties Vehicle Licensing BiU, a new clause was inserted, exempting mail coaches from the provisions of the Bill. At 4.45 p.m. the Council adjourned till the following day. HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES. The following completes Wednesday night's report:— The total vote for the Defence Department was agreed to without alteration. Police Department, £95,452. —Passed unaltered, without discussion. Legislative Department, £14,905, and the total vote was passed without reduction. Public and School buildings and Domain Department, £49,9oo.—Agreed to. Progress was reported and the House rose at 2.20 a.m. on Thursday. The House met at 2.30 p.m. ELECTORAL BILL. Mr Seddon said the amendments made by tho Council in the Electoral Bill were of a very important character, and such as he could not advise the House to concur in. He would, therefore, move that the House disagrees with the amendments in the Bill. The motion was carried, after a couple of hours' discussion, and Mr Seddon, Mr Tanner, and Mr Guinness, were appointed Managers to draw up reasons for disagreeing, and to confer with the Council. MININO BILL. This Mining Act Amendment BiU was read a third time and passed. The House rose at 5.30 p.m. and resumed at 5.30. BILLS PASSED. Tho Customs Laws Consolidating Act Amendment Bill and the Westland Churches, Schools, and Hospital Vesting Bill passed through committee with slight amendment, were read a third time, and passed. BILL THROWN OUT. The Criminal Code Bill was committed. After considerable discussion Mr Fish moved that progress be reported. Mr Seddon said that he was reluctantly compelled to bow to the inevitable and accept the amendment. The amendment was carried by 32 to 20. SERVANTS REGISTRY OFFICE BILL. This Servants llegistry Office Bill was committed. Clanse 5 was amended to provide that the license for a registry office iu;iy be issued on the condition that a certificate of character is obtained from a Resident Magistrate instead of two Justices of the Peace or two clergymen. The remaining clauses passed, the Bill was reported, read a third time and passed. INTERCEPTING SUPPLY. On the motion that the House go into Committee of Supply, Mr Carncross moved as an amendment that the steamer Stella, should not be sold. The motion was lost on the voices. COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY. The House went into Committee of Supply. Government Insurance account, £54,244. An exhaustive discussion took place on the whole working of the department. The question of valuations and interest charged on loans was also gone into. Mr Fish attempted to have the salaries of actuary and secretary reduced by £SO each, the amount of the increases, but theproposition was lost by 31 to 9. The total vote was eventually passed without alteration. This finished the general estimates, leaving only the public works and supplementary estimates to be disposed of. The House rose at 11.30 p.m. The' House met at 2.30 p.m. on Thursday. A NATIVE LAND SCANDAL. The Native affairs Commictee brought up a report on the petition of Here Nini Te Toko and two others, who had complained that John Lundon had wrongfully detained part of the purchase money for the Kati Block, north of Auckland, and the petitioners prayed for redress. The report of the Committee was to the effect that the evidence showed that the petitioners personally received from tho Government officer the full amount of the purchase money agreed to by the Government to bo paid for the land, and i i>,ii therefore the Government are in no n : *y reßugnsibfo fa tM » *%«s. 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petition. The Committee are further of opinion that if the petitioners considered that Mr Lundon had not acted in accordance with any agreement entered into with him they should have appealed to the law courts before applying to Parliament; and that the Government be recommended to take the petitioners' j case into special consideration with a view of affording the natives assistance to enable them to to bring the matter before a court of law.—Mr Mitchelson moved that the report and evidence be printed. He spoke at great length on Mr Lundon's conduct over this transaction, and said that a grosser scandal had never been perpetrated on the native race than the sale of this land by Mr Lundon to the Government on behalf of the natives.—lt was agreed, on the motion of Colonel Fraser, to adjourn the debate, on the understanding that it will be resumed not later than Monday. LOCAL BILLS. Local Bills occupied the attention of the House during the rest of the afternoon. The House rose at 5.30 p.m., and resumed at 7.30 p.m. NATIVE LANDS TITLES BILL. Mr Cadnian moved the second read ing of the Native Land Validation of Titles Bill, to provide for an enquiry into incomplete dealings with native lauds. He said that attempts had been made for years past to deal with this question, and the Bill was another attempt to Dettle long standing disputes. A long debate ensued, among those who spoke being Mr Taipua and Mr Kapa, who opposed the Bill, as they did not think it contained anything to benefit the natives. Several members supported the Bill, and the second reading was agreed to on the voices. LAND AND INCOME ASSESSMENT BILL. The Land and Income Assessment Act Amendment Bill was committed. Clause 3—Additional exemptions from liability to tax. Mr Moore moved to add to the list of exemptions mortgages held by societies registered under the Building Societies Act in New Zealand. Mr Ward, who was in charge of the Bill, said that he could not accept the amendment, but would be prepared to move an amendment in clause 17 which he thought would meet the case. After a lengthy discussion Mr Moore's amendment was lost by 30 to 19. Mr Joyce moved to strike out Savings Banks from the exemptions. Mr Ward regretted that he could not accept the amendment, aa the Government had received information that a number of small depositors in these banks required relief. The amendment was lost by 32 to 22. Mr Houston moved to exempt standing timber, provided it does not exempt from taxation revenue derived from bucli timber. (Left sitting at 2 a.m.)