HERE AND THERE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1303, 5 December 1911, Page 8

HERE AND THERE.

i CAMPAIGN POINTS AND PRESS COM- ; " MENTS. Maladministration in Awarua. The Christohurch "Press" lia« published ; *J e * ; t Gr fror n a Winton resident, giving details of grants of public mongy for I ; Awarua amounting to over .£IOOO, which ■ lie stated were for tho drainago of private i properties and other works not properly ; chargeable to tho Public Works l'und. J-he Press' comments as follows:—"The journalistic 'barrackers' for tho Government say, in reply, that Sir Joseph Ward tow nothing about these acts. Wo liope that, this is true, and certainly know nothing to the contrary. But could there be a more telling indictmont of tho Public Works administration of the Ward Ministry than tho fact that a sum (if ®J"r wCIOOO has been voted for works in tho Prirao Minister's electorate without tho Prime Minister knowing anything about it?. Is this an indication of what Koes on in other constituencies? Parliawent as a- whole lias no means of knowin<* i whether works for which grants are made ! are legitimate subjects for tho expenditure W pubhc money, and tho rate at which : tho votes are rushed through prevents them . irom being discussed or properly . considered, even if members were inclined to question them. The public, however ' > riA'lit to expect that Ministers will exercise sumo supervision ovor the expenditure, and at least see that public money : Defit ° f privilto in " Air. Durbridgs's Misfortune. rnmoui;. seems to have got abroad that Mr. iJurbridgos failuro to nominate for .Motneka w by arrangement with the lion. 1.'.. A. konzio. By advertisement in the JVclsnn papers Mr. Durbridge gives this statement an omphalic denial; and expresses regret that his nomination, which was posted by registered letter from Collingwood, was not in the hands of.the returning,.officer before the appointed time. Jlr. Durbridgo thanks the electors who hail, promised him their support, and intimates that ho will contest the seat against all comers at tho next election. 1 ortunately there is another Iteform candidate, Jlr. K. Smith. Retrenchment. The "Hawke's Bay Herald" says: "Tho Liberal party and press are making a Krcat deal of capital out of the fact that in 1888—after a series of bad years accentuated by the reckless finance of a ?hl'°n -v S- u I °sel) Government— the Opposition effected what tho Liberals themipe yes had proposed to effect, and reduced the salaries of Civil Servants Is that any worso than turning on tho street oft cere, whose combined salnries represented a quarter of a million? That is what hir Joseph Ward did in 1909. On tho whole we think it was'worse than a reduction of salaries all round. cers thus ejected have not been replaced 1!™!°"? li o u [ prosperity has been recovered, and although out administration years ago." 0 "" y thnn U did three Goaded Beyond Endurance. "Chronicle" remarks tiin, Ae» Zoalandcrs do not take the pride m their first Tiamnet which Sir > tZ?A «• 1 7 P T. lr ,' 1 , tl,0 >' shn »'<' and M 0 1 f,t ' ,,( ' on s «' p pf the po'N 111 , F. r! ' wen a vast change in puhlie opinion. It it not only obvious in wanMnm alone. Ilere it is not to be woiMored at. far fh«? officious nnr ] crat-R method of Departmental heads at tin- <a>at of Oov«rimienl li.ive goaded in th". mini? beyond all endurance. The •Mm fie« is. th" public is tired of Sir •' v - I'M.- Bnronet and has nn oonr ' : n his Government. If Sir Joseph y,,,-„ rP to come to Wangaimi. he /'cret a very doubtful welcome. There ■■••• ! iimViubMly ly> a crowded house, ■is in other places, tho enthusiasm appearance would bo Bomowhat ■'x'ed." VV-; it Irrelevant? The Hon. J). Buddo, speaking of the A.™(ration Act the other night, hoped it would never bo abolished, liecaiv of the niniiint of suffering caused by strikes. He had himself to go down the wharf during tin;., maritime strike, and take off his coat and work. Subsequently he was asked how lie squared that with his profession of sympathy for tho working man, who had gone on strike for tetter wages. He replied by saving that tho was irrelevant!--' Evening News.

