COLONEL WHITMORE'S DINNER.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 13, Issue 1047, 11 May 1869, Page 3

COLONEL WHITMORE'S DINNER.

(From tho " Taranaki Herald," April' 28.) The people of — or rather a Hew persons ' who" would -wish to' make those outside beligve that they represented the people — took advantage of .the passing, through theil* cipy of tbe ".much-abusccl by the press," Goloiiel Whitmore, to en-, tertaiu that g'e'fi-tleman at tfie Auckland Club ; and we are infoimed tbat forty of the leading citizens of the* place sat down to a sumptuous dinner ; bufc who those forty citizens were — with tbe exception of two or three names — we are entirely in the dark. Auckland has long bad the reputation of being the " Jeames" of New Zealand, outdoing in flunkyism all tbe other-provinces put together. But on tbo present occasion it has been a little overdone, and Colonel Whitmore must havelaughed in bis sleeve at the fulsome praise that was lavishecj, on the deeds he had nofc done, and the superior abilities he knew he did nofc possess. Out of the forty leading citizens wbo had their logs beneath this banqueting table, only three spoke ; the Chairman (F. Whitaker, Esq.) ; the Vice-Chairman (Mr. Firth) ; ancfcOnpfc. Daldy. Nothing much was said before the toast of the evening was proposed ; and we pass over tbe Chairman's remarks with a smile of incredulity. Tiie gallant gentleman of course replied, and his speech, liko his despatches, was long, wordy, and contained the usual dispersion of tbe pronoun " I" through it; He-, commenced by patting tbe Auckland people on the back, . speaking in great praise of the gallant deeds tbey had dono during the year 1863 ; and by so doing, neatly -compared himself to General Cameron, by adding that the peo--pic of Auckland were the only ones who knew how to recognise merit. He tben quietly drifted into'ti-lial. he bad done, and what a. great man. ho wa£-j -&ud concluded witb a tirade against the preSS-Gi^ the Colony, bccaijso they did not meed out that praise to bim which he thinks ho is entitled to, and'whieh they think be is not. Following this came the toast, "The . Colonial Forces;" lii responding fco whicb, Capt. Swindley took occasion likewise to . have another quie£ dig at. the press. After this, we are told that the gentlemen to whom William Thompson addressed bis last words, "Lefcl^irfch have his ruu," rose, having been entrusted with tbe most delicate toast of the evening, "The ladies, coupled witb the health of Lady .Bowen.' We have no doubt that tbis toast had been | set against his name with the hope of keeping him quiet on a subject that might compromise tbe whole ; but Mr. Firth was nob bo bo done like thafc. A speech bo wanted to make — and would mako ; so he plunged afc onco into tho subject of Colonel Whitmore and his'wrbngs. To those who do nofc happen to know. -Mr, Firth, wo may inform them that ho is a gentleman fond of hearing himself talk. He is known better to tbe Auckland people by two events in his life. One when hedelivered a lecture in the Auckland Mechanics Institute, to prove that tliere was no. such thing as " Luck ;" and tbo otber by his celebrated war speech on the hu-s tings in 1861. As outreaders can imagine, he is an orator of tbe " stump" school. Mr. Firth owned he did not know the gallant Colonel ; hacl not' tbo honour of bis acquaintance, and therefore, wo should. imagine, was nob bhe < man to say whether Colonel Whitmore was a skilful commander or not ; yot because tbe " Helots of tho press" had thought proper to criticise tho acts of this military gentleman, ho (as the people of Auckland) was there to givo all the statements made. against tbo Colonel most emphatic contradiction. Tbo inhabitants of Napier, Wanganui, and poor Taranaki too, came under the lash 'of Mr. Firth's tongue. " Did tbey not know," said the speaker, " that ' these places wero not < much better, or much worse tban themselves, be should bo ashamed of them." Poor Mr. Firth ! ifc is a.piby you bave not to get your living on a farm somewhere between the Wanganui river and Woingongoro, and you would nob have asserted ab tbat dinner tliiffc tbe coast was clear of : . tbe enemy.; nor that they had been driven ; into the interior;.} bufc you would have known thab .Titokowaru and some four hundred of his people aro quietly recruiting their -strength not a couplo of days march from tbo placo you speak about..- .jßufc, after all, what does Mr.. Firth, .or Mr. Whitaker know of Colonel' Whitmore's abilities; and we would ask what has the Colonel done? Notwithstanding all thafc was said in his . favour by tbo speakers afc tbe dinner, one thing, and one thing only, was brought forward, and thab was ho bad "licked his men into shape;"- -a thing that any competent drill sergeant could havo done. > With regard to his victories; did we see that he bad really done any tiling we could praise, we would be the first; to raise our : voice in bis defence, but during tho time bo has bad command of tbo Colonial i forces, bis campaigns, according to bis ; own "despatches," — which are highly coloured — sbow no very extraordinary 1 results. As for his movements in \ i this Province, we can only say thab _ be has shown a great want of wis- < dom or tact in tbe only act ho did. i Colonel Whifcmore.is an excellent despatch i writer, aud we give bim credit for having stopped the demoralisation that was going ou among the men of Patea ; but when we ] have said that, we have said all wo can in i bis praise. At Hawke's Bay, whero bo is i known, tbe settlers detest him ; and at ! Wanganui they did nofc find him doing much good. The Government bave certainly been unfortunate in the choice of i their Commanders-in-Chief, picking as i tbey havo dono tbo most unpopular men the Colony. But Mr.Firth, Mr. Whitaker, , or Mr. Anybody else, must nob think that, [ because they choose to shelter Colonel Whibmoro beneath bho shadow of their flunkyfiod speeches, tbey will either make bi iv more respected, or get tbo press to < falsely chronicle acts that he never per- ■ | formed.