THE WANGANUI SEAT.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XLIX, Issue 12594, 7 September 1905, Page 7

THE WANGANUI SEAT.

J.% Hogan at the Opera House.

I The Opera House was filled in <every Lrt last evening, when Mr. J. T. Hogh, who is standing as a candidate for be Wanganui seat as an Independent liberal, opened his campaign. The hair was occupied by his Worship the layoi' (Mr. A. G. Bignell). The canidate was accorded an enthusiastic re^ bption when he stepped on to the platEm. Tho Mayor, in a brief introducbry speech, said it afforded him great leasure to preside at that meeting, tor ho reason that he considered it an kcellent thing to see a young man, nd a New Zealander, ready to take his liaro in the government of his counry. Unfortunately, however, there •ere six candidates, and if it should appen thab Mr. Hogan should be numered among the defeated he hoped it 'ould not deter him from coming for,ard again. He called upon Mr. logan. . , , Mr Hogan, who was warmly applaudid on rising, commenced his address pith an apt Irish story, the moral ot riiich was that he was agreeably surprised at the splendid gathering ot his eilow townsmen—such a crowd as ho iad never expected ho would be able to Jraw. This was followed by an equalj apt Shakespearian quotation, neatly iurned in application to his own canlidature. He combatted the things I"Sich were being said to prejudice his ndidature, dealing first of all with the legation of youth. He spoke of 1 ltt, Bryan, of Schwabb (Carnegie s great mtenant), Napoleon, and other men 10 in the prime of their youth had led nations, commanded great mdusial enterprises, moved the people with asterß&cea of literature, and otherso -iußfeified their leadership despite o handicap of youth. He did not ten himself to these great men. ±le nsidered himself unworthy to bo men>ned in the same breath j but he mended their great .-.deeds in order to o\v that young men m the past had hieved great things, and might do so the future. He was there simply to y to do his duty, because he had been ked to contest the Wanganui seat, id because he had been asked six years •o to contest this seat. Some said he Id no experience, that he hadn't even _en on a, road board. He hadn t. Me hadn't sat on a road board, a county council, a borough council, or a harbour board. But those who told them that he had had no experience in these things, did not tell them that he had been working for 10 or 11 years in the railway service of this country, by which ho was debarred from sitting,on any public body. Some said that he lacked education, but they did not tell them of tho civil service examinations he had successfully -passed, of the honours he had attained in the local Technical School. They did not mention these things, and ho would not do it, for ho hated egotism, did he not feel compelled so to speak in jus own defence. Bracken's immortal "Not Understood" served to terminate the personal aspect of the address, after which Mr. Hogan went on to say that he was * SUPPORTER OF THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT. Ho would support them, but he would be no "dumb dog," no blind, unreasoning follower. He believed the present Government was the best the colony had had, and he failed to see m the ranks of the Opposition men who were qualified to take the place of the Ministers who now held office. Mr. Hogan said he was a supporter of tho present Government. He admitted th^ their administration had not ' been pstfect, but he would .adhere to bia original declaration, and support them in no-confidence motions. Previous to then- taking qffice in 1891, the oolony was in a very bad state, Banks were tottering to their tall, people wero leaving the colony, andt^rOgemes. viero falling into the lia|ids, of^toortga^ees. Curiously' enough;,;.-this x state oi things changed, and now^e were on tho high road of prosperity. During, the lasb ten years population had increased 233,000, the area of lands ulfdei 1 cultivation had increased 3,<40,00U acres. In the last five years we found thai, horses had increased by oU,OUU, cattlo by half a million, and sheep by « oAer a million. Cheese, in tlie^same . period, had increased,m value £id,<MJ, * wuol> £30G,G00 ? , frofcai ~meat £< 00,000, '% and - butter £800,000; Since freezing , worka had been started 33 or 34lmilliou sheep had; been exported, realising an average of £1 per head From 1891 to 19U4 the unimproved value of land had increased by £36,841,517. From 1892 to 1903 the value-of imports and exporta increased from 15 millions to 2< millions. In 1891 the deposits m the banks wero £12,796,098; Savings Banks £3,406,948; total, £16,203,046. In 1903 tho deposits in the banks were £19,----011,1147 Savings • Banks, £8,432,959; total, £27,444,0/3; increase, £11,241,----027. And yet they were told that the country was going to ruin. The London financiers wero not asleep. They were very astuto men, and if the colony was racing to ruin they would not have offered 2% millions when wo wanted our last million loan. From the 24th of March, 1904, to tho 23rd of March, 1905, 1751 persons arrived in the colony under the reduced pass-age scheme, and brought with them £94,711. In addition they had a declared income of £3396. The benefits to the people giinerally of the j resent Administration njP*,t ? he said, be summed up in the following:—Postage reduced to Id., telegrams to 6d., free railway tickets for school children, excellent, school excursions which enabled city and country children to see the cities, remission of duty totalling £198,000, establishment of old age pensions, maternity homes, and the appointment of the best men procurable to look after our industries. He would ask the farmers, where would their dairying industry be but for John McKenzie, whose solo aim was to break up estates and put people on tho lands? Would their sheep, that used to bring 4s. a head and which nowbrought from 18s. 6d. to 235., have so increased in value but for the freezing companies, whose export trade was fostered by tho Government? }\hy did their butter bring as much as Is. 4d. recently ? Because it was placed in cold stores, graded, and a proper article put on tho -market, largely under Government supervision. The administration of tho railways had been more successful than that of previous Administrations. Rolling stock had increased, the Westinghonse brake and the electric tablet system had been introduced, and a superannuation scheme had been established for railway employees. Fares and frienghts had been reduced, and tho rolling stock was more efficient now than ever it had been. The Government saved the Bank of New Zealand, . and now, at the end of an unprecedented term of office, they showed a surplus of £761,036. Tho Opposition would no doubt reply that tho country would have gone ahead under any Administration ; but ho pointed out that when the Opposition wero in office we had the siijpo land, the same climate, the same pe»jrie, but wo lacked one thing—we hadn't,.the same Government. Some would say, "Let us have a change," but ha would advise them to be careful, get a good reason for changing first. and then mako sure of what they wero getting. On the subject of EDUCATION,

