IHE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 2977, 14 June 1899, Page 3

IHE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION.

Per Press Association. WOOJDVILLE, June 13. Captain Russell addressed a crowded meeting here last evening. He spoke for two hours and was accorded a most cordial reception. He said that he was anxious to speak here because the Woodville people had been overridden by a crowd of co-operative labourers. The recent elections at Wellington and Tuapeka were signs that tht> Seduon Ministry were waning, and his firm conviction was that the Ministry would be swept out of office. Referring to the way the Opposition were twitted about, not declaring their policy, he said that when a new government was formed and ministers selected, they would discuss the details of their policy. When Mr Ballance had been m office some time he was asked to declare his policy and replied that he would not do so till after the next session. Captain Russell contended that most of the Government's labour legislation had been brought m by the Atkinson Government. People thought that because the Government were lavish m their expenditure it was necessarily a . good government ; but his motto was that the most economic government was the best. He accused the Government of expending public money to bribe the constituencies to return Government members. He favoured handing over the money voted for public works to local bodies for expenditure. He denied that there was a want of sympathy by the Op* position for the Pensions Bill, but they advocated a simpler and more beneficial measure — preferred a system somewhat on the lines of the A.M. P. pension scheme. The railways he said were grossly mismanaged, and he entirely disapproved of their being under Government control. He reiterated his former statement about the bad condition of the Napier line The railways had been starved to create a surplus. Under the Atkinson Government 28 miles had been opened annually, while now the total is only 30, and the expenditure nearly double. Referring to what he called a bogus sale from the working railways to the Public Works Department, if a business man had done that kind of thing he would have been called ugly names and he would have got into trouble. He paid a high tribute to the Auditor-General, who, fortunately, could only be removed by the vote of both Houses. He advocated the freehold system of land tenare and blamed the Government for not opening up land quicker. He totally disapproved of the Fair Rent ■Bill. The Premier would shed, crocodile tears over evictions m Ireland; but evictions here were called forfeitures, and were largely out of proportion to the number of selections. In other respects the address was on the lines of Captain Russell's speeches elsewhere, and he concluded by saying that no one who read the papers could shut his eyes to the fact that corruption was rife m the country, instancing the Police pomtnission, the marine scandal, and giving the New Zealand Cross to the man who had never earned it. A vote of thanks for his address and for the manner m which he had conducted the Opposition, was carried, and the meeting broke up with cheers and counter cheers.