Making a Surplus. It did not require ft wizard of financo to produce a surplus (said Mr. G. Hunter at Pukurnu) if a largo portion of that surplus was derived from extra taxation, from easting additional burdens on the shoulders of tho jieople, from increased railway Charges, increased stamp duties, and incneascci taxation on the totalizator. By tho (Customs Act Amendment Act of W59, one per cent, additional duty vas placed on tobacco, the same oil cigar.*, tho samo oil cigarettes, and 2i per cent, on all other dutiable articles. This tax had been called the surtax, and expired on March ill last, but the surplus of 191011 was added to by the increased burdens placed iipon the people'by it. Waipawa's "Liberal" Candidate. Tho Napier "Daily Telegraph," though a strong supiKirtcrs of tho Government, is not at all pleased with the Ministerial (•aiulidatcf or Waipawa. "Wo must confess," says the "Telegraph," "to something more than uneasiness and more misgiving concerning Mr. A. E. Jull's professions of Liberalism and sympathy with the Democracy. They do not ring true. Threa years ago Mr. J till made very similar professions to tho electors _ of Hawke's Bay, but, doubting his sincerity, they scouted and sjiurned them, and gave tlieir emphatic preference to other candidates. However, Mr. Jul! is not easily dismayed. Tie has coma.smilingly up_ to the scratch again, this timo in the Waipawa electorate, protesting plausibly and glibly that he is a staunch Liberal nnd that his heart is throbbing with sympathy for the small settler and the working man. Wo are anxious, out of our concern for the success of the Government at the polls, to believe that these professions arc sincere. Mr. Jull's own public record, howover, is calculated to givo them a direct contradiction. We say without hesitation that Mr. JnllV sympathies are more with the large landowner than with tho small settlor or the working man. . . . Wo are satisfied, from his Harbour Board record,' of his warm attachment to tho interests of the wealthy owner of broad acres." "A Most Excellent Reason." Thus tho Wanganui "Chronicle": —"If there is ono man more than' another in New Zealand whose presence in the Houso,of Representatives would prove particularly objectionable to Sir Joseph Ward and his colleagues, that man is Mr. George Hutchison. That, surely, is a most excellent reason why every free and independent elector of Wanganui should vote for Mr. Hutchison." If Mr. Massey Had Been in Power. "Electors may fairly ask themselves (says the "Otago Daily Times") whether it is not possible that, if the Opposition and not tho Government had been in power during tho past live years, quite as much might havo been done iii the direction of making advances to settlers and of promoting closer settlement as has been dono by the Ministry. They know at any rate that the land for settlements policy has in some measure broken down, and that the expenditure upon the purchase of estates has in recertt years been a dwindling quantity; and they know that the Oppositions plan of providing the funds for tho object of promoting closer settlement would not involve any large borrowing from the Mother Country or any such drain upon the resources of the Dominion,for the. payment of interest as is necessarily incidental, to the maintenance of a heavy borrowing policy. And,' when the appeal is made to them for support for tho Government by roason of- the operation of the system of advances to workers, they need not be reminded that the Government has no .patent rights in conncction with the institution of that policy, to the inauguration of which they were, as a matter of fact, spurred on by Mr. Massey." That Flag. "Mr. Robert M'Nab in his new role is only interesting as the head of a company which is about to sell on the best terms it can the freehold of some 53,000 acres. He can scarcely after this recommend the leasehold without an option. ■ The flag he 'nailed to tho mast''five years'ago iy too tattered .and decayed for further use." —Wanganui "Chronicle." Not Very Happy. ( Tho "Mataura Ensign" observes that Sir Joseph Ward, in his spcech at Gore,' was not very happy in his reference to the Imperial Conlerence. "The Blue Book containiug a complete record of What took place at the Conference has "now. been-'published and we commend a perusal of its pages to these who have been deluded, into tho belief that the services of tho Prime Minister thero redounded to his or our credit. From tho very first motion Sir Joseph Ward found himself in a hopeless minority of one and to use the expressive comment of that keen student of Imperial questions, Mr. G. M. Thomson, M.P., he made 'a perfect exhibition' of himself. His proposals were brushed aside as utterly impracticable. Ono of tho weightiest British journals, the 'Contemporary Review,' referring to tho Conference, says: 'Sir Joseph Ward throughout alone represented the