AUCKLAND'S EXCLUSION FROM THE CABINET.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 4130, 27 September 1883, Page 2

AUCKLAND'S EXCLUSION FROM THE CABINET.

A Wellington Opinion of tho Situation:

[ISY TELEGRAPH—OWN CORUESPOSJJUst],

Wellington, this day, The "Evening Post" to-night says:-^- ---" Candidly, wo must admit we lire not greatly surprised that the inclusion of no Auckland representative in the new Ministry should have excited considerable indignnl tion in the Northern City. It is a terrible come-down from owning the Prime Minister himself and one who was the last man to be a mere cipher in any Government to become absolutely Ministerless. True, Hawke's Bay, Nelson, and Westlaud are in the Bame boat; but, from the Auckland view-point, this only renders Lite slight still more galling. %,j be apparently classed with such little twopenny half-penny ex-provinces as thosa ig too bitter. We confess we feel a good deal of sympathy with the mortification' of Auckland at being thus excluded from the councils of State, and we say this in hd spirit of mockery. To us it seems art unquestionable hardship that Auckland should bo unrepresented in the Cabinet* just at a time, too, when several matters are in issue which are of special interest and importance to that district. No doubt this view will be promptly met by Ministerial organs with the retort that ' localism 'is an evil which ought to be suppressed ; that Cabinets are not supposed to be representative of mere localities; that every Minister represents the whole Colony, and the most suitable men ought to be selected irrespective of localities even should it happen that all were to be found among the members for a single province.This is very pretty in theory, but it will not stand the test of practical experience* The time has not yet come for local rival' ■ ries to be ignored, or for old provincial jealousies to bo. treated as obsolete; nor can it be denied that a large and important district, if deprived of Ministerial repre-' sentation, may be placed at a disadvantage which is far from being purely sentimental or imaginary. We have ourselves felt bound on more than one occasion to press very strongly the claims of Wellington to its fair share of representation in the Cabinet, and we cannot blanc Auckland for protesting loudly against being totally ignored in the recent reconstruction. Certainly it does appear unfortunate that such a serious and substantial grievance should have been put upon Auckland, unless this was absolutely unavoidable. We believe it is intended to appoint from the Legislative Council another Minister without portfolio,l" as there is more than one man's work in taking charge ef all the Government bills that have to go through the Council. In these circumstances it would have been as well, one would think, to have eithersecuredauAucklanderforthispositkm^ selecting one of the present Auckland Legislative Councillors, or else calling some suitable Auckland man to the Council for this purpose before the names of the new Ministry were definitely announced, so that the irritation created by the absence of any Auckland member from the Cabinet might have been avoided. As it is, the seeming slight has been offeredy, and unless the excitement now being sedulously fomented by the opponents ofthe Government can be properly allayed by the speedy redress of the grievance, it may afterwards prove impracticable to smoothe x~nd's milled feathers."