AN OLD DIARY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 621, 25 September 1909, Page 6

AN OLD DIARY.

BY-|Ej:ECtION FIFTY" YEARS AGO. PRESENT POLITICS .IN THE GERM. 'AIfjKAELt.: ASSOCIATION. '. " : " : : A Wbliington by-olcction ;m'oro. than'./fifty. years ago.-.was. conducted ivory, differently -from' a by election'iinr'thesb-days; when\threb Ministers toi'tako. ;tke ■field.';' The hiUiorto. unpublished diary of Edward Jbrningham Wakefield' elves an account of, tho election of a mombbr'to: the'Gbhcral legislativei. Council in •,-"HonsoVati;noon ; ; adjourned till -writes, v"to : . see',the. : humours-of the election." i Thus; cheaply.wasv the : .event rated by-; authority. ;j . 'TVilliamson -, -was proposed by "Black,: carpenter,:-and.seconded, by Coolahan, c a little Irishman j- Brown, proposed by Newman, who didn't. speak" badly, and sec-, onued byjGebrge.ta baker, who didn't speak, at

'au;,s i ;^/;^ v^f.' ; ;v ,^:-^';v;'--r'';^';v'r ' well,-prinoipally oh land for ' working- has Dr. Findloy boeh-reading?—and?-education. '.Brown, \yery feebly,--.chiefly;on -the ; accounts, 'and -against old Executive,-' lettirir they .cat. out.of the bag;Tho'game "is' to ■pitch"; into the old .officials, on, account-of'-the-accounts,-arid'then'- try and coerce.WyriyarU"(Acting-Governor)"into dis-missing'..tneravV.This'-J9;tho Brown-Feathorstoh-alliedjwith-therMinistry'game, and, a;'row,_and provincial" .agitation as predicted: by E.G.W. '(Edward'.i Gibbon .'Wakefield) in hitters -.to' .^Sydney-Morning .-Herald,' only without con-jjent'of-old.officials.'-; Otherwiso the election :w,as, tame- enough—hardly ;200 people there—no bntnusiasm'.'on'either side—show of hands for Brown unmistakably-all over, by'two o'clock.' 'All theVwOrld was' - there,'i of members of, both Houses—Swainson; -Shepherd, FeatherstoV, etc., eto. ..Saw' Swainson at tho House, afterwards. Ho remarked with some, glee that Brown's diatribe against the old ■Executive met wijth ■ little -response'.'at.the hustings; .True bnough,/but Brown'.spoke ivery low!".,-. •'■; ■'"-": V '

•^V,'; V HoW ; History Repeats Itself.; ';'-.'.;- '.'. .'We'are reminded of;'Dr; Findlay onc'o.again, in the same day/s.entry.-,'Twent to.the judge s, and had avery iateresfingconvorsationwithhini ahout.Vsecondary,'punishment. '.■:.:; •'.:;,. He -promised mel.some- bboksjon prison discipline—; three—two. of them'blui' books." Dr. Bell has 'also boon anticipated; for the entry proceeds:—' "Mi.' and v Miss. Sinclair /walked back', under, the cliffs; Sinclair anxious to go—a very.pretty, first lesson in 'geology—the' very recent-tertiary (probably .recent alluvial). deposits contorted by /volcanic ..action/:' .-A. thumb-nail, .sketch elucidates this' description. ••',■'-■' '-.:'■ \ "" V '■■ A-'few'entries,: later, wo. come across a. suggestion which' lffiis open toanybqdy to revive at the present juncture. It refers to . Green T ; wood's' plan .of acquiring freehold by seven years' military service; bound to turn out with arms in good order! supplied by Government. And there-were Baileys,: or, at 1 least/dabblers.in tho occult, in : those.days.: "Dull- ;evening at WKitaker's—no '['■-■ results'. ; from mesmerism, | though several tried." ■■\,'r ;];■_ ■'.• ■'.'.'. . ';-.:.,-; i - There "wero'also undesirable Government.imf migrants' and interminable Hutt: Roadworks, as. at the-present, time.'.'Wo.read (Juno 25, : 36th birthday): ."Everythingcommercially ;vory ' dull • all .over -New!- Zealand jast now,, from the falling of the 'food market in.; Australia; The .Government...immigrants from; Melbourne and- Sydney_to this province do not'appear"at all.a.desirable class. They allegS,:too, ; 'that they 1 have been induced'to migrato hithei.by;-false'representations,-as, •well of .the"rate of ; wanes to be 'got as of the; facility ;,of' obtaining" oheap-/ land. :>. .• >■ On Sunday .last I, walked', up tho .'Ngahurangsi Edad (Wakefield is ordinarily'a correct speller), as iar tia it is at'all made, ;and .had a /chat, .witn Grainger, '-. the -foreman, on return.. There dTe only.five'men beside himself on the works. ; '.He'thinks'JC4ooO..'would complete the. •iobi 'andJcveh :,KOOO make a great hole in.it. But it is evident that the.Government have;no favourable views towards finishing it out of liaiid.''-Surely: a'.political -Rip Van; Winkle ,' mighfhave gone to sleep in 1856, and wakened. •in 1909, : -without detecting,change!/ : v '

