Dog-Tax.

I now come to vexed question which is small in itself, but which has carried a great deal of ill-feeling—I allude to the question of the dog-tax. Like most aboriginals, the Maori loves his dog. In that respect I may say you are not unlike many of the Europeans, for in the county in England where I come from we have a saying, "He who strikes my dog strikes me.' There is a good deal of force in what you say in respect to the districts where the dogs do not worry sheep, for the reason that there are no sheep to worry, and the argument for the strict enforcement of the law in those parts of the colony has really no force. I am going to speak plainly, and tell you that I do think the local bodies, or those employed by them, have not acted judiciously or wisely or in the best interests of both races, in at least two counties, in the manner in which they have administered the law. (Applause.) Had serious trouble arisen, —and I say it with a due sense of responsibility, —I should have cast upon the members of those local bodies some of the blame. There is such a thing as administering the law in such a way that it does not bear harshly; and I claim that the Maoris are entitled to consideration just as the Europeans are. For instance, take the case of the Mongonui County. There the same law exists, but an arrangement was made between the County Council and the Natives. The latter said they would be responsible—that they would promise to destroy a lot of these useless curs, and to keep only useful dogs, and that if any damage was done they would take steps to compensate the sufferers; they said they would take the responsibility if they were not troubled about the tax. I have it on the assurance of the County Chairman that this arrangement had proved satisfactory to all concerned, and I never heard a word about the dog-tax when going through that county; yet the same two races are living there. The amount of revenue involved is very trifling indeed. If every penny of the dog-tax in this and the adjoining county was kept for the next hundred years it would not come to as much as the trouble it last year cost the colony, to say nothing of the pain that has been occasioned. (Applause.) As I have said, however the Government must uphold the law, for once it is put in motion it is to be carried out. But the question is, whether or not arrangements could not be come to under which harmony between the two races could be promoted, whilst at the same time the law would be maintained. I hope that my words will have the effect of causing the local bodies to consider the position from this standpoint, for I feel sure that if that course is adopted it will avoid the necessity for Parliament taking the matter into consideration. If, however, nothing is done, it will be for the Government to take the responsibility of submitting the matter to Parliament, so that the necessary power may be given under which, whilst seeing that the law is strictly carried out, we may deal with any exceptional circumstances necessitating the operation of the law being held in abeyance in any particular locality. Speaking with a due sense of responsibility, I say that if I were a settler in the district I would rather appoint a Maori committee from each kainga to keep down the dog nuisance than I would enforce the law to do it. They certainly have a better chance of knowing the dog of bad habits; and if the responsibility of destroying him were thrown upon them there would be a better chance of removing the trouble than there is at the present time, for the reason that the dog that would kill the sheep of Europeans would also kill those belonging to the Maoris.