THE RESULT OF THE ELECTIONS.

Evening Post, Volume XXII, Issue 137, 10 December 1881, Page 2

THE RESULT OF THE ELECTIONS.

The great electoral battle is over, and the eighth Parliament of New Zealand is elected for its three years' term of office. So far as the Wellington elections are concerned, the results may be pronounced on the whole satisfactory. Mr. Levin and Mr. C. JohnBton are both thoroughly representative member?, who may be trusted to "pull together" most; cordially, while may be hoped that Mr. Hutchison will "run Btraighter " in the future than in the past, now that he has two suoh sound colleagues. Mr. Mason's re-election shows that his constituents approve his past action in the House. Mr. Beetham's services had fairly earned his return, and the energy displayed by Mr. Buchanan in important rural matters has evidently inspired the Wairarapa electors with a high opinion of his capacity as a representative. Tho return of Mr. Wilson for Foxton by so large a majority over his five opponents, demonstrates an equally favourable opinion on the part of his conotituents. Both Mr. Wilson and Mr. Bu«hanan are new to politics, and have yet to show what metal they are made of. The rejection of Sir William Fox for Rangitikei in favour of Mr. Stevens is not altogether a surprise. It remains to be teen whether the electors have made a wise choice. Ihe defeat of Mr. Ballance by Mr. Watt iva3 also not qnite unexpected, unless possibly by the former gentleman. The two remaining Wellington provincial electorates, Manawatu and Waitotara, it will be remembered, returned two Ministers, Mr. Walter Johnston and Mr. Betcb, unopposed. Thus of the eleven Wellington seats, eight have returned staunch Ministerialists, two '"Independents" with leanings toward the Government, and one (Mr. Hutchison) who has hitherto voted with the Opposition. Mr. Levin has secured the honour of heading the poll for all New Zealand, having scored a larger number of votes than any other candidate in any part of the Colony. Glancing ovtr the lists of successful and unsuc essful aspirants, the firat consideration whioh strikes one very forcibly is the extraordinarily large number of prominent politicians who are " left out in the cold " Mr Ormond is rejected by a substantial majority, bir W. Fox, an exPremier, i-j thrown out by two votes only, and Mr. Ballancb, the ex-Colonial Treasurer, by only four. Mr. Reader Wood, an ex-Minister and the most brilliant orator in the late Parliament, is beaten by nearly three to ono by Mr. J. A. Tole, a very mild young lawyer. Mr. Bunny, one of AVellington's oldest and most experienced public servants, is superseded by a gentleman new to fame. Mr. J. C. Richmond, a distinguished ex-Minister, is beaten by nearly two to ono by Mr. J. Shephard, one of the Nelsoa stonewallers. Mr. J. T. Fisher and Mr. J. W. Thomson, who were respectively Postmaster-General acd Minister for Landß in the Gret Government, are also among the rej°cted, and so is Mr. E. Wakefield, who lately waß regarded as a certain coming Minister. Mr. Seymour, the Chairman of Committees ia the late Parliament, the Hon. E. Richardson, the best Minister of Public Works New Zealand ever had, and Mr. Saunders, another old and experienced politician, are all relegated to private life. Among the useful, if not brilliant, members of the late Parliament >vho have also lost their seats may be mentioned Captain Russell, Messrs. Bain, Reeves, Gibbs, Reid (Hokitika), Hirst (Wallace), Bastings, Murray, and Downie Stewart. Happily, some of the notorious nuisances and "wind-bags" who afflicted the last Parliament, are also among the missing. From Dr. Wallis, Mr. Speight, IVlr. Andrews, Mr. J. W. Thomson, and Mr. London, the chief boras' of the House, we are at la3t blissfully delivered, and public business will benefit accordiugly. We are further happily spared the return of Mr. Rees, who was formerly perhaps the '' borest" of all. Of the members who had seats in the preceding Parliament no fewer than 41 will be missing next session. Of these, however, 14 did not present themselves for re-election, and one is deceased . On the other hand, Beveral formerly j well-known names which had temporarily disappeared once more come to the front. Mr. Bathgate, Mr. Wason, Mr. Steward, Mr. J. Evans Brown, Mr. Seaton, Mr. Watt, Mr. Joyce, and Mr. Feldwick all had seats in previous Parliaments, but not in that just expired Surveying tho roll of tha new Parliament, it is by no means easy to classify the members into parties, bnt, so far as we can judge, the 91 European members may be classed &s starting roughly as follows: — Certain supporters of tho Governmental; certain Opposition, 34; Independent or Doubtful, mostly with leaning's toward Ministers, 13. It depends, therefore, on the action of the last class whether the result of the general election will prove to have strengthened tho position of tho Government or otherwise.

