THE Press. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1879.

Press, Volume XXXII, Issue 4422, 2 October 1879, Page 2

THE Press. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1879.

The debate, on which so large issues depend, has been commenced. In a calm, temperate, and argumentative speech, the leader of the Opposition summed up tho charges against the" Government. He pointed out how completely Ministers had I failed to give effect to the liberal measures and economical schemes which they had promised to bring in when they came—(to Office. They liad been moie extravagant than their predecessors, and their professions of economy were shown to be mere pretence. Tbe Native expenditure had exceeded by £20,000 that of the former Government, witht results, as _Eiv Hall mildly put it, "not nearly so satisfactory." The Natives were in a state of lawlessness ; the finances of the colony were in a hopeless muddle ; the civil service was d_organised; adminia_-ation scandalously neglected ; and the public resources employed to further the ends of Minister— The telegraph, the railway, the Gk>ver__ent steamer, had all leen called in to assist them in contesting the recent elections. The electors had_been bribed by tbe promise or actual commencement of public works, just as the various polls were about to take place. As Mr. Hall justly put it, if the Government thought fit to use the Gove—unent steamers for their own private purposes they might just as well use other Government property for the same objects. Bat it is not necessary to repeat here tbe snbstanee of all that tbe leader of tbe Opposition proved against the present Government.' Suffice it to say that bis speech was a calm, unimpassioned, but most telling denunciation of Ministerial insincerity in tbe canseof reform, and of Ministerial mal- • administration and gross misuse of the j public fund* to further their own polltical j ends. I

I Tbe Premier delivered tbe same evenipg > wbat professed to be a reply to tile indictment brought against hi imself and % might haTe been expected, simply jsapefetwn, bat «fightly ti- «e*__p~ speecb which he has found l& be so efieei ■--■' :

trial _. differeat parts of the colony. \ We had onco more the same set the same oratorical effects, übidffflpnre hitherto passed current for arggjfjßJa&t among those who insist on acSbefitlflg as gospel every word that falls from"l_» Premier's lips. In that portion of his karangue in which he did attempt to answer some of the charges brought; against hita, his efforts were a complete* failure. __e_leader of the Opposition _»d Jscought against him and his Government * long list of misdeeds, many of them, of an exceedingly damaging nature, and the Premier triumphantly cleared himself of them all by the countercharge of " gridironing" against some person or persons _fi__y years ago! What that had to do with the question "heaven only knows. Bat Sir Geflrgfe .b»«3CO__detely: demonstrated big own.fitness to govern the „ cj>lony_ alaa J &el B_fi-ie_*~ of his opponents, because somfroae'o'r ether in the, past ages ha3~ "- a fejw thousand acres in Canterbury, under tbe authority of •aa iiistittttioh which be professes to regard Jasthe bniwarfcVof popular liberty, and whose destruction he so deeply regrets. -"We have always main—ined that Sir George never did exhibit a very high, opinion of the intellectual capacity of those whom he addressed froiat—j'pfbßc platform: the speeob which he- delivered on Tuesday night in the House of Representatives shows that he thinks as meanly of his followers in the Assembly. What he bad to say »bont the us* of the Hinemoa by the Government was equally weak. They did not order the steamer he said. They | found it whea they got into office, aqd he 1 was entitled to make nse of it in going abont the colony making himself acquainted wit—, its —fairs, and in bringing > great and important matters affecting its welfare under .the notice of tha.public. Such are the euphonioas phrases in which he describes bis journeys by steamer and .railway at the cost of the colony, doing battle for bis party, for his colleagues, and himself. Sir George Grey forgets that more than half the people of New Zealand take a different view of his proceedings, and to' call upon them to pay the enormous expense he -incurred is to deliberately rob them. . The' leaders of tho Opposition believe that they were bringing important —tatters affecting the welfare of the colony before the people when they denounced and exposed the misdoings of the Ministry, bnt the Government steamers and special trains were not placed at their disposal for the purpose. A more extraordinary argument than that used by Sir George Grey has seldom been pWldtJJohewJ employed.; More-f over has • he: ; forgotten;, the h,ngn&g& employed when Ms .took office. One. of ;;their very first acts as a Ministry should have been to dispose of the Exueraoa. Bnt: on the .con--trary, he frmnediately set about using it in a manner his predecessors never dreamed of doing., He converted it practically into a pleasure yacht, and during the late: elections all but disabled it by the high pressure speed at which it was driven in order that he might sebtire a further extension of power to himself, and to' his colleagues a longer lease of the Treasury Benches, and the rewards which accompany such an occupation. What he had to say regarding Native matters was equally at varianco with facts. .To assert, as Sir George did, "that Native matters were in a worse condition 'when he came into office than they are now, is to make a statement which even the most credulous and blinded member of a liberal Reform Association would have great difficulty in accepting, but which nine-tenths of the population of the colony will at'once set; down as a wilful misrepresentation. Then New Zealand was at jpeace; property throughout the North Island waa and the settlers everywhere were trustful and confident; the Native difficulty as a large question, had ceased to exist. Tinao was" doing for us what the sword had previously failed to accomplish. But in two short years the aspect of things in the North has changed. Native matters have again forced themselves on the attention not only of the colony, but upon that of people at home, from whom we wish to borrow £5,000,000. London papers received by the mail talk of another " little war " as likely to arise in New Zealand, and as the English publio have lately had considerable experience of the cost of such little wars, the announcement has not tended to strengthen our credit there. Yet the Premier has the effrontery to stand in his place in Parliament, and tell an amazed House that Native matters were in a worse condition | when he took office than they now are. I After such a statement it is scarcely necessary to refer to the answers given to one or two of the other charges brought against his Government. By this time one wonld have thought Ministers would have been able to agree upon some kind of explanation of the causes of the withdrawal of the Electoral Bill. But it seems not. A. new one is given every t_lo a Minister speaks. Not only have they contradicted each other, they have contradicted themselves. In these circumstances the majority of the people of the colony will, as they have hitherto done, look upon the withdrawal of the Bill as a gross exercise of autocratic power, and an insult totheboneandsinevrof New Zealand, which it proposed to enfranchise. But it is useless to follow the Premier through the rest of Ms defence, if mere denial of thfi accusations brought against him can be so designated. He neither succeeded bi clearing himself of the charges which 'had been made, nor was he able to show ' that it was the duty of the colony any ! longer to submit to his mis-government, for the sake of securing those measures, which he had so long promised; bat which he had always contrived to prevent being placed on the statute book.