PARLIAMENTARY.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIC, Issue 13449, 22 November 1907, Page 3

PARLIAMENTARY.

Ter PreoS Association. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. "WELLINGTON, Nov. 21. Tlie Council met ai 2.30 p.m. NATIVE LANDS. The Native Land Settlement Bill was read a first time and immediately put forward for its second reading. 119ie A.'t.iorney-Gcneral explained the leading provisions of the measure and commanded the work done by .the Native Land Commission. Probably by the time l Parliament nu't n'-xt. year between one and two million acres of native land would he available for Emopean >ettlement, and lie emphasised that I hay had to do .justice to ihe native rate and ascertain to the fullesi device what their needs were before taking their land for white sotrlfment. The Bill he thought- wax the first real step in the solution of the 'perplexing Maoii la.nd problem. It provided for even-handed justice both for native and European. Mr McCardle seion-'el the moi 'on for the second reading. H' hoped the Bi'l would be passed and wi'-h as little alteration as possibl". (Mr Mahuta asked that the Bill should be avowed to stand over. Justice should be done, and the Maoris should 1»3 given an oppoitunity of studying the measure. Whether Maori. land was ocPnipied or unoccupied the Government had *no right ,to confiscate" it! Ml* Ac-tev said. the Bi~l provided : lliat all /Maori lands were to be disposed of by t hr- Board by public auction or tender.. He did not affree with this portion. The land should be offered at the ballot and nothing over a. fair price asked for. Then period they. : would be greatly improved. Betterment would be reaped by the Maori landlord who would have contributed nothing'to the increase in the' value of his land. This should not be; Hei iegretited that thrre to no provision in tlie Bill giving the Government power to piu-cli'isa-native land. He would support the Bill r-otwith.standlug that it had ona or two defects. . % Captain Tucker thought the was ' conceived in. the bast' interests of the Maori themselves. Mr J. Rigg said that all through the measure there was -the protecting hand of the Native Minister. So long as the Hon. .Mr Carroll was Native Minister the natives would not suffer an injustice under the Bill. ill* J. D. Ormond said that- he was more than amazed at tlie manner in which the Bill had baeon received. The Bill should certainly not have been persisted with llrs session; it should have, been held over until native and European had had an opportunity of studying its provisions. A great deal of work had yet to- bj done by the Native Land Commission and he declared that it was absolutely impossible for it to complete its labours and do this work devolving' upon it in a proper way before next session. He hoped the European would not fcrmade a slave of 'Maori landlordism, and to prevent this ,tl]£ bulk of the land should be disposed of on the optional svstem.

Mr Wi Pcre :aid lie had advocated from the day lis first entered Parliament ttjiat alienation of native lands should cease. Every t'me that a .Xafive L-and Bill had been in (reduced in Parliament the Maoris asked that it .should be postponed. There, had ba:'« tno much pulting 1 off. The people -who were responsible for ilie opposition to 111 - Bill were lawvevs and \"e land agents. By th's B'H a seed had been sown which would produce a tree and fruit- for the Maori. Tf the Bill were postponed Ihey -would be horrified- to find next year that the Maoris had; parted with another one hundred thousand acres. The: Bill was ;m excellent one. though it was not iMufeet. Iblie Council adjourned at 6 till 7.30 p.m.

Tlis -Gouncil re-mmed at. 7.30. p.m. Ttie Ailtbriiey-Geritral in reply said that the speech, of Mr Wi: Pere was & complete vindication of the Bill, ancl it was a. complete . answer to the somewhat carping criticism of Mr Orniond. He was pleased at the reception accorded the Bill, but was sorry 'that Mr Ormond was them .absent'. That, however, was not the speaker's fault. In his (Dr Findlay's) humble opinion. Mr Ormond hadl not approached the ma'Jter with -a mind capable- of fair criticism. He was advocating a system cf freslvnde in native land, and in this position he was but a melancholy voice cry-' JDg in the wilderness. The records of free traffic in native land were a positive' disgrace. Dr Findlay defended the Com-mis-sion. and .said it was composed of men of integrity, capacity and unimpeachable charaet.tr. which couldl not., be bettered by choice. Dr Findlay described the statement, made by Mr Ormond till at tlis 'chief • -judge's inspection of Waimaraina might as well have* been made in a steamer passing down the coast, as absolutely inaccurate, and he only wished :Mr Ormond was ?.n ■ the* chamber to tell him tliasb to his face. The Commission as a; matter of fact had spent a whole clay en Waimaiama. y.nd that only to locate a 400 acre reserve not to assess the value of the land. Such criticism could only be described as in the highest degree unreasonable. The work of the I'oval Commission and the Bill had the universal support of the nativci people. There was no injustice and 110 blot. Substantial justice was being .dons to the 11a five people. The recond reading was agreed to by 25 votes to two votes. The Bill was then committed. In clause 10, the Attorney-General moved to strike out the words •"reported on by Commission,'"' with a view to inserting "of. any area of "native land whether *iu h land" has been reported on by the Commission or not." Speculation might be going on' ahead of the Commission, and he wished to prevent any iju-.-h thing taking place.' The . amendment wits agreed to oil the voiccis. Section 5, affecting sales of native iaad, was also amended on the motion of the Attorney-General to provide that a purchaser of native land becomes subject to part 4 of the Land for Settlements Act, 1907 (limitation provisions) in the same way and manner as if the land had been alienated Ijv the Grown. Mr Anstey took exception to clause '£(. which prcivi'tko that lenses should be put up for public auction. The r;<-.ult woutd probnb'v be inflated juices.. The Attornev-Gcneial said that this Bill affected private estates, and ilr my*. the , duty of the S ate to make the best bargain for th« native owners. The clause was not alteicd. i The Bill was reported with ameni-iiu-nts. The third reading was agreed to bv <ivotes to one vote, and the Bill passe I. The Council rose at 9.30 p.m. till li a.m. to-morrow. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House met at 2.50 p.m. ■THE CHINESE. , An amendment to the Chinese Immigrants' Restriction Act w;is_ brouguti down bv Governor's message. altering the commencement of! the operations of 1C Act from March. ,1903. to three months after the .date of the .Ilflyal assent- to. the Th" I> ii'inier ixi'laiiied, that tins was in ac.ordanc'e with th» Constitution. The amendment was agreed to on the voicii'i-' . . ' . '■'•'■■ l - The rest of ' the sitting was occupied wuh .tlia Gaming Bill.