A large crowd assembled outside the offices of the Evening Post last night, in order to await the results of tbe elections throughout the colony, which were posted up immediately they were received. At one time the crush was so great that there was some fear of the windows giving way under the pressure, and it was doubtful whether the office would not have to be closed. The keenest excitement prevailed during the evening as the various returns were posted up. There was a good deal of cheering as the result of each of the city elections was made known. Considerable excitement was also manifested when it was known that Mr. Ballance had been defeated for Wanganui. The returns from Selwyn were naturally awaited with much interest, and there was quite a storm of mingled cheera and groans when it was known that the Premier had been re-elected. A similar demonstration took place when it was ascertained that Sir G. Grey was again to make his appearance in the House next session. Perhaps the most fervent outbreak of enthusiasm took place when a telegram arrived notifying that Dr. Wallis— the chief of " Parliamentary bores" — had been relegate! to the bottom of the poll at Auckland City West. Almost equa^y hearty was the expression of popular thankfulness when it was known that another "'plugless wordspout," Mr. Speight, had also been sent back to obscurity. We should add that excellent arrangements were made by the manager of the United Press Association and the telegraph authorities to ensure tho results of the various elections being known as early as possible. The Government readily placed the services of the returning officers and telegraphists at the disposal of the Association to secure this end, and the result was highly satisfactory. Never has J there been such a ru3h of work at the Wellington Telegraph Office a3 occurred last njsrht between 7 and 10 o'clock, notwithstanding which the telegraphing was done without a single hitch and with the greatest despatch. A quantity of reading matter will be found on the fourth page of the Evening Post to-day. Mr. Thomas Kebbell, J.P., presidsd at the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning. Richard Hudson, a previous offender, was fined ss. for drunkenness. There was no other business. A lad named Alfred Chote, a resident of Alpha-slreet, met with a slight accident last evening. He was ran over by Mr. Charles Johnston's carriage on Fitzherberc Terrace. The Hon. Kandall Johnson observed the accident, and caused the lad to be taken into his house, where he received the kindest attention. Later on he was conveyed home. His injuries are not of a serious nature. Mr. S. f imino was the recipient last evening of a very handsome present to commemorate his onnection with the Wellington Naval Brigade Band, of which he i 3 bandmaster. The present consisted of a valnable go.dmounted baton, bearing an appropriate inscription. Mr. Ciinino was the bandmaster of the Artillery Band, which subsequently became attached to the Naval Brigade. A large number of medals have just been executed, by Mr. Hislop, jeweller, to the order of the Wairarapa Agricultural Association. They are a good specimen of local industry, having been manufactured at Mr. Hislop's establishment. There are seven gold and twelve silver medals, the former being about the size of a sovereign, bat rather heavier, and the latter about the size of half-a-crown, all suitably engraved. They weve competed for at the show held at Carter ton last month, and cannot fail to give full satisfaction to the winners. Some parcels of linen for the Wellington Hospital have been thankfully received from Miss Angarde and " A Friend."