Mr. Hogan said he would like to see it aa free as tho air At present less than

2 per cent, of tho colony got a secondary education. He would like to see a Minister devote his whole time to that Depart me at. It was a very important one, and called for the services of a capable and energetic man. The Education Boards were to a certain extent not treated properly. All grants for primary schools should pass through tliem, and tho deputation system should ba abolished. "The pay of teachers should bo Increased. The present system wa<s bad, and did not encourage the best talent. Pay on an attendance basis was wrong. Superannuation foi teachers should have been in force years ago. There were many teachers now, who had been amongst the ablest in the service, dependent on charity. When a vote was made by the Government, tho whole of it ought to be spent. He believed in a Council of Inspectors meeting and arranging for a uniform set of books throughout the colony. Inspectors should be transferred frequently, in order to prevent teachers from dropping into the grooves of any one man. Aa to the Biblo in schools, he was not in favaur of interfering with tho present system. Referring to SUPERANNUATION AND OLD AGE

PENSIONS, ho said ho believed in a universal superarnuation, based on a contributory scheme, unking tne present superannuation schemes and tho old age pensions" funds. This would remove the stigma which now attached to old age pensions. Ho asked what had labour dono that it should not participate in ■tho benefits of superannuation. Coming to tho subject of STATE COAL JVIINES,

ho said ths State shouuTTbrk its own mines, proviiSag State depots, selling tho ooal as cheaply as possible, assisting industries, and providing warmth for tho poor. Why wero they hanging firo? Why wero the mines only half worked, and men placed on half time? There was money in coal mining. The West-port Coal Company, with a capital of £280,000, paid a dividend of 15 per cent., after creating reserves. He said the State mine had been badly managed. Let the colony have the wealth and tho peoplo the benefit of the country's mines. Speaking of