crude spirit of Imperialism, and found himself as a voice crying in the ■wilderness. His ' eagerness to substitute for. the existing elasticity and tho freedom of relations. between this country and the oversea Dominions an elaborate and crystallised machinery of control was brushed, aside with emphatic and almost contemptuous unanimity.'" Exactly! Tho "Rangitikei Advocate" has pointed out the remarkable approprintiveness of the line with which tho Ministerial paper at Wanganui headed an article on tho Premiers political pilgrimage—"A Campaign of Abuse." How He Feels. "Ono of the surest signs that the party in iKiwer js_ growing apprehensive about the result of tho elections is to Le found in tho increasing irritability and querulousncss of tho Prime Minister. It is hardly possiblo to opon a newspaper nowadays without finding somo tie.sh evidence that the elections are affecting Sir Joseph's nerves. When ho passed t£n ugh Gore on his way to Awarua ho was bubbling over with high spirits and bonhomie. No one was so ready as he for a jest, and he simply ridiculed the efforts of the Reform Party directed at the overthrow of his Administration. Siaco then he has been acquiring knowledge nt first hand of tho revulsion of feeliug against the Government, and is beginning to realise for the first time that even in Awarue. he will have to fight hard to letain his seat. Nearly all his Ministers arc placed in the same predicament, and tho indications lead one to believe that the Government will bo lucky if it can command a working majority after tho elections aro over.' —"Mataura Ensign." ! The Dairy School Promise. Mr. Btiick was asked at his Terrace End meeting: "If the action of the Government in promising a dairy school for Palmerstou North, and then withdrawing it for a subsequent election and again making the promise, was not Tammanyism what was it?" Mr. Buick stated lie had no hesitation in giving tho question up, but it was; one of the most disgraceful things ever done. The Ashburton Puzzle. As far as wo ("Christchurch News") have been able to discover, no one knows who the official Government candidate in Ashburton really is. Tho local paper is running Mr. Maslin, who has turned his coat, the Christchurch Government organ appears tn favour Mr. Kennedy, while Mr. J. M'Lachlan considers he has better claims than either to the Government support, in spite of the fact that tho Dunedin "Evening Star" has called loudly on Sir Joseph Ward to disavow Air. M'Lachlan lest tho party should suffer by his association with it. Perhaps Sir James Carroll will settle tho matter, otherwiso his appearance in the district will bo futile in tho extreme. Alleged Independence. There is, apparently, a great similarity in tho "independence" of some candidates. It consists in tho disappearance of all independence at tho critical point. Mr. G. Armstrong, who is standing as an Independent Liberal for Ellesinere, was asked at. his meeting at Dunsaudel oil Tuesday night, how he would vote in tho event of a no-confidcnco motion being moved by Mr. Massey. "I would vote for the Government," replied the candidate.- "Where is your independence?" his questioner linked. "I think you said that you would vote tor measures, not men?" From this pointed shaft the candidate took refuge in stating that the Government had dono moro for the country than tho Opposition. Considering that it has been in jwjwcr for twenty years, it should have.

"Liberal" Tactics. According to tho "Wnipiikurau Press," it is being widely represented to tin: voters in that district In; tho henchmen of tho quasi-Liberal candidate that if ho is elected the Gorge bridges, which have long been a matter of speculation, will become "tin fait accompli." The "I're.-s" says: "The bridges referred to arc public wants, and if built v.-odil be a benefit to the town and district, and when they come they should come regardless of the political "tenets of the representative of the district. It is often urged by those who ale jealous of the welfaro of their district that if they return a member who does not see eye to eye with the_ Ministerial nai f y thai theii district will be neglected in tho matter of Government grants. We do not know that thin is «o, but if it is it surely carries with it the implication that the wants of the people are not being administered without piejudice, and that tho sooner there is a chango in favour of n. fairer and mtre honest administration the bettor will be the condition of the people as a whole." The Lost Mana. The day has gono by when the mana of the Liberal party was sufficient to ensure a candidate's return. Liberalism has been prostituted to the gratification of personal aspirations, and the country is paying the price that the non-as=ertion of it.s rights has entailed.