COLONEL TEIMBLE'S ADDRESS TO HIS CONSTITUENTS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 6, 1 May 1880, Page 4

COLONEL TEIMBLE'S ADDRESS TO HIS CONSTITUENTS.

(Prom the Tamnaki Herald.) Colonel Trimble addressed his constituents at the Odd Fellows' Hall, New Plymouth, on Monday evening, there being a good attendance. Mr. T. King was voted to the chair. The Chairman, after reading the advertisement convening the meeting, said he was sure they would all have very much pleasure in hearing Colonel Trimble's address. He would tell them what had taken place during the last session of Parliament, and he was sure they would pay great attention to Colonel Trimble's speech. Colonel Trimble said if there was one thing that gave him pleasure more than another, it was seeing the chair occupied by Mr. King. Mr. King had, unexpectedly to him, acted as his supporter at the election, and now he took it for granted that his occupying the chair showed that he was satisfied with what he (Col. T.) had done in the Assembly. In September last he told them that he did not agree with the policy of the Government with regard to the vital question affecting this district, and indeed the whole Colony — the Native difficulty. The district was left by the late Government in a state of uncertainty and doubt. At that time there were many people who felt very uneasy about the peace of the district, but now the aspect of things had changed, and from one cause or another, these apprehensions have been to a large extent » dissipated. He thought they were *i|6w probably in a state of security. They felt that they could settle in peace, for the Government of the day was doing its duty, and were taking such measures as were likely to bring matters to a satisfactory issue. The action of the Government with respect to this district was the most important of all actions. Their action meant peace or war — proserity or ruin to the whole Colony as well as Taranaki. He would endeavour to show them the action which had been taken both by the late Government and the present Government, in relation to this great subject. They would remember that the objections in this district to Sir George Grey's Government arose from the fact that his Government were tampering with the Native difficulty ; that they were not alive to the importance of the case, and the decisive action required to meet it, and in sending hin (Colonel T.) as their representative to the House they showed their opioion that the Government was not doing its duty. When the House met, he took the course which he believed they were satisfied with, and that was to vote against the retention of the Grey Government in office. There was an unfortunate circumstance with regard to the elections. The country returned a House absolutely balanced, and it was impossible to say whether there was a majority on one side or the other. After some days it was found that the Government had 41 votes, and the • Opposition 43. That was a very un- : fortunate circumstance, because it led to a great deal of time being wasted, and caused a great deal of ill-feeling. Eventually the upshot was that a new Government was placed in power — or rather in office, for power they had not. During the debates he believed that while expressing his own views he was expressing their views also ; he voted against the then Government, and be said in the House that his main object in opposing the Government was because it was not pursuing a proper course in relation to the native question ; he felt this was the moat important question of all before the House, and that he must oppose the Government to the uttermost. When the new Ministiy came into office they determined, in some way or other, to settle the Taranaki difficulty. Every member of the Ministry stated that this was the object he had in view when accepting

office. Unfortunately^ however, the new Ministry had >QjSiflH!? majority of one or two, and the vote of one individual would change their position. When a new Ministry comes into office there are always a great many members of the House who think they are fitted to make one of the Ministry, but as there are only seven portfolios it is impossible they can all be satisfied. There were several last session who were disappointed because they could not get into office, and they left the new Ministry. The Ministry were soon in a minority, but they were deL termined, before they would go out of h office, that they would place their po1. licy before Parliament. They were met with bitter opposition, but they at last attained their object, and, after P they had stated their case, they obtained a majority of two, and afterwards a fair working majority. The Ministry stated from the beginning that they considered the native question of the greatest importance, and they desired to settle it as speedily as 4 possible, but they met with many obstacles to their purpose, and a considerable delay was occasioned. Amongst the supporters of the new Ministry were some members of the South Isk land, who knew as much of Taranaki affairs as they did of Timbuctoo ; and it was most distressing to hear these gentlemen state in the House that they would settle the native difficulty by making the natives do as the white man did, and that they would not enter into a war just to please the » people of Taranaki. The Ministry had not only to contend against their enemies, but also against their own j supporters. The making of the roads was therefore not begun so soon as it might have been done. These works, however, had now been progressing ■ for some time, and were still progress- » ing favorably. In the House there » was a strong feeling expressed that . the Government — not only the Grey Government, but all the Governments s from time to time in office in New i Zealand — had made a great many ■ promises to the natives which had ■ never been fulfilled. He stated in the House that such was not the case, and showed that the natives were in 1 actual possession of the land promised to them, and in many cases they had never been out of possession. His word did not have that weight which the word of a resident in the district should have carried with it. The Government appointed a Native Commission to inquire into these promises. Two of the Commissioners appointed —Sir W. Pox and Sir Dillon Bellare as good men as could have been found for the purpose. But there was this to be remembered, that Sir Dillon Bell had stated in the House that the natives had been given a great many promises which were never fulfilled ; he said at the time the Government were right to appoint a man of such strong views as Sir Dillon Bell ; he believed from what had appeared in the Herald about the proceedings of the Commission, that Sir D. Bell would in the report of the Commission confirm the statement made by him (Colonel T.) in the House. That report would have a good effect. It would show the people of the South Island that the natives had not been treated so badly as was stated, and. he- ■-; also believed it would in a great measure cause the land which had been i promised to the natives to be Crown ; granted, and that without delay. : That should have been done long ago, i and it would have been better for the l district. (Applause.) With refe- < reuce to the manner in which the < Native Commissioners had been ap- 1 pointed he would say a few words. i When the Bill was brought into the < House there was a clause in it 1 that there should be three Com mis- i sioners appointed, and the Opposition 1 insisted that a native should be one 1 of them. He took no part in the ] debate, for lie thought it was not de- < sirable to do so on account of his i being a member for the district. It i would be better to leave the matter i to be settled by others. A consider- { able number of the members sup- £ ported the pi'oposal that a native i should be appointed on the Commis- J sion, but he did not think it was de- r sirable ; he saw from the manner of r . the native members in the House that 1 a native was not fitted to act on the \ Commission, as the natives had no ] notion of European ideas of justice, t He attended all the sittings of the f committee appointed to enquire into native affairs. Three gentlemen of t the native race were on that com- t mittee, and he (Colonel Trimble) c noticed that the natives did not j appoach the consideration of the ■? question in the same manner as the s Europeans would do. The only idea G of the native was a game of " grab "; r he was not blaming the native by r saying this, but he was simply show- i: ing how unfitted the native was to con- r sider the subject ; he therefore had no 1 hope that the appointment of a native f on the Commission would produce "\ any good result ; he was not by any I means sorry when the native declined y to sit on the Commission, but he b believed the advice given to that native ti was not given from any patriotic s motives, but only with the object of p embarrassing the Government. He tl then spoke concerning the Maori d prisoners ; he said the counsel for the d prisoners had asked that the trial s< should be postponed, and that fact ii appeared to have been forgotten by w many, as they were under the iinpres- tl sjpn that the Government had de- h layed the trial. What object there n was for the postponement he could ti