~uv - y /''"''■'-: : 'Press. - ; ' y: -. .''.There are. sonib, interesting 'references to.-.the, early.'pr'es3,of the colony}} On January. Al2,v 18511 Wakefield, writes '• "Yesterday: tea at. God' leyVfiHiSi reminiscences of article-writing in Lontlon daily'paper's-as the most, pleasant life. , ■Suggeste'd:.T:shonld;e'dit,the:'LytteUon.iimcs. .■ , iWnkotiold''-was,'at-this 1 .time writang editorial, :articles';foT,'tho l ,'ffelliiiston, "Independent. .On. '•Mar : 2Sj;^lßst?iue; : lias : '.thelcntry: "The Otngo ( :Witif!i : ssT?i)UuiisKed' ; ,nfet .After 13th .May, will tho'pub' lioJof :,In n-:'report of .the anm- : vershry dinner, ofloyal. Wellington -Lodge of Jt.U.1.0.0.F.-.iwe read! "Roe; refused to give ' the toast of; '.The Press,' assigned' to; him, on ■'accouhW'df'.'tbb'. disgraceful .character of .both the; newspapers' hero; although, an old printer ; hims6lf.";v'.'r-. ; '' •"': .''..■s;;-' ,'.",. ' •,'. "■ ■'' ,'■ ' , -: Devotions at. St. Tetcr's.Church, if not,per-., iisal of. thViiapers, would {convince .Rip'.that times had changed since the mid-'fifties.' Wakefield writes: Sunder: dato Sunday, March 11, 1855 •: "Went; to >Kt. ! PotorV at night.' Samesermon: from ;Hadfieia; (Bishop Hadfieid. had preached" at" St. Paul's in the. morning); evidently, directed |to education., question. .1 pnioyed,it tho second time,, the morefrom having attended' to it-in..the morning. Thcro.wns: -no..orgamst,..'.and,',the-isinging nearly broka dowhY but, Raymond very courageously trcnewed: the :fnlleh. strain, and Withers ' then, ';struck in and led .us successfully afterwards,, '. 1 "; : : .;":''.'j : v Soclety.^r.^vjvr^-.i,:;. '-Theearliest '.meetings of. almost, >tho',-. ; 'first'•pblitical'- : b'ody.'.formed-in ; Wellington■ are .de-'-scribed ; ' byV.Wakefield,.:who refers.. (Jlarch..7,' : .1855); tovVthd- fritaiit..step.-j, of 'the Wellington Political : Sobiety,4;whieh^.is;.ny'sort of poetical justice dealing .-retribution. to-the/Scttlcrf Constitutional' Assbciii.tiom',E ; ; , 'J.-:DuncnD' the.main: originator ";bf. : the 'movement.' : : Allen,. -Bowler,-, W.- : Luxsfbrd,'-i;ager,v,Martin,. Jas". ' .Wallace,, Tanko'rsley,-.'..-.Levy."'(Lipmiiii),-.'• MaxtOn.vy etc: 'some l ofv 'the {/leading,,;{.attendants;. . "a*. ; present* :,The ;discussiba, of : theso:-.political: subjects .-'is "exceedingly'.-' useful,, 'and especiallyneeded here, where tho F.F.Fi's,;once,in power,', have done: : nll : :they'can to'.etiilo- it. This evening I" attended a meetingof, tho Wellington .Political:Society:/,!-There, were about .twenty ■ members. attendance "there.has ;Dcbri : ;yet. ..The, report, ; of-our,.committee; on UhoVnbcessity. of 'increasing 'the number, of, members of. the ,P.C.,.drawn-,by■Dnncanj'and. amended.:.by: the .committee, '.was.':signed' by, all- the -,members,yo3Lcept'Eager,':.and; adopted ! .unanimously by. the sbciety; ,and arrangements |.nindo, l'orfts,. publication.';.. The bommittee;'was reappointed: to v carry,'out .the 'l-ecommenda-:, tions -of■.-• the .report: by.. drafting: 'a' memorial to the "superintendent', and suggesting the'best means'-of: attracting-public attention to the subject.-.....' Discussion ;as to.'public,meeting, or not: Crawford,' JjUxford, and Yule doubtful lis to expediency, and Jas. -.Wallace afraid, not enough "public, speakers., <'; . All are very much "in-earnest,{.but.unused .to be {confident of success./'So much/.the-better; their caution, with gradual'encouragement from the adherence: 'ot the.public,Vwttl produce -a better class' of ipublio/.'men'."eventually." ■,'';'•. v '.:',:■■ '•;.,., '■:

; ; :; Land.: : Prospects : and :Values,,(;. : '; ;; ; ' .".There ..{are...'6ome ..interesting'--'statements', of, ; land prospects and.yalues..i On May 28, .1891, .we : rend: "Clifford :(e.g., Mr. Charles • Clifford). is moving all.-his;-sheep from, the .'\Vairarapa. to Mot'uhau. " Ho' 'speaks strongly of tto great superiority of ..the .Matter'district '.for 6heepfarming'.:' He has also 720 abandoned for,;the after a vaui: attempt to reach', the Canterbury. Wold's route. - Cliffbvd'supposes:them to'be : 6outli of the Wdi-an-u'a.", On' Friday, March.' 16, 1855,. there'is. the entry: '"Henry Petre has, within tho last' few days, sold -his little- es.tato: at the.,'Hutt'. to Dan Riddiford for. .62300, to remain'on mortgage.of the estate at.-fl per cent for.ten years,'.or less, at .D.E.'s't option. - ; ' The'; property ' consists of U acres' of •'the'•rioliest' land -in '.tho Valley— Moleswbrth's; original clearing, garden : arid h'om'estoad—witli,:a Jiouse thiit:cost XG0O;somo years ago,'and; two small houses and a stable, alt the land laid down'; in grass, and well fenced, but. abounding.,with;docks. An excellent garden,- only.:'in part" ; subject.to flood— nirio miles, from ■ town. . I -also learned today.'from a milkman, that he bad bought two acrisc in the' town, Nos.'— an<^.—•. between the tanner}- and- the. barracks/ for*"JE2oo cacli, and . that thft,; fencing,.'breaking/, up;. drainage, and 60wing.those and a tlilrd acre, .wliich lie rents off Daniell at JBS per annum,(Cost him about .£IOO per' annum. The fencing '(2 rail and paling) stuff wiffiout nails ana putting up costs 13s. per.'rod, or 525. per chain.; -Knight hos'takon the forage contract.this year ntihalf the' sum he. got .lost year, owing, I presume, to'the'decrease, in .'the Melbourne demand."