THE INDUSERIAL ASSOCIATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6970, 26 September 1890, Page 1

THE INDUSERIAL ASSOCIATION.

GENERAL MEETING. A general meeting of the Canterbury Industrial Association was held at the Corn Exchange last evening. There was a moderate attendance, and the President, Mr A. W. Beaven, occupied the chair. ENCOUBAQBMENT OP MANTjyACTTJBJSS, &C. The Chairman said that the object of the meeting was to consider certain resolutions which had been prepared by Mr Russell and adopted by the Committee. He suggested that they should be moved by Mr Russell en bloc. He considered the third resolution opened up a very important subject, and the Government might very well bring in some Bill providing for reciprocal trade with Australia and other places. The other points in the suggestions had for the most part been already threshed out by the Association. Mr Russell brought up the resolutions in the form of a report from the Committee as follows :— " That the country being on the eve of a general election, the Canterbury Industrial Association resolves— (l) That in the opinion of this Association, the development of the manufactures and industrial resources of New Zealand is a matter of supreme importance, as tending (a) to employ the present population, (b) to provide employment for our youth of both sexes, (c) to attract population and capital to our shores from other countries. (2) That this Association considers that every effort should be made to cultivate a cordial feeling with the Australian Colonies, Canada and the United States, and affirms its opinion that reciprocal tariffs afford the easiest and least complicated means of securing mutual help, without affecting the individual rights and natural advantages of the different Colonies. (3) That in fixing subsidies for ocean steam services, the Government should stipulate for concessions in the way of cool chambers and rates of freight for the products of the Colony, such as fruit, fish and dairy produce. (4) That the railways of the Colony should be run in the interests of settlers, producers and manufacturers, and with a view to the indirect benefits they can be made to confer, rather than to the bringing in of revenue." He was aware the Association was nonpolitical, and had borne this in mind in drafting the resolutions; he had, therefore, excluded matter debateable from the Association's standpoint, but it behoved the Association to bring before the people those large questions which involved the progress of the Colony, especially as an effort was being made to make the elections depend on Unionism against nonUnionism ; but this was really only a side issue. He maintained that the Labour Unions and all labourers were deeply in-terested-in the subjects covered by the Committee's report. The labourer's only capital was his labour, and if he could not get employment he mußt either Btarve or be thrown on charitable aid. Therefore he thought all labourers would favourably receive the resolutions which proposed to further the progress of the Colony, and so provide employment for them. As to the firßt resolution, we should, if its principle were carried out, not only be enabled to maintain our present population, but alao provide employment for our children and attract population and capital from other countries. As to the second proposition, the natural outlet for our produce was that which lay nearest to us, and Australia would in the future become important in this respect. Canada and the United States might also provide a market for our wool with their population of eighty millions. It might be objected that a British Colony should not make independent commercial treaties; but he thought we should not have to send all our correspondence in this respect through Downing Street ; at any rate, it might be open to question whether we should do so. As to our steam services, we were sixteen thousand miles away from the English market, and were therefore handicapped by our freights in competing against other exporters; but concessions might be obtained as regards the rate of freight and the class of stuff we sent away. In making contracts for the carriage of mails Government could also make provision for the proper carriage of our butter, cheese, fish, &c. His opinions on the railways were well kaown. We should look to it that the railways should be run so as to encourage as many people as possible to use them ; to spread colonisation ; to settle the country ; and to make the cardinal point of our railway policy the extension of eettlement, and not the bringing in of revenue. He asked whether it would not be advisable to recommend that property not bringing in remunerative returns should be exempt from taxation. He moved the adoption of the report. Mr G. T. Booth seconded the motion. He had feared at the first glance that the Association had overstepped its bounds and was interfering in party politics ; but on looking at the resolutions more closely he considered they did not come within that domain,, being only in advocacy of the principles of the Association. It seemed to himf amazing that the Government could have~«een the stream of emigration from the' Colony going on without trying to atop it ; and if the Government had any duty more than another, it was to see that every mail had his wants supplied, and that the conditions of life were not such as to drive population from our shores ; and anything that could be done to provide employment and attract capital was deserving of the serious consideration of all taking part in the government of the . Colony. The House of Representatives had made an astounding blunder in not sending representatives to the Australasian Conference, though he did not say federa-