—"Pelorus Guardian." The Hydro-Electric Scheme. Speaking of tho Government hydroelectric scheme at Brooklyn last night, Mr. Barber said that it would be of immense benefit to tho country, and the use of the power in factories would diminish tho smoke nuisance in the cities. The Government would also sell tho power for lighting and food preparation purposes. Mr, Fisher To-night, To-night the Town Hall will again be the centre of interest in the election fight in this city, for Mr. F. M. B. Fisher wMI deliver his bet'ore-the-battlo speech. Warned, by the experience of last night, when the Hall filled almost as sonn as the doors opened for tho combined Reform rally, to the {disappointment of thousands .who arrived in what tliey | fancied would be good time, the public will bo pretty sure to take special care to_ get on tho scene early to-niglit. Mr. Fisher' has threatened to deal frankly with "the wobbler," which, in tho hands of so able a platform speaker, can become an intensely entertaining topic. It is worthy of note, by the way, that last night's meeting in tho Town Hall was only the third really big and enthusiastic political demonstration held there. The last one comparable with it 'was the meeting addressed by Mr. Massey some months ago. The other—the first —was a meeting addressed by Mr. Fisher when seeking election ill 1905. On that occasion he was thought to be doing rather a bold thing in taking the big hall, but the audience completely filled the building. f Consumption of a Kind. Mr. Barber, in quoting taxation figures at Brooklyn last night, said that the duty on ladies' furs had increased by somo -E2OOO in the last ten years. This he explained was not due to the tax being raised, but to a larger "consumption of tho article." The New Eloquence. A correspondent gives the "Hot Lakes Chronicle" his impressions of the Prime Minister's speech at Rotorua:— "Instead of hearing the weighty, dignified words of a responsible statesman, I listened to a tirade of cheap abuse of opponents, and a recital of purely hypothetical wrongs. Every adjective that tho dictionary could supply, and some that it could not, were used in inveighing against his political enemies. Tho personal pronoun, first person singular, was the reciting noto of his lament. Having heard tho speech of Mr. Hemes oil the Tuesday before, with its dignified restraint and clear-cut, concise summingup of the Reform policy of the Opposition, the reply of the Prime Minister astonished and grieved me. The best wish that I can give the Government's candidate for this electorate is that he may bo saved from the indiscretions of his powerful friends. The wholo speech of Sir Joseph Ward was an insult to the intelligence of his audience, and his jibes to intorjectors and his cheap pun on Mokau, wa,3 unworthy of a third-class street orator." , I The Dairy Farmers' "Happy" Lot. The Liberal candidate for Wellington Centra], Mr. R. Fletcher, has a quaint idea ot the dairy farmers' lot. The dairv farmer to-day, he said at bis meeting Inst night, is one of the happiest men in tho community. All ho has to do is to look atter his cows and get his milk to the factory. He was then Jinished. Ward, and That's All. An elector asked Mr. J. O. Jameson, Reform candidate for Avon, what the present Government was? Was it Conservative, Liberal, or Socialist, or what? Mr. Jameson replied that all he could call it was the Ward Government. Eight Reasons. Mr. W. Jemmett, in a letter to tho . Manawatu Standard," gives tho follow">S pithy reasons why he will not vote for Mr. N'Nab: (1) Because he will sup- ; port a weather-cock and wobbly Government; (2) because he supports a Government, that takes no action against trusls and combines; (3) a Government that fai yours secret inquiries; (-1) a Government that plays into the hands of land speculators; (5) a Government that is nowhere on the land question-the most important of all; (6) a Government that has no sympathy with us workers except in their election speeches and who would turn again and rend us" if we woro fools enough to send them back; (7) a Government that is a spoils-to-the-victors bovernment (wo had evidence of this re-c-entty); (8) a reckless and extravagant Government in regard to borrowing. One of the Urgent Reasons. There are a dozen reasons whv tho country should try a change of Government at this juncture, but perhaps the most ureent reasons (says the Christchurch Press )is that it is timo an end was put to the rotten system of Public Works expenditure which is plunging this country up to the neck in debt without securing any adequato return for tho money- expended. A Big Proposition. In appealing for support at tho polls on Thursday next, Mr. I{. Fletcher last night admitted frankly his estimate of the steel ot his opponent, Mr. I-'. M B J'isner. "I am up against one of'the biggest propositions in New Zealand," said Mi. I'letcucr, and I ask you to give mo all the help possible on Thursday." Worst-paid Service in the Country. Labour had been very badly