ATTACK ON AN EDITOR.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXXIII, Issue 275, 6 December 1899, Page 3

ATTACK ON AN EDITOR.

THE SINS OF THE FATHER. The whole evening -waa devoted to a virulent attack oil tho Editor of thin - journal and on his son, and'Drs Gibbs and Leggatt (the names ol Drs Boor and PearlaM being omitted, and Dr Young, of Wellington, being mentioned only casually, though they_ were equal offenders with Dr Gibbs in tho " midnight raid.") For more, than two hours Mr Graham denounced, first tho Editor, then his son, a lad who acts as " occasional reporter," then the doctors alriudy ruuuod, and then tho Editor again. "That man!" he cried, pointing to the Editor, sitting below the dtage — "That man!" - hecxcUijpedloodly.poifitiDgand walking threateningly toward* 4iim — and at each exclamation half the audience liootod and KTOMed. The jrouth W^O had dared to • Ufl the truth 6? the Havelock m<-<- '■ %', trfi who had already been insulted early in the evening — not even an elector, and pertainly of no political importance ia the cemmunity — had to suffer for his father's sins. Never, perhaps, in the political history of New Zealand has such p wanton attack boon jnadp on a young fellow who, B8 a junior, had merely done what he was told to dp. It would bo tedious to duacribi" at l«>ngth i\\f whole Hurry exhibition of vehemence and futile i anger, the all but setting of the audieme oa to the Editor of this journal and !n« ton to rend them. It was one phase of (h<p flrrowinK terrorism under the doutinatkm of which this colony has come— it was Tammany applying "discipline"' to It* etjejnien. The Boss docs it to Jpbn HotcßesoD and Mr rirani— the Undcrliu? does it to a local newspaper editor and his son! • •. * I For two hours Mr Graham indulged in personal iavective, abusing this journal, its conductors, and ita proprietors. For two hours he endeavoured to hold up the Editor to ridicule and denunciation, not omitting to refer to his financial position and to the fact that he is a poor man — i U»ugo on Uie aid© of "capiUiitfW by

the by— aa the Opposition is described by Mr Graham. • • • Among the gems of the evening was a direct though veiled bid by Mr Graham for denominational support, by saying that there were many in tho community who paid taxes and yet had to send their children to their own denominational schools, and therefore it was quite right that the school certificates of all schools should be accepted in connection with employment in the public service. Of course they should. It would be a gross injustice and a flagrant wrong if they were not so accepted. But what need had Mr Graham to drag this issue into the BTening > 8 amusement, seeing he iritended to produco only an invalid certificate purporting to relate to a passing in a state school ? For a time we quaked for we really began to believe that Mr Graham's bomb-shell was a certificate from one of the private schools of the town or district! But it was only poor Misa Sunley's skirts which the valiant assailant of the Editor, tho Youth, and the Doctors was hiding and shooting a hi Boer. • • * The meeting terminated with the usual votes, and then the half of the audience who were supporters of Mr Graham, sang " For he's a jolly good fellow," cheered, hooted the editor and tho youthful occasional reporter, and so broke up amid a most exciting scene. Cheers were not wanting for the Editor, however, and the Hursthouae contingent stuck to their guns manfully.