RAILWAYS, Mr.. Hogan said their lines should be constructed in a business-like way. The Main -Trunk Lino should be pushed through with all speed. Quick transit from tho centres to the suburbs should bo instituted, and the Government ought also to take over the Manawatu lino without further delay. He compared tho Classification and Arbitration Acts, and pointed out that wages had not increased under tho Classification Act as they had done under the Arbitration Act. The railways were earning over £2,000,000 a year, and yet 1100 men were getting less than Bs. a day. To raise their wages to Bs. would cost £17,000. To give crossing and bridge keepers an extra shilling per day would cost £738. To reduce the hours of guards, firemen, and drivers from 54 to 48 hours would cost £8000. This would mean a total, roughly, of £26,----000. Then theso men would only have a baro living wage. As an instance, he gavo the expenditure of a railway man getting 6s. a day. The man received £7 4s. monthly, and spent it as follows:—Grocer and baker 12s. 6d, a week, rent 7s. r. week, coal 2s. Id. a week, meat os. a week, superannuation Is. 9£d. a week, Lodge contribution Is. 3d. r. week, railway union 3d. a week; total, £1 9s. 10£ d. This man is a teetotaller, and' does not smoke. His monthly expenditure is: Grocer £2 10s., rent £1 Bs., coal Bs. 4d., meat £1, lodgo 55., superannuation 7s. 2d., railway union Is.; total, £5 19s. 6d. This riian has a wife and four children, and ho has, after paying o"ut as above, the magnificent balance of £1 4s. 6d. a month to get them boots and clothing. Ho gave another instance, in which caso tho monthly wage was £8 Bs. Out of this the man paid monthly: Rent £2, groceries £2 os., meat 12s.,'bread 9s ;> milk 65., firing and light" c7s;;^6a., superannuation Bs. 5<K, lodge;ss. 6d.,: datfy, paper 2s; t0ta1,f£,6,155.5:3d. This lej^l-'balancisHif £1 ■ISfeff 7d1;.t0 provide? ; i^ts'/V plothi^lj:, an,,'diso' thoiisand and .;onolitt|aXtnijijgs iyMcS* went' to make tho homfqcfcinifortable. These figures, ho said, should' provo the necessity for an increase in tho wages of the lowwago men. Referring to the privileges of railway men, he said that carters' privileges were: Nine days' holidays per year on pay; if called to work on 'Christmas Day, Good Friday, Sovereign's Birthday, or any Sunday, a carter was allowed double time; for other six days they were allowed time and r. half fo rovertime. The railway men's privileges were: Seven days' holiday per year on pay; ordinary time for working on holidays, for which carters got -double time, and for Sundays time and a half; one second-class free pass per annum was allowed to a railway man, and a weekly privilege itcket. He asked what opportunity the men whose wages and outgoings he had quoted had of availing themselves of these privileges. Referring to the salaries of the officers at the head of the railways, he said tho first 30 officers on the D 3 list, 1904, received in salaries a total of £36,370. ■In 1897 they received in salaries £12,670, an increase of £3700. Their average salary in 1904 was £545 13s. 4d. In 1897 it was £422 6s. Bd., an average increase of £122 6s. Bd. in seven years. Although he considered the railways had improved under the present Administration, the anomalies tv which ho had referred were among some of tho things which he considered required looking into. Mr. Hogan then went on to refer to the TOBACCO MONOPOLY. No doubt-, he sajjj, there was "a tobacco trust, and he was strongly opposed to trusts of all kinds. The Government should take over the tobacco trado and conduct it as it is conducted in France. There seed was given to the farmer. Tho Government purchased tho dried leaf from the farmer at from Bd. to lOd. per lb. It was manufactured at Government factories, and the widowti of army officers or men were given licenses to sell it. The price was fixed by tho State, usually at about 4 francs, or 3s. 4d. alb. The French profits wero enormous. He thought this country was well adapted for growing tobacco, and felt sure that the Government could produce it for less than 6s. per lb., the present price. On the subject of DEFENCE, ho said ho preferred peace to war. War wai a bad custom, inherited from barbaroun ages. He believed in arbitration, and gavo examples of important international arbitration court decisions, such tso the Alabama case, the Behring Straits Fisheries dispute, and the more recent Dogger Bank incident. He gave some very interesting figures illustrativo of tho fearful cost of war. Referring to the defences of New Zealand, ho believed we ought to adopt a policy of "defence, not offence." Good shootins-; was requisite, and should be encouraged by tho State. Ho quoted from Lord Roberts to show that tho South African campaign would not have been so costly to our forces if our men had been trained to shoot better. Last year £241,000 were spent on the defences of this country. The present defenco policy was a farce. The Commandant was hampered by the Defence Minister, Volunteers were badly treated, uniform troubles had been frequent, the information imparted in the School oi Instruction was not followed up and taken advantage of, and the system of election of officers was wrong in a democratic country. So-called social posi-