handled bv the Ward Administration, said Mr F Munro, Independent Labour candidate' for Buller. The railway service was absolutely tho worst paid in the country. Men were working for practically Bs. per dav He had had occasion to see to somo labour in connection with Stockton work nnd they paid 10s. a day, but the railway men working close to them were paid only Bs. Tho Government should pay the standard wages ruling in the district. The Government were too busy high living, looking after baronetcies 'to keep in touch with Labour. Up at Oroualun men were getting ss. lOd. a day, and inst on election timo they rushed lie moniber direct, and lie graciously sent a telc<T>-im away to get an increase. The Gove.'nm.mt convicted itself by its own neglect. The Two-million Mistake. In the course of his speech at Waimate, Mr. J. Allen had pointedly stated that ho had seen tho prepared speeches issued to Government candidates by the Liberal organiser in Wellington, and that tlice speeches contained tho tables of figure!) showing it ho National Debt a.s originally contained in the incorrect Budgot, Although the Financial Statement tables had been duly corrected at his instance. as shown, the poor Government candidates were using the prepared tables that were inaccurate by .£2,000,000. The Hutt Seat. Attempts are still being made in some (inarters, it is reported, to represent that Mr. Short is not tho Reform partv's candidate. for the Hutt seat. Mr. Short is advocating the Reform policy, and lie h is been recognised by the party as the bearer of the Reform flag in the contest

A Candidate and His Friends. Tho "Charleston Herald." in n report <>t an address by Mr. Colvin, cx-M.l'. nnd Government eamlidale for linllcr, has the following:—When he (Mr. (,'idvin) hud anything to give away he always gave it; 10 his friends. A father-in-law'hail gono 011 sotiki job, and a son-in-lmv applied to be put on in nis place, but as he was oppe-ed lo All-. Colvin he would do nothing for him. A man, said Mr. I'olvin, should always stick to his friend'-. . . . Mr. George Powell, who had taken notes nf Mr. (,'olvin's speech, said he thought .Mr. Colvin could not have meant, wiiat ho said, nnd read what he had lakea down in regard lo the father-oiim-son-hi-law incident. Mr. Colvin said ho meant what ho said. .Mr. George I'owell: Do you mean to say, in your public capacity, you would be so grossly unfair as io distinguish between supporters and up|Kinents? Mr. Colvin: 1 always stick to my friends. He's 110 man thai does not. Mr. Powell: Toil are unfit for your job. I would not be unkind enough to mako uso of your speech against you. Bleeding the Small Farmer. In regard to tho Mokau scandal, fays tho "Mataura Ensign," that famous ileal can lie passed over with brief mention: It does not matter a straw what was tho iKilitical colour of the man on whoso behalf the Government issued the Order-in-Council. The point: is that tho Government has declared itself to be in Iho lido of the small farmer against tlie speculator and in this instance it enabled a horde of speculators to bleed tho suntl farmer. Where Do the People Stand. Where did tho people of New Zealand stand after 20 years under Liberal administration?' asked Mr. Veitcli, Labour candidate at Wanganui. Wages had increased 22 per cent., wliilo the cost of living had gono up 27 per cent., so that, in reality, tho people were 5 per cent, worse off than they were 20 years ago. The reason for this was to be found in the evil' influence of monopolies and flu taxation of the people for public works. He could show that tho legislation of the last few years had done nothing to provide a remedy. The main plank of the Liberal platform was said to be the burstup of big estates, and yet, after their long term in power, land monopoly was still a crying evil. Tho only way to combat this position was by an aggressive policy, and that of the Government had not been such. Commercial monopoly was to bo'seen on every hand, and in consequence the pricc of living had gone up. Excessive borrowing had cost the people much; in fact the "added interest'ou loans engineered by the Ward Government, amounted to four and a quarter millions annually. Could anyone wonder- that the cost of living had increased with such an additional sum going out of the country every year? Wanted—Justice and Freedom. Mr. Georgo Bishop, Reform candidate for Nelson, in a speech at Wakefield, took exception to the Hon. R. M'Kenzie's remarks that it was important for tho people of. tho district that there should be united representation,, and that it was no uso electing members who disagreed with each other politically. No matter what party was returned Mr. Bishop said they had a right to expect justice, to be a free people and to be independent. Divergent Views. The "Eketahtina Express" says: "There wad recently an endeavour to criticise the attitude of certain of tho Reform party candidates in not being absolutely unanimous on all planks, of the party 's land policy, and their attitudes, it was .mist bo bewildering to the electors. Now the land question is a very big one, and it would bo an impossibility ti secure a set of candidates who wero r.t unanimity on all points of a complex subject. It follows there must bo divergencies of opinion in matters of detail. But the curious part is fastening these differences on to the Opposition, lor downright divergence of views nothing in creation could touch the present Liberal pa.