MEMBER OF COMMITTEE No. 2 IN REPLY.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 40, 28 August 1880, Page 4

MEMBER OF COMMITTEE No. 2 IN REPLY.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE STAK.

Sir, — My last letter seems to have *' squelched" "Father of a Family," but another scribbler of the same brood appears to have taken the matter up, and adopted his signature, with the addition of " Small" added — I suppose to show that his children are as yet too young to copy the wretched example he is setting them ; and as this writer attempts to answer my letter, which was aimed directly .against " Father of a Family" for endeavoring to vilify the Normanby School Committee, by showing they held a " hole-and-corner meeting," I am compelled to treat this " doughty •champion" as the writer that made that base attack. 1 have compelled him to eat " humble pie," and to admit that no " hole-and-corner meeting was held," but that it was convened in a proper manner. If your correspondent was a truthful Y»a», he vfOMld have never made this vile attack on a public body, who were losing their time in endeavoring to promote the interests of the people without fee or reward ; and when he is compelled to admit that he libelled them, he dons a new garment, and •attacks me personally for defending that body of which I am a niernber. " Father of a Family" dwells on the •odious habit of cursing that some of the children have acquired. If they have learned this bad habit, I deplore it as much as he can do ; but I would ask, would it not be still worse if such a man as " Father of a Family" was over them to teach them to be untruthful also? The next thing that your correspondent does is to run a tilt against my "norn de plume." He says I complain that I have to combat an anonymous writer, "but the curious circumstance here is that ■* A Oommitteeman' winds up his own precious epistle by adopting as shadowy and anonymous a name as he •of whom he complains"; and he adds : *' So much for bis consistency." This he appears to think a clever point. 1 will now show him that I signed my letter by no shadowy or fictitious nome. I signed "Member of Committee." That is exactly what I am, and I wrote the letter to repel the base attack he wantonly made on that public body of which I am a member. •" Father of a Family" next endeavors to make me as bad as liimself, by causiDg me to, say vrorGs in bis Jefcfcer that I never said or wrote. Here they are, he tells us indignantly— " That everybody knew what Mr. Hill said and did, forgetting in his groat wrath that he was stultifying himself." I now tell this not very veracious writer that I never said or wrote this at all. What I stated was, " That it was well known that Mr. Hill assigned no reason whatever for not accounting for and giving up the property in his charge." Therefore " Father of a Family " makes it appear that the words " it is well known," and " everybody knew," means the Bame thing, forgetting that two or three men may know what took place, but that two or three men are not evorybody. I am afraid your correspondent has gone too far in his evil way 8 to be reclaimed by me. He winds \ip in grand style by asserting that my letter was "illogical and un>BChOuirly." « J'fltW of a Tamil f(s well kuown, aud it is considered an excellent joke to think that he should attempt to pass an opinion on what was " logical or scholarly." I wish to conclude by giving my friend a little friendly adrrce: "Drop your pen, and betake yourself to some more congenial employment, such as wood chopping— an occupation which may suit your peculiar talents admirably." — I am., &c,

Member op Committee. August 21.