tion was made too much of. He believed in a man coming through from tho ranks. Ho considered that colonials should have an honorarium of at least £50 a year. Camps ought to be ot: longer duration than at present, ammunition ought to bo free, and wo ought to compile our own military Red Book for tho requirements of the colony. Ho bslieved in a biennial conferenco of officers, moro attractive drill, much moro discipline, and more frequent visits from paid officials. Speaking on the burning topic of "NO-LICENSE" V. CONTINUANCE, Mr. Hogan said ho noticed that a great many politicians throughout the colony attempted to dodge the question by saying that the people had it in their own hands. He thought differently, as it was possible to take it out of their hands again by legislation, and tho people ought to know a candidate's views on this question. He was not in favour of "no-license," for it did not agreo with his ideas of justice and liberty. They jvanted an improvement, and ho tliought State control would mako sufficient improvement. If it was tried and failed ho would be with them in sweeping the drink traffic away. He quoted . from the 'Prohibitionist' a statement to the effect that the advocates of "no-licenso" would Jbe satisfied with tho law wo now have in force._ He said that if elected ho would oppose any alteration in the present law.

Speaking on the LAND QUESTION, ho said this was perhaps the most important question of the day. He regarded it as of great importance, becauso labour was useless without it. Wo should road the land first, sell the milling rights where timber existed, and settle the people on the land. He regarded this as one of the weaknesses oi tho Government. They ought, he said, to take up a definite position, to put their backs to the wail, and, instead of sitting on a rail as they were now doing, stand or fall on a land policy iiko men. He strongly opposed the freehold, because he felt it was wrong to alienate the birthright of the people. The Land Commission was a farce, and it ought never to have been sent through tho country. He gave his reasenn for supporting the leasehold. If they gave the fanners the right of freehold he believed that in a very few years tlu bulk of their land would be in tho hands of the money-lenders. If on the other hand all land now locked up in freehold wero held by the State, tho rents therefrom would almost annihilate taxation. The value of improvements should, of course, be secured to the occupiers, who should also, subject to revaluation, have tho nght of handing dowa the farm from father to son, and so, under leasehold as under fieehold, but with more justice to the people, perpetuate the line of succession. He cited a number of authorities in support of tho position which he took up on this question, and then went °" INDUSTRY, which he characterised as a huge monopoly. Ha considered the freights now charged were scandalous, and he was of opinion that tho time had come when they should have their own fleet. They paid away thousands annually in subsidies, and he contended that if they were to capitalise these subsidies, in « few years they would be in tho happy position of possessing a fleet of their own. He next touched on a PERSONAL MATTER..

