The Gisborne Standard AND COOK COUNTY GAZETTE Published every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday Morning. Tuesday, November 26, 1889. THE FIRST SHOT.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 382, 26 November 1889, Page 2

The Gisborne Standard AND COOK COUNTY GAZETTE Published every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday Morning.

Tuesday, November 26, 1889. THE FIRST SHOT.

Be just and fear not; Let all the ends thou alm’st at bo thy country’s, Thy God’s, aud truth’s.

It was no remarkable circumstance that Mr Rees should open the political campaign, seeing that his opponent has so little time to spare, at this busy season of the year. Though the newspaper Press has made such great strides during recent years, and keeps the public well informed on political affairs, and notwithstanding the increase of those who read—an increase which is to a great extent due to our beneficent education system —there is still a very large class who are moved more by the spoken opinions of people who address them from a public platform than they are by written words which lack the vigor and expression with which an eloquent speaker can clothe them. The large and intelligent audience which fan Friday evening assembled to hear Mr Rees speak, shows the great amount of interest that is being taken in the present contest. That audience seemed to have understood the real lines upon which the election is to be fought—that is, whether a certain privileged section of the community is to monopolise the representation of the district, or whether, as Mr DeLautour forcibly puts it, we should have a change. The farce of sending to Parliament members whose “ only virtue is silence" is almost played out, and it seems that any man, however strongly he may be objected to in some respects, will be acceptable to the majority of the electors, so long as he will represent the industrial classes whose claims have been so long neglected. While we agree with the Mayor’s enconiutns on the orderly character of the meeting, we disagree with that gentleman as regards the reason of its orderliness. The meeting was enthusiastic enough, and he seemed to consider that the praise was due to the opponents of Mr Rees in offering no antagonistic demonstration. Judging by the earnestness of the meeting we should say the g reat attention paid to what Mr Rees had to say was that Mr Rees said what the audience most desired to hear; and they saw, in the unity of their party for the first time, some chance of escape from being overridden by the class which makes up for its lack of numbers by the influence of wealth.

We have said before, and still say, that we should like to see a better man than Mr Rees representing this community, if such an one could have been induced to come forward. Our prejudices against the indvidual, however, are not gufficiently strong to prevent us giving him 7aJ; play, a nd without going so far as to endorse, the extravagant utterance of Mi* Gannon, we must acknowledge that the address was a very powerful one. It would not have been Mr Junes’ speech if it had not con, tained some very advanced ideas. His suggestion to ta.s foe foreign bondholders, although not new, was of this nature, and has already been condemned by us, a condemnation which is affected by no argument that was adduced i»y Mr Rees. Land and property in the colony fire taxed nominally with the consent of the owners, through their representatives : the English ( bondholder can. by no stretch of imagination, be said to be represented in the New Zealand Parliament, With reference to the otk'er colonial questions we for the most pa/t agree with Mr Rees in his theories, -although that does not neces-

sarily mean that his plan for working them out would meet with our approval. It is not likely that anything important will be done during the next session with regard to the incidence of taxation, the conversion of loans, or with the question of local government, but it is useful to have Mr Rees’ views upon them, as they may have a great bearing on the next general election, and may induce people to pay increased attention to the subjects. As regards local government it does seem as if some kind of change were needed, although what direction it should take we are not at present prepared to state. The County system has not given full satisfaction, at least in the East Coast district, where one part of the County is jealous of the other, and considers that its claims have almost been ignored. The Education system is essentially a colonial question, but in a large and scattered district like this becomes one of more than ordinary local interest. We have in all parts of the country schools which itis absolutely necessary, for the sake of our settlers’ children, should be fully maintained, and we can scarcely understand how one who would hope to represent the district would seek to reduce the expenditure on education, and thus impoverish and perhaps close up a number of our schools. There is already too great a tendency to centralise the expenditure in the cities at the expense of the out districts. Our country schools are in a great many cases already in a very bad way owing to the influences which prevent their getting a fair proportion of the money which is divided. As one speaker pointed out on Friday even ing the small proportion of the education vote is almost the only real benefit that is obtained by the district out of the millions that have been expended in the colony and in return for the enormous taxation we have had to pay. Coming to purely local matters, Mr Rees touched upon a painful subject when he approached the harbor question. He wisely refrained from probing old sores as to the site and aim of the harbor, and appreciating the truth of the maxim that what has been done cannot be undone, he confined himsolf to enquiry how the burden of taxation might be lightened. The plan he suggests is to obtain a further land endowment, which he thinks can be done if the matter is properly set about. If Mr Rees could do this he would receive the blessings of the over-burdened ratepayers, and at any rate he should receive the praise of being the first of the candidates to hold out a hope of relief. Mr Rees also made reference to native land affairs, but we feel almost ashamed, after late revelations, and the comments thereon of the Press throughout the colony, to allude to the subject as one upon which the electors should take the opinion of the candidates as a guide. We worked hard to have the Acts that were passed last session placed among the statutes, and we are sorry to see the good affects of that work somewhat nullified by the indiscreet utterances of one whose influence was very small in comparison with thatol Messrs J. Carroll and E. F. Harris.

Mr Rees is to be complimented on the tone of his address, it being devoid of the slightest tincture of bitterness, and no personalities of any kind were indulged in. We hope that the example set will be followed all through the contest —a contest which appears certain to be a keen one.