not say. When the Government brought in the Bill they asked that the trial should be further postponed, and after a great deal of discussion they carried their point. In that they had the assistance of Mr. Sheehan, although they had the opposition of Sir George Grey and other members. Mr. Sheehan (recognised the importance of the matter, and supported the Ministry. As the matter stood now, the prisoners were to take their trial in June, unless the Government saw fit to have the trial at an earlier dateIt did not matter how soon the trial came on as long as the peace of the district was secured. That was all they wished, and. they would rejoice when the natives regained their liberty after the peace of the district was settled. The main idea in voting .£50,000 for making roads in the district was for the settlement of the native difficulty. Although it was becoming so late in the season, still they were glad to know that roadmaking was progressing satisfactorily; he did not believe what he had seen in the newspapers — that it would take five yeai*s at the present rate of progress before the roads would meet; he believed the roads would be finished by the end of next summer ; he would not only like to see the road complete from Hawera along the coast, but also an inland road from Opunake to Stratford. The financial difficulty of the colony was in a very depressed state. There must be an improvement soon, or New Zealand would be in a deplorable position. When Major Atkinson took office, he made a statement of the financial condition of the country. He estimated that by the 30th June there would be a deficiency of .8900,000. If they considered what the revenue of the country was, they could estimate the true position. If the revenue was ,£4,000,000, there would thus be a deficiency of over one-fifth. That was like a deficiency of- .£20,000,000 in England. Sir G. Grey said that Major Atkinson was wrong altogether in his calculations that there would be a deficiency of moTe than .£550,000. Mr. Macandrew said it was only a trifle, and the land revenue would soon make it up. Mr. Ballance, in the most plausible terms, tried to show that Major Atkinson was wrong. He (Colonel T.) was sorry to say that Major Atkinson was wrong, but not in the way pointed out by Sir G. Grey. He was wrong because he had not shown the deficiency to be as much as it really was. The deficiency was actually over ,£900,000 in nine months. At the time the Grey Government knew the country was in this deplorable condition, they were spending more money in departmental expenses than had ever been incurred before. This left to their successors the very unpopular task of cutting down the salaries and reducing departments. He thought the Government was entitled to some credit for the manner in which the railway was progressing ; he had heard what Mr. Oliver had said to the deputation when that gentleman was here, and he was satisfied that there would Jbe no more difficulties thrown in the wa^y of the works ; he thought that the railway was prorg*easing fairly. In three or four weeks' time it will be 4£ miles beyond Stratford — that is, the coach passengers would be able to go up to that point. The Government is giving the contractor a bonus if the work is finished in June : he was told that the contractor was making his men participate in this bonus, and he thought that was the right way to have the work done in the specified time ; he considered the contractor was entitled to great credit for this. Mr. Oliver said as soon as he went to Wellington that the necessary arrangements would be made for completing the whole line. He therefore hoped to see, in the course of a few -weeks, tlie advertisement in the papers calling for tenders 'or further sections. There appeared to be some misapprehension with regard to what Major Atkinson had said about the completing of the line in June. In the hurry of the moment Major Atkinson had not made his meaning perfectly clear, but he (Col. T.) thought he intended to say that by the end of June all the contracts would be in hand as far as Hawera. It was impossible for Major Atkinson to have intended to state otherwise, for a portion of the line had been let which was not to be completed for ten months. He was sorry to hear that Major Atkinson was indisposed, or he, no doubt, would have been present to explain this. The road would be metalled to Stratford as soon as the weather would permit. The tenders were in, but they were not so low as expected, but that was probably because the Government was in a hurry, and sufficient time had not been given. He had urged upon Mr. Hall to have the road metalled from Stratford to Mangawhero: Ths Waitara and White Cliffs Road, "he thought, should be done by the Government, as it was a road used chiefly by the Maoris, who did not pay any taxes. lv conclusion, he said he was sorry Taranaki, in common with other parts of the colony, had been in anything but a prosperous condition during the past twelve months. The depression of the market for the grass seed had been keenly felt by farmers in the district, but they had contended with as great difficulties before, and they would still surmount this one ; he thanked them for the encouragement he had received from them from time to time, and he thanked them,

above all, for the fact that they had not asked him to do any "jobbing." No member in the House had asked for less personal favors on behalf of himself or constituents. Taranaki had received the name of beginning political "jobbing," but his experience completely refuted such a statement.