POLITICAL NOTES FROM WELLINGTON.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume LVII, Issue 8855, 5 September 1907, Page 5

POLITICAL NOTES FROM WELLINGTON.

( Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, This? Day, Tho Otaki and Porirua Inipowerliig Act, a private Bill introduced by Mr W H. Field, passed its second reading yesterday afternoon. Its object is to enable tho Otaki and Porirua trust properties, together with, the accumulated rentals, to be used for the establishment of a school or schools at Otaki. A portion of the funds will be devoted to scholarships, enabling Maori students to prosecute their education at colleges selected by tho General Synod. Although the schools will bo under the supervision of the Church of England, applicants are not to be refused admission because ot their religions belief Mr A. L. D. Fraser (Napier) made a strong protest against any church administering the funds intended for Maori education. Replying to a question, the Minister of Justice stated that District Judge Hasolden, whoso salary is £750, received £1 Us (id a day for travelling allowance, and seeing that his district covers half the colony, he was constantly travelling. Mr Ma-ssey said the travelling allowances came to £11 per week, aud asked how many public servants were drawing these huge perquisites? Mr T. McKouzie urged a full enquiry into the expenditure, and Mr Hauau protested against the way in which salaries were spread in fragments over the Estimates, through tho same officer being paid separately for different offices. The Premier promised an enquiry into Major Shannon's case, but said a schedule of the allowances of every Civil Servant would be virtually impracticable. Mr J. G. W. Aitkou asked when the Fire Brigade Bill was going to be circulated, and was informed that it was proposed to bring down a Bill as early as possible. He complained of the delay that had taken place and the unsatisfactory position in which local bodies aud fire brigades were placed. Consideration of the tariff was resumed. A proposal to reduce the duty ou cartridges from 2s (id to Is (id per'liundred was defeated on division, after considerable disenssiou, during which the desirability of assisting the Colonial Ammunition Company was strongly urged, particularly by Auckland members.

The Tariff Debate

An Unexpected Situation

(ParliaiMiitart/ Reporter.)

When the item £5 per ctM.it. ad valorem upon engines and machines for milling limchinory was reached, Mr Horries raised the question already discui-sed upon the. second reading of the Bill, by moving to strike out the item and place all mining machinery on the free list. The Minister pointed out that the whole thing had been threshed out belore. The duty was only charged on articles which could be made in the colony. Very liberal treatment had been accorded to the industry in the free-list. The Premier stated that last year the value of mining machinery imported was £45,000. Half of these articles would have gone on the free list of the new tariff, so that only £1000 in duty would have been paid on these importations. If every application for remission or reduction of duties was considered, the Government would quickly lose half a million sterling per annum, but a moderate amount of protection had to be imposed to help local manufactures. Upon divisiou, Mr Hemes' amendment was carried by two votes. The divisiou list was as follows :— AYES.— J. Allen, Bemict, Bollard, Colvin, Dillon, Duncan, Field, W. Fraser, Greenslade. Guinness, Hall, Hardy, Heke, Herries, Hornsby, Jennings, Lang, Lethbridge, Lewis, T Mackenzie, Major, Malcolm, Massey, Mills, Ukey, Poland, Reid, Remington, Ross. Rutherford, Scddou, Symes. NOES.—Aitkeu, E. G. Alien, Arnold, Barber, Barclay, Buddo, Carroll, Davey, Ell, Fisher, Fowlds, A. Fraser, Gray, Hanau, Hogg, Izard, Kidd, Lawry, McGowan, - MoNab, Millar, Poole, Sidey, Stallworthy, Steward. Tanner, Ward, Wilford, Witty, Wood. The Cabinet is in conclave this morning considering the situation produced by the rebuff over the duty on mining machinery, which electri, fied the cTose of lust" evening's debate, on the tariff. The defeat ol the duty was a groat surprise because exactly a weelc ago. when a division was taken on the same item the duty was carried by Hi) to '2.). On each occasion, with the exception of Mr Aitkeu, who supported the duty, the Opposition voted in a compact 'body against it. The Government Whips have been divided, Mr ,T. Colvin and the Westlaud ; members opposing the duty and working vigorously. Apprtently an arrangement was arrived at between goldfield members and representatives of farming and dairying districts to help each other in successively placing mining and farming machinery on the free list. The result was particularly annoying to the Premier and Minister of Customs who had met several deputations and arranged the tariff by making exemptions to satisfy the demands of members. A comparison of the division* lists on the two occasions when the vote was taken shows that five members last night reversed their previous votes. Two Government snpporters, Messrs Mills and Rutherford, voted who did not vote before, and three others that previously voted did not figure in the division. Altogether nineteen Government supporters followed the Opposition lead. (liv Our Crow Creek CorrespoiideiiL) That old man of the political sea, the tariff, was on last evening, the Hon. Mr Millar at the helm. I was inTtheHouse only about half-au-honr, but even in that half-hour there was mild amusement. When "ammunition" was on, Mr Eutherfurd, the perennial and dependable half-supporter of the Government, imparted a little humour into the discussion. But when the j taxation of mining machinery came on, Hon. A. R. Guinness, the Speaker (who while the House was in Committee had resumed his place as private member) voiced the protest of the mining industry in a rather clever appeal to sympathy. While he was speaking, a message was sent in from the Minister in charge to the Cabinet room, and out sprang the Premier with a very practical, vigorous, yet crushing reply, showing that the Government had already given away £200,000 of revenue in remissions. Why should they kowtow to an insincere appeal from representatives of mining constitiiencies? If they taxed mining machinery a little, they were taking burdens off the miners' backs in other ways, and the taxation of mining machinery didn't yield much. So, after all, what was there to grumble at? That was the burden of his speech, _ which, by the way, was delivered in much more deliberately than of old.