tion with Australia was at present the best policy. If it had meant Freetrade with the Australian Colonies, New Zealand would in the long run have been the gainer. Anything that would, in justice to both sides, enable the exchange of products between New Zealand and other countries should be done. He was at one with the proposals as to the railways. Mr A. G. Howland, referring to the question of reciprocity, thought wo should do our utmost to try and get Australia to take our produce while we agreed to take theirs. He would have preferred Freetrade between the Colonies. (Mr Russell : "It would be reciprocal Freetrade.") He thought our manufacturers were quite prepared to hold their own against the Colonies which paid similar wages and worked similar hours. Our home market was our first natural market, and Australia was the natural market for oar surplus produce. Our kauri gum could be sold with advantage to the United States ; but for us to approach the United States with any reciprocal proposals as to wool would be uselesn; and with England so near Canada we could not compete successfully in the Canadian markets. He agreed with all the other points in the report. Work decreased as the population decreased, and wherever immigration set in capital followed. He did not believe in free immigration, but thought Government should assist the immigration of those who had a certain amount of capital. The Colony would gain by doing this. The United States, with all her vastness and resources, had no more than we had. We could produce all that the United States could, and if we had more of the American element amongst us we would progress far better than we did. Mr H. B. Kirk hoped the resolutions would be sent to candidates in all parts of the Colony, and that they would be taken up in the B&me spirit that they were introduced by Mr Eussell. He endorsed the remarks of the previous speakers, and considered New Zealand capable of carrying a population of' three or four millions. We were now so few that we did not create enough work amongst ourselves. The Chairman thought it would be a sad mistake to let the elections go purely on the lines of Capital v. Labour, or Union v. non-Union. History showed that labour legislation in the past had not been very satisfactory. Labour of some kind must be provided for the children pouring out of our public schools, and juvenile labour was not so suitable for the farm as in working up materials. Our former Parliament had been singularly unfortunate in not getting at the bottom of the difficulty or Btopping the large number of people from leaving our Bhorea. The Government had not recently brought out any locomotive contracts, and in consequence many skilled labourers had left the Colony. The labour troubles had shown that & large number of New Zealand Colonists had made sacrifices to assist their fellow-Colonists in Australia, and this proved that the labour troubles wora not in effect adverse to federation. He said this without any reference to the rights or wrongs of the quarrel. He thought the Association might very well form a Candidate-examining Committee, so that the interests of local industries should not be allowed to slide into oblivion. The resolutions were then put and carried unanimously. THE BAILWAY MANAGEMENT. The following resolutions upon the subject of railway management were unanimously adopted :— (1.) " That the Government ought not to undertake the manufacture of commodities, and that the best interests of the Colony would be served by submitting contracts for the supply of rolling stock and other goods now produced at the railway workshops to public tender." (2.) " That the experience of the present grain season has shown that a considerable increase in rolling stock is necessary ; also, that further local storage is necessary at the stations of grain producing districts ; and, further, that this Association is of opinion that careful inquiry should be made aa to the security and efficiency of the rolling stock now in use on the lines." (3) "That this meeting' views with disfavour the unfairnesß of the differential rating adopted on the New Zealand rail-, ways, a3 instanced in the varying charges made on gooda of Classes A, B, C and D on the Christchurch-Lyttelton and the Dunedin-Port Chalmers, and the DunedinQamaruand Chrisfcchurch-Timaru sectionp, and other classes on other sections of the New Zealand railways, and is strongly of opinion that the tariff should be so adjusted that the charges on the same class of goods for similar diitancea should be the same on all sections." It was resolved that a copy of the resolution? should be forwarded to the Railway Commissioners. The meeting then adjourned.