A yacht race for a cup, presented by Mr. Kohn, and a sweepstake of 103 each, was started at 2.17 thia afternoon, but there was every prospect of the breeze failing and the race being spoiled. The following yachts started :— Pet, Ida, Garibaldi, Red Jacket, Thetis, Flirt, Minehaha, and Wave. The course was round Somes and Ward Islands — a distance of some twelve miles. The Wave got the best of the start, followed by the Ida, Red Jacket, Flirt, and Thetis, the others bringing up a good distance in the rear. The little fleet presented a very pretty picture, with its press of canvas and the ever changing position of the boats. Messrs. Davis, Richards, and Hod wood, of this city, have ju3t completed arrangements for starting in the Hawera district a saah and door factory. Having purchased a section of land near the railway Btation there, they intend to erect a large two-st r ry factory. The necessary machinery has been arranged for, and Messrs. Luke, fons, and and Williams are making the boiler and engine for the firm, who intend to manufacture doors, sashes, mouldings, and all kinds of ornamental woodwork. The Rev. H. B. Redstone announces that he will preach a temperance sermon tomorrow evening, in the Free Methodist Church, on ""ihe bitterness of strong I drink." 1 : 'Kerry Gow" was repeated at the Theatre Royal last night. To-night the sensational play, '' It's never too late to mend," will be placed on the stage. We understand the company have been making preparations for the successful production of the play. Mrs. Morgan, the mother of the young girl who was committed to gaol the other day for vagrancy, has called at our office to Btate that the representation that ehe is a well-known criminal is untrue. In addition to the more serious grounds of congratulation at the arrest of the Maori prophet, Te Whiti, and his safe custody under lock and key (says the Australasian), there is stron? reason for satisfaction that those long, perplexing, misty, and mystic Panhaka speeches have come to an end. Those wonderful discourses were gradually but certainly reducing the intellect of the colony to despair, and to the brink of lunacy. That nobody could understand them is shown by the circumstance that one highly competent authority would pronounce that a speech "had a highly pacific tendency," while another pundit equally learned in Maori lore would pronounce that its " warlike tone was unmistakable." The result of all this was that the intellect of the colony was engaged in puzzling over the last of those bewildering harangues, finding no end, in wandering mazes lost, till the inexhaustible prophet was ready with a new and equally confounding one. 'I his unhappy state of things might, bo far as Te Whiti is concerned, have gone on for ever, his capacity of producing those oratorical webs being apparently unlimited, but on the part of the ' colony it became necessary to put a stop to it. On that side madness evidently lay, and if there had been no other justification for the armed suppression of the Parihaka doings, those speeches, and the dreary fascination they exercised over investigating minds, afforded ample. The following is from the Melbourne Leader :—" One William Drake, a bookmaker, late of New Zealand, was prosecuted on Thursday last at the District Court for assaulting Mr. Frank Pierpoint, of the Victorian ring, when Drake was fined £o and 40a co^ts. Wh«nce they came and who they are we know not, bnt a more ill-advised lot of scoundrels than those additions to the ring we observed at the late V.ft C. meeting it would be difficult to cull from any country. We cannot vouch for the correctness of the statement, but to every enquiry made the response was, ' From New Zealand.' " The Australasian is strongly of opinion that Mr. Bryce'3 exclusion of the Press correspondents from Parihakd-was a mistake. The duty of the newspaper to the public (says our contemporary) is quite as clear and, we may add. ns imperative as that of the Minister or commander. It is bound to lurnish the fullest and earliest information it can on important subjects, and if this cannot be done with official sanction it will, as in the Parihaka case, be done without it. We can understand that in some positions secresy may be nece a sary, but tho Parihaka one could hardly be of thia kind. Po that tho result was that Mr. Bryce offended and affronted the newspaper men, and, so far as we can judge, without anyreason. Thia seems an error on public grounds; it is certainly ono on personal grounds. For those correspondents on whom officialdom, and especially military officialdom, looks down with such scorn are the organs and instruments by which fame i 3 given or withheld. They aie the abstracts and brief ohronioles of the time. They take the place of the ancient vates, and, though in a different fashion, immortalise the heroes whose dee Is they sing. There were many brave men before Agamemnon, bnt they had no poet and they died. Mr. Bryce, without any apparent justification, roused the susceptibilities of an irritable class, and it was, perhaps, lucky for him in more senses than one that his enterprise ended as successfully as it did, and left so little on which criticism could fasten. The following interesting and novel information is given by a writer in Truth (London): — "It is pretty generally known by mistresses of servants who have the illluck to live near Knightsbridge or other barracks that the best looking among the soldiers are in the habit of charging a small sum to servant maids for the privilege of being seen in public with them. It may interest some of my readers to know the exact tariff, which I heard from a pretty little nursemaid at Kensington the other day. A private charges one shilling for an evening or a Sunday walk, a corporal eighteenpence, and a sergeant two shillings. A busby, however, raises the charge very much, and a private in a busby is not to be scoured under half-a-crown The price of a sergeant thus adorned my informant was not able to give me, snch a costly luxury as that being beyond the horiz >n of her imagination. The gallant escorts exact a certain standard of toilette in their companions, and it is understood that gloves are de rigueur on these occasions." Attention is directed to an advertisement referring to a meeting of the Wellington Rifle Association. As there is a good deal of business of importance, members aro reminded of the necessity of having a full muster. Entrances for the Three Mile Walking Hurdle, Ono Mile and Boxing Day Handicaps, in connection with the Foresters' F6te, clce this evening, at 8 o'clock, at the secretary's house, Snssex Square. The handicips will be declared on Thursday next. Tenders will be received up to noon on Monday for the right of erecting two publicans' booths, two refreshment booth?, aud one fancy booth. Ab an inset with this evening's Post will bo found a lithographed plan of tho wellknown property of the late Mr. L. Levy, to be sold without reserve on Friday next by Messrs T. Kennedy Macdonald & Co. The application to register the Golden Crown Gold Mining Company (Limited) will be advertised H Monday's Posr, being crowded out to-day. We observe by our advertising columns that Messrs. Casey and M'Donald announce some special bargains during tho month of December. Their many friends will no doubt pay an early visit to Denison House. Among the numerous novelties now on view at Te Aro House, nothing is more charming and effective than a select choice of Brocaded Satin 3, in all the most fashionable shades. Those are well worthy of early inspection. Ihe ladios of Wellington would do well also at the same time to look at the recent additions to the already choice stcck of Millinery Goods. The very latest fashions in feather straw, satin straw, tusian, aud crinoline ha"s and bonnets are marvels of beauty, aro exceedingly becoming, elegant in shape, and being limited in quantity, will doubtless go off very rapidly. Beautifully shaded ostrich feathers, of a large size, and very moderate in price, should also command a fair share of attention, whilst the very large assortment of new goods in every department should evidently counsel an early vi-it to James Smith's, Te Abo House.— fADVT.]