THE COMING ELECTIONS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3238, 16 November 1881, Page 2

THE COMING ELECTIONS.

[To the Editor op the Daily Sih, —It does not require an adept in politics to fully understand the vanity of " caste" now seeking to be returned for the representation of the three electorates comprising Hawke's Bay. Hawke's Bay County may, however, be regarded as an exception to the other two, the two gentlemen standing for election being men that any electorate in the colony could well afford to be proud of—men that have hitherto been associated on the popular side of politics, and have wrought together in the House in the most cordial harmony; So that, without a preponderance of intimacy with the one . more than the other, electors will have some difficulty in arriving at conclusions as to how to record their votes. In Napier matters appear quite different. The difficulty, that electors appear to labor under is, as to whether they will or will not record their vote. Mr Buchanan, I would ask, what has he ever done for Napier, or indeed I may say any other place to entitle him to the confidence of this constituency. In the Provincial Council what did he do ? In matters that he might have done much what did he do ? In matters that he might have done much he did nothing, and in those in which, if done no good could possibly arise he proved himself a " Son of Thunder," something lof the Parnell type. His representation of the Meanee district was regarded by hiß constituency as a " sell," necessitating his making? him content with the representation of a less important district, that of Waimarama, and if in this capacity an estimate could only be formed of the time taken up by him in the Council in venting his spleen on rival speculators, who in the chase for land bargains, had proved themselves more clever than he, the cost of that little isolated district to the province was something considerable, so much in fact that the Provincial Council in its wisdom deemed it necessary to wipe it out from being a representative district. Since then Mr Buchanan, notwithstanding his mauy efforts, has been " out in the cold." In the contest for Porangahau he was defeated ; in that for Clive, against one whom be was pleased to designate ".&«■ roadman," he was defeated ;in the two recent contests for Napier country districts he has been defeated. " Virtue," it is said, " has its reward," and although neither born to greatness nor achieved it, he had greatness thrust upon him, and as nominee of Sir George Grey has held a seat on our Harbor and Waste Lands Board for some considerable time. In his position as chairman of the Harbor Board he burked tbe "breakwater scheme," and it might surprise some of your readers to hear that at tbe preliminary meeting re the construction of a " breakwater for Napier," recently held in Banner and Liddle's store, he endeavoured to lurh the question of Mr Goodall's visit. Such is a short review of Mr Buchanan's vast acts. " Where the treasure is there will the heart lie also,"' and until his treasure is more represented in Napier than at present I would look upon Mr Buchanan as an undesirable candidate. Mr McSweeney I look upon as also an unsavory morsel in the line of representation, and by what process of reasoning he has arrived at conclusions to justify him in asking the electors of Napier for their suffrages I know not. The following two lines by Robert Burns seems extremely applicable to his case — 11 Would some mighty power gie us To see our sel's as ithers see us, It would from many a blunder free us And foolish notion." Mr M'Sweeney, I understand, to be a devoted admirer of Sir George Grey, yet in his published address he shows himself antagonistic to the past deeds of Miff Buchanan, Sir George Grey's most be-^ 1 loved disciple (no blame to him for that.) He regards Mr Sheehan as " vile," and does not believe in Mr Ormond. Still, in choosing between two evils, it is always preferrable to choose the lesser, and from this point of view I am inclined to favor " Justin." It is better to have a man without views or his than a man with views detrimental to our interest. One thing appears to me certain, that it either of the gentlemen I have alluded to be elected, " a bumpkin constituency " would be a soft impeachment to cast upon Napier. I will, with your permission, give a short review of the material now standing for the representation of Waipawa in a future letter. —I am, &c, Squint. Napier, November 15, 1881.