54 



be taxed at all, for without representation there could be no taxation. Some of the worst infested spots 

 in his district belonged to men with only a couple of thousand acres. These men should be taxed. Then 

 there was another point. They had passed a resolution that cultivated land should be taxed at an assess- 

 ment. Many of the holders had let their lands on the share system, and probably the share men only had 

 ' a couple of horses and a couple of cows. He presumed that these share men could not be called occupiers. 



Mr. ATKINSON said they should be. 



Mr. GORMAN (Kerrigan) said that he did not think there was anything at all in the argument 

 about the small man outvoting the big. It was simply a question about any man, no matter how small, 

 having a vote. 



The CHAIRMAN suggested to Mr. Bacon that he should add some words to his motion, "That every 

 man be taxed up to the minimum." 



Mr. BACON (Brewarrina) said that that was what he meant. 



Mr. T. BROWN, M.P, said it was thought that 250 sheep should be the minimum voting power. 

 That will mean that a man who returns stock would be taxed at the amount of 250 sheep, and a man who 

 had no stock, but cultivated his laud, would return 250 sheep, and would be entitled to the franchise. In 

 order to be entitled to the franchise the holder of cultivated land must have 1,250 acres before he would 

 reach that assessment. He contended that there were holders of less areas than that who would benefit 

 by the Act, and they should be asked to contribute a fair share. In order to bring them in he wished to 

 reduce the voting power, and make 100 the mimimum. That would bring in the G40-acre man. 



Mr. ALISON (Canoubar) said they would never get finished if they went on in this way. The small 

 men did not escape the operation of the Act. They must destroy their own' rabbits, but they would not 

 have to pay any taxes. It simply was not worth while taxing them. There was the same principle of 

 exemption under the land tax and the income tax. The amount to be collected from 100 sheep was not 

 worth while. He did not see why they were so anxious to tax the smaller men, to compel them to pay 

 their 4s. 2d. or 8s. Gd., as the case might be. They had already decided that by a vote, and if lie chose to 

 stick to a point of order it could not be raised again except by the consent of the meeting. He had no 

 feeling in the matter. There was no necessity to bring in the men with under 250 sheep, and there was 

 no harm in leaving them out ; while, if they were left out, the expense of administration would be very 

 much reduced, because it would cost as mu h as it was worth to collect the money. 



Mr. LIJSLIE (Forbes) said that the members seemed to think that the Board would have to destroy 

 rabbits. The Board would not. The destruction was to be done by the private owners. The Board 

 would only have to administer the Act. Before the motion was put to the meeting he would like it to be 

 made clear whether it was the intention of the proposer of the motion to increase the maximum voting 

 power. He would bo glad to give a man with 100 sheep the power to vote, but the big men should 

 receive a much larger representation in order to compensate them. 



The CHAIRMAN then put the question whether the minimum should be 100, 200, or 250 sheep. 



The amendment that it be 100 sheep was lost by 23 votes to 11. 



The amendment that it be 200 sheep was lost by 22 votes to 13. 



The CHAIRMAN then put Mr. Alison's motion, ''That where returns aro sent in which are below 

 the minimum, occupiers of cultivated lands shall have the right to vote for the constitution of the Stock 

 and Pastures Boards, such voting power to bo proportionate to the number of sheep at which their lands 

 are assessed, the minimum number of sheep qualifying for a vote to be 250 sheep ; and that as the 

 Government have the right to nominate a member to the Board they shall not have any voting power for 

 the other members." 



The motion was carried by 20 votes to 10. 



The Honorable RUI-ERT CABINGTON (Jerilderie) said that in his district they would be taxed twice, 

 as far as he could make out, under this Bill, la his opinion they had made a great mistake in putting it 

 on a stock basis instead of on a land basis. 



Mr. ALISON (Canonbar) rose to a point of order. They had settled all that. 



The Honorable RUPERT CARINGTON (Jerilderie) said they carried a certain amount of stock and 

 they cultivated a certain amount of land in wheat, but they were able to run a number of sheep in summer 

 on the stubble after the harvest was taken off, and that allowed them to carry a very much greater 

 proportion of sheep than they could otherwise do. 



The CHAIRMAN said that could not be gone into without the recommital of the clause. 



Mr. OAKDEN (Cobar) said he thought that they should now extend the franchise in the other way. 

 They should at least give one more vote as the maximum. The limit now in the Diseases in Sheep Act 

 was, for 30,000 sheep, four votes ; and he proposed that an additional vote be given 40,000 sheep and 

 over should have five rotes. 



The Honorable BUTEUT CARINGTON (Jerilderie) wished to point out this voting would be partially 

 under the Sheep Act, which provided for that. 



Mr. OAKDEN proposed to add to the Schedule of the Diseases in Sheep Act, " 40,000 sheep and 

 over, five votes," because they had halved the minimum, and therefore ho thought it was only fair to give 

 an extra vote to the people who were the most interested. lie supposed that for the hundred votes that 

 had been admitted, they would only get one extra vote under this extra provision. 



Mr. LESLIE (Forbes) seconded Mr. Oakden. He thought that the people who paid the largest 

 contributions should have a larger representation lhan was provided for them. What was proposed was 

 far less than might have been asked for, when they took into consideration the position of the men who 

 held 100,000 sheep, who would return 416 13s. 4d. as against 10s Gd. eacli contributed by five men 

 owning 250 sheep, and being entitled to a vot?. Mr. Oakden's proposition would place holders of that 

 description in a position to exercise five votes, while the men who paid two guineas as against 41(5 1 3s. Id. 

 would have eight votes. He thought Mr. Oakden had hardly gone far enough in what he was asking 

 for, and he was sure that he was influenced by a desire to conciliate those who did not seem to think the 

 largest taxpayers should have a further voting power. They were all well aware of how it would work, 

 and he thought no reasonable man would object to concede this small increase in the voting power. 



Mr. T. BROWN, M.P. (Budgeraboiig) protested very strongly against this proposaf of Mr. 

 Oakden's. He had come there with several others and had agitated for separate Rabbit Boards under a 

 separate constitution, and when they were defeated they were told that it was desirable to place the 

 administration of the Rabbit Act uuder the Pastures and Stock Board, and for that purpose the franchise 

 of the Pastures and Stock Boavl would be extended. Now, this would really be a curtailment of the 



present 