his dismissal from the railway' service because of his candidature for the Wanganui seat. He said ho believed that tho servants of the State should have tho privileges of citizens of the State, and not be tied hand and foot. They were men, citizens, as were their fellows in the country, and they ought in a democratic country to be able to stand up and take a free hand in the government and administration of the country. He read the correspondence which had taken place between himself and c the..Departmental officers;,,- which iij his resignation trom the service, arid 'concluded his inference to - tho -msitfer by stating that anyone who 'heard a man declai-ing that "this was a ;freo ftnd a democratic country ought .; tf> hit that man over the head with a brick. He then went on to advocate STATE FLOUR MILLS, alleging that the Milling Trust of this country was taking thousands of pounds a year out of the pockets of the people, the bread winners of this colony. The piico of flour was regulated by the Trust, irespective of the price of wheat, and this, of necessity, affected the price wtich the workman and the bread-win-ners had to pay for their bread. He did not blame the bakers. Indeed, he believed that the bakers were losers by reason of tho operations of' the Flour Trust. Ho strongly advocated that the St&to should tako over the mills, sweep away the Trust, and let the people havo bread as cheap as it could be honestly and fairly produced. Mr. Hogan then went on to deal with locat; requirements, and said that the treatment meted out to the people in connection with the Parapara road had been scandalous. He thought it was time the people woke up. The harbour required attention, they wanted an up-to-date tram service, and they wanted a system of cyoie tracks. They might say, "What could tho member for Parliament do for us in theso matters?" He replied, "You splash a man in who has the interests of his town really at heart, and I tell you ho will wako things up." He advocated a STATE BANK, incidentally condemned the Assets Board as a farce, and then proceeded to deal at some> length with public finance and taxation. He expressed the opinion that all moneys nominally transferred froni tho Consolidated Fund to the Public Works Fund should be really transferred and honestly expended on tho purposes for which it was allocated. He would like to see what was termed a free breakfast table, and contended that the NECESSARIES OF LIFE should bo free from taxation. He considered that a man should be able to keep himself and family before being called upon to pay any taxation in the way of Customs duties. They ought to act judicially in the matter of protective duties, which ought to operate only against things the free import of which would prejudice staple colonial industries. For instance, tho duty on potatoes should be relaxed at a time like tha present, in the, interests of the people, and reimposed later on when the New Zealand farmer was in a position to supply the market. He advocated a "heavier progressive land tax. Ho concluded an address extending just on two hours by stating that if they elected him he would do his utmost to further the interests of his constituents and the country as a whole. He appealed to them to think it out, to see to it that they elected the proper men, not, tho nominees oi" cliques, not weakkneed weaklings, not narrow-minded partisans, but men who would honestly and untiringly labour for the benefit of tho people. QUESTIONS. In answer to questions, Mr. Hogan said ho considered the present poll tax (£100) was sufficient for tho time being, but ho would prefer to see a prohibitive licenso introduced and enforced. Ho was not in favour of preference to unionists, because he considered it interfered with tho liberty of the subject. He was in favour of the referendum, if they would educato the people on the subject to bo referred to them; ho would never refer questions involving conscience to a referendum. He was in

favour of an imposition of a tax on land agents, because people dealt with land agents of their own volition. He admitted that tho Catholics had done a noblo work, but he thought that a man who entered Parliament .should hold himself freo from religious partisanship, and for that reason he did not favour a State aid to Catholic schools. He would support an absolute majority Bill for Parliamentary elections, because he considered minority representation was wrong. Ho had no opinion as to the Seddon voucher, until it was all over: but ho must say that it was a very strange case. He considered that as the case sto»d at present no one could give a judgment. The bona fide traveller was supposed to be legally dead, but he could see no harm in a man having a drink at tho end of a journey. He considered tho abolition of the Aramoho junction, and tho mail trains being brought into Wanganui, was an impossibility. Ho would rather see the town extended to Aramoho, and so becomo ft city. If elected he. would support the Government, but he would use a freo hand on matters which did not involvo tho fall of the Ministry. On tho land question, for instance, Mr. Seddon had no policy, but, though ho was for leasehold straight out, ho would vote for him because of the good they had dono and were likely to do. He admired tho New Liberal Party, becauso ho believed they stood for honest, clean administration. But ho did not think they had tho men behind them, or wero likely to have after the coming election, to form a governing party. Ho would support the Government until ho came before them again for election. Ho considere.l a Revising Chamber a necessary institution, and pointed out that this colony had no power to abolish tho Upper House. He considered tho number of members of the House cf Representatives might with advantage bo reduced. He was opposed to "tied" houses in tho liquor traffic, and considered that State control would remedy that evil. It was not for him to s&y whether Wanganui had been ably represented in the past or not. He was before them as j\ candidate, not an (•lector, and if they considered they had not been properly represented they could record their opinion in the ballot box. He thought casual hands in the lailway service should be paid the same as regular hands for time lost by bad weather. Ho fmisidered tho Government were justified in the expenditure incurred' in connection with the Parliamentary excursion to the islands, providing those members who went did their duty and honestly endeavoured to acquaint themselves with the conditions and requirements of the islands. He could not say whether or not Mr. Willis had attempted to interfere, through tho Ministry, with his candidature for the seat. Ho certainly had no eviderco to justify the report that such wai tho case.

On the motion of tho Mayor, who spoka appreciatively of tho address delivered by the candidate, a hearty vote of- thanks was unanimously and enthusiastically accorded to Mr. Hogan.

The usual compliment to the chair terminated tho proceedings.

For Children's Hacking Cough at night,

Woods' Great Peppermint Cure, 1