POLITICAL.

Wanganui Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 15977, 20 November 1919, Page 5

POLITICAL.

SPEECH BY MR P. PIRANI,

A STORMY MEETING, (Per United Pres* Association.) WELLINGTON, November 19. Mr P. Pirani, Liberal candidate for Wellington Central, opened his campaign to-night, the meeting being stormy and the speaker continually interrupted. After the work done during the last five years by the Massey Party he could not possibly agree to support the present Government. He advocated improvement iu the schools and educartion system and State hostels in large towns. He approved State ownership of the liquor trade. He considered the land problem would have been much easier of solution if the graduated land tax had been raised to a proper level. He disapproved of speculation and profiteering in land. He preferred the Whitley scheme to the Arbitration Court. There would be no effective solution of industrial problems until profit-sharing was established.

CHRISTCHURCH EAST. CHRISTCHURCH, Nov, 19. Dr Thacker, M.P., who is seeking reelection for Christchurch East, addressing his first meeting last night, urged that the State should take charge of all uncurable disease cases, like cancer, etc., and' should take charge of all defectives. He thought the rise in the cost of living had been due to the floating of big loans in New Zealand. A vote of thanks was carried. ATON. Mr G. Sullivan, Labour candidate for Avon, opened his campaign to-night, and received a vote of thanks and confidence. He defended the Labour Party, and denied that it was Bolshevistic or anarchistic, and contended that it had made serious efforts to bring about better relations between employers and employee. He j denounced the Government for not checking the rising cost of living, and criticised its land proposals. He was in favour of a State Bank and nationalisation of mines and the ferry service, and urged that more should be done to develop secondary industries.

THE RICCARTON SEAT. CHRISTCHURCH, November 19. Mr W. R. Devereux, Reform candidate for Riccarton, opened his campaign to-night. He highly extolled Mr Massey’s endeavonr to keep down the cost of living. Mr Massey was a real friend of the true workers, and though he might be tbe best hated man in New Zealand amongst the workers just now, there would be a great many tears shed over him by the workers if he were to die. The education system in New Zealand had been starved by past Governments, but he thought Mr Massey would make the system so. perfect that eventually the very best brains o| the country would be available for teaching children. He thought a State Bank (with paper currency) would be the very best thing the country could have. A vote of thanks was accorded the candidate.

MBS BAUME’S CANDIDATUKE. AUCKLAND, November 19. Mrs F. P. Baume, Opposition candidate for Parnell, opened her campaign to-night, when she addressed a crowded meeting. Mrs Baume received an excellent hearing and dealt at length with education questions. She advocated endowment of motherhood. The candidate received a vote of thanks and confidence.

MB MASSEY AT ELTHAM. ELTFLAM, November 19. The Prime Minister-addressed a crowded meeting at Eltham to-night. There was an audience of at least 1000 people. The Mayor of the town (Mr Taylor) piesided.

Mr Massey, who was given a very hearty welcome, referred to the National Government, which he said had had to do many things which made it unpopular at the time, but even at this short distance in time, if the people could look back and regard those unpopular acts of tho National Government, they would find but little fault with them—that the Government had introduced conscription; had raised in loans and taxation more than ever they had thought could possibly be raised; had had to cut down railway running, and had had to stop public works. He then referred to the break-up of the National Government, and detailed the resolutions passed by the Reform Party and the Liberal Party. Ho went on to say: It .is no use trying o got away from this, that wo expected the break. I knew it was coming, but I did not know when it was coming. It came somewhat suddenly, but I ,;im not complaining or whinirig about it. Mr Massey went on to say that he decided to carry on, and he had invited two returned soldiers to join him in the Cabinet. Mr Massey continued his speech on tho lines of his northern addresses. He spoke at some length of the American Wheat Trust and the danger of allowing it to get established in Britain. Ho said and he had don© all that ho possibly could, both there and in England, to combat tho power of the Trust, and lie warned tho people to be vigilant lest the Trust establish itself strongly in our country. It was already operating, but not, he thought, to a dangerous extent. He discredited the prevailing demand for nationalisation of all manner of things. Nationalisation was permissible to prevent monopoly, to prevent exploitation, or to encourage industry, but it was not permissible if it was merely to push out other people already serving the community fairly. The Labour Party wanted nationalisation of land. He believed that the British people would not tolerate nationalisation after the Bolshevik plan, for centuries to come at least. Furthermore, the credit'of the country would never the burden of the acquisition of all these ventures in nationalisation. Last of all,, he bespoke the support for the Government candidate for Egmont, Mr Hawken. Mr Massey resumed his seat amid loud applause. A vote of thanks and of confidence in Mr Massey and his party was carried with acclamation. Then there were cheers for Mr Hawken.