-ty, nnd drawing tho line closer the prosen? -Liberal Ministry. There aro freeholders,' land Rationalisers, land confiscatory siagle taxers, and what not nil mixed up in inextricable confusion. Iu comparison ivith these the Reform party members present a perfect phalanx of opinion." Concerning Mr. Isitt. I'' 1 ";' the Wellington correspondent of tho Chnstchurcli "livening News" under last Saturday's date:—"Last night die Evening Post,' which Government journals have lately quoted, when occasion suited, with great glee, took off the gloves lo deal with Mr. Isilt's attack on Mr. Massey, and it tore liim to ribbons." A Falsa Prophet. "It may be remembered," says the Dannevirke News," "that before the last general election, Mr. Robert M'Nab predicted that the Opposition would be swept out, of existence. Mr. JlTsab proved a falso prophet. He was himself retoJ,rivah! life while every member ot the Opposition held his seat, and the constituencies considerablv increased Mr Mas'ey's ranks. . . . He would bo a loolish Minister indeed who would ask the people to beliovo that the Opposition will bo swept out nf existence on this occasion. The vital question at stake !''r" ot r V R "/.° " le Opposition, but the ine of tho Government." "The Heir Presumptive." Mr. Fleming, Reform candidate for Jnvercargill, remarked in a recent speech that it was very significant of discord in the Government family party that Mr. Millar should havo felt it necessary to publicly voice his claim to the reversionary interest in the Prime Ministership. He announced himself at his recent meeting in Dunedin ns the Heir Apparcnt-I>erhaps Sir Joseph WaTd would consider Heir Presumptive a botter designation. (Loud laughter.) But what of the new knight, Sir John Find- ; l ;' . I(: ~ r as generally believed that ho had resigned his comfortable quarters in the dignified repose of the upper House owing to an ambition to h i tho Prime Minister's shoes when the latter was tired of wearing them, ami Mr. Millar s announcement in Duncdin- must have given Sir John's knightly and humanitarian soul a nastv iar (Laughter.) Surely both of them' wero very wrong to ignore the claims of Sir laihoa Carroll.- 1 For the Whole People. Mr. Fleming, who is meeting with much encouragement at stated at a recent meeting that lie stand as a staunch supporter of the "Political Eeiorni party." He was not in anv sense or degree, to use the Old World term, a "Conservative." If his partv were so labelled—and they had been—it was a libel on a party which stood four square for the people, the whole of the people, and nothing but the people. Danger to the "Faithful," Mr. Witty, in Ricc-arton, is having the fight of his political career, the 'Chief Government Whip is meeting with opposition in Christchurch South that is making las reappointment to that post, even if tho present Government is in a position to make any appointments after ihe election, a matter of consideiable doubt, and in I-ytteltou Mr. Laurenson is finding that his contest with Mr. Colin Cook is nothing in the least resembling a walk-over. It is surely significant that the most faithful satellites of Sir Joseph Ward are in danger of being among (lie missing after the battle—'Tress." "Up Against It." The fact is pretty obvious to anyone of average intellect (says the Invercargill correspondent of the Christchurch "News"), that the Right Honourable Sir Joseph Ward, Bart., has had a vcv real and disturbing fright. It is possible that he is really more frightened than he needs to be. ' Nevertheless, there can bo no doubt that Awarua this timo is not his for the asking, and. that unless he holds in his hand some cards more nearly resembling trumps than any be has vet played, ho is likely, in the language' of the - street corner, to liiul himself very seriously up against it on December 7. If tlio Prime Minister does win (and by reason of his position ho carries the heavier guns) tho election will at least have served to show how strong the Opposition feeling is in the electorate that lias always been supposed to be tho soul and body, the political property, of the party whoso head and front is that electorate's representative. Particularly interesting should be the voting in Winton and Blulf, the two centres of the electorate with which the Prime Minister has been . most intimately associated.

