Hawke's Bay Herald. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 1879.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5328, 12 March 1879, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Herald. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 1879.

Some few days after Mr Eolleston's speech at Papanui, Mr Montgomery, another Canterbury member, addressed his constituents at Akaroa. Though Mr Montgomery does not possess as much influence as the member for Avon, yet there are a good many members in the House who hold him in considerable esteem. His particular forte, as ho evidently himself believes, is finance. His groat delight is to take up the Treasurer's financial statement, pick it to pieces, hurl innumerable figures at it, jerk it about, fling it up and down, and finally trample upon it as something very despicable indeed. At this sort of work, when he engages in it, Mr Montgomery takes most part of a night, and, while it lasts, it is very good amusement to those who make no attempt to follow the member for Akaroa' s array of figures ; but to the man who conscientiously endeavors to master them the infliction is indeed painful. But apart from finance, Mr Montgomery's views are generally sound, and his sentiments are of that moderately liberal tendency which may be termed " progressive," as distinguished from those of a more extreme and "aggressive" character. What he said to bis constituents last Thursday night related, for the most part, to matters specially concerning Canterbury, but he touched also on one or two other subjects of more general interest, his views upon which will doubtless meet the approval of most of our readers. One of them was the Maori franchise. Speaking of the natives being entitled to vote as freeholders, he said : " The effect would be that if there were 100 Maoris they would vote as one mart; and the man they voted for would get in. Therefore, when the Government proposed to limit the franchise, they were doing a thing which the whole House, or nearly the whole, approved of. The question was, what was the meaning of ' enrolled upon a ratepayer's roll ?' What did that mean ? Because, I may say to you, that the Maoris arc exempt from rates. You could not sue them for rates or recover rates from them for land belonging to a tribe, or to a Maori for which a Crown certificate had been issued. Therefore, you will see that it was an important thing that the Maoris should not have the right to interfere when they did not pay taxes for their land. Therefore, the limiting of this was considered to be a wise and a proper thing. It was advocated by Mr Sheehan, the Native Minister, on the ground that it would educate the natives in political knowledge, and give them an interest in the colony, and that they and we would become part of one people. But a vory extraordinary thing happened, and alienated a great number of the Government supporters. After nearly all the clauses had been passed through Committee, the Government brought in an amended clause, and I will tell you what that amendment was. They struck out the words 'his name is enrolled upon a ratepayers' roll in force within the district, in respect of Avhich he claims to vote,' Avith a view to insert the following words, che is seised at law or in equity of lands or tenements for his own fife or for the life of any other person or for any larger estate of the clear value of £25 at the least, and has been seised of such estate for six months previous to the date of his claim to vote ; or if his name is em-oiled on a ratepayers' roll in force in the district for which he claims to vote on account of lands or tenements belonging to him, and he shall have actually paid his rates for the year in which his claim to vote is made.' That would cover those who hold lands bought outside the Maori reserves and were rated for them. But it woidd also include all those who hold land belonging to the aboriginal Maoris— that never had passed away from them. — and would have enabled the Maoris who had got upon the various electoral rolls to have remained there and to have interfered very largely, and, as I believe, very injuriously for the interests of the country, with the election of representative members." After detailing what ensued in reference to the Electoral Bill, Mr Montgomery went on: "I ask you if you think you would, bo doi»g jugftge to yoiu- fellow-

subjects in the North Island if you allowed the Maoris to get upon the rolls and to swamp the electors at the bidding of one man ? If the Maoris had the same knowledge of political affairs, and the same liability to taxation aa" tho white people, I would not interfere ; but I say it is dangerous to give men who are not qualified for want of knowledge such power as would overwhelm/ your fellow-subjects in tho North Island, knowing that that power would be used by them as one man bid them to use it." Mi* Montgomery, it Avill be seen, regards this matter just as we in this district, which it affects so much, regard it, On the question of electing our Governor Mr Montgomery's opinions are such as, we fool sure, will be generally shared. "To elect ;our Governor," he said " avouM bo to insist on severing our connection with that groat empire of which we are now a part, find I am sure there is too much loyalty and too much confidence in tho honesty of tho mother country, to allow of our separating- ourselves from the greatest nation upon which the sun over rose."