Mr. Duick on Limitation. 11l I hit rimivi' nf a :imjiv-"ful s|kmt|i ill Ton-are I'.nd In.-! week Mr. I). ISiiirl'. dealt with Hid i|iie.:l ion of liiiiiliilinii pf area. Il<i did lint thiol; I lie l.n i;e bui'lowner i>a:-i a great inrcs'.ily lo New Zealand. M was only u miiiill nuinlry, with jamd land nnd a. Knoil .climate. It was his opinion, lliereluie, that Iho area should lm limited to Ihe extent 01, siy, lino neros of lirsl-elaKi land, and secondclass land ill properl ion, alt hough bin parly had not yet gone folly into lln; question of the exact amount of Ihe limitation. At Ihe same time, it a mini went on Hie land, be hnil lis much light to improve his condition as the man in business; ho should be allowed Ihe opporlunity of placing himself in a .fairly comfortable position. No man should be lied down to a small holding of Ml acres; he should Ixi allowed In place himself in a tolerably good position, as, after having lived Oil the land for Ihe greater pari, uf his life, he would not know much about any other business. The Nelson Scat. Thero is no nominated Reform candidate contesting the Nelson seat, allhoiigh thero aro two candidates, .Messrs. Thompson and Bishop, Oppositionists (says the. correspondent of (lie Clirislcliurch "News"). Many Oppositionists, as well as Government supporters, are forwarding file candidatnTC of .Mr.' Atmore (Independent Liberal). This is as rorlain as an election prediction can possibly Ik-—that Mr. Altnore will bo elected by a large majority, and if is not unlikely that he wjll go in on tin; first liallot, although there aro four candidates opposing him. The Government nominee hits no chance whatever. Mr. Atmore, whilst supporting tho Government's Liberal measures, is much opposed lo the Administration, and he would advocnte reforms such ns placing tlie Civil Service nnd all Government works beyond the reach of political control, an elective Gpper House, a proper efatement of the public accounts, so that any clector could see just where every penny of the people's money has been spent. Maori Freeholds—Pakeha Rcntpayers. The "Manawatu Evening Standard" points lo "an clement of humour in tho illogic of the position taken up by the Government in its dealings with the Native and tho European. For years tho Administration has been refusing to listen to the demand for the freehold for the white man, and all tho time it has been carefully encouraging tho Maori landlord. It evidently prefers a European rentpayer nnd a Native freeholder. If the Maoris were similarly taxed, and were subject to tho same restrictive.legislation which is placed on the Europeans there would bo hardly so much cause for complaint, for . there would then to somo approach to justice. But at present the Maori is hedged round by all sorts of protective influences, for which he pays not a penny. . The policy adopted is certainly storing up for posterity a problem which will cause much heartburning, and for this generation is proving a stumblingblock to tho land-seeker and a millstone round the country's neck." Orders-in-Council. "Wo have too much legislation by Order-in-Council," said Mr. It. Moore, who is giving Mr. Buddo a run at Kaiapoi. "That means that the Government, or a Minister, with his colleagues, can givo effect to what they desire, which might not be the intention of the legislature, nor might it meet with the wishos of tho people. We have gono to tho very extreme in this question, and it is time tho power given to tho Government by means of Order-in-Council was curtailed.'' Auckland Prospects. Mr. Martin, Opposition organiser, speaking to a "Manawatu Standard" representative, stated that the opinion was freely expressed that Mr. Dickson was going to win the Parnell seat. Ho said, further, that he could not name a single seat ill the Auckland province which was held by an Opposition member at present, that they were likely to lose. A Pahiatua Rumour Disposed of. A statement has been circulated in the Pahiatua electorate that Mr. Escntt, tho Reform candidate, had voted against limitation of area at various tonferencos of ;the Farmers' Union. The secretary of tho Palmerston branch of the union has, however, stated, in reply to an inquiry , from Pahiatua, that Mr. 13scott had upon every occasion voted for limitation, which is one of the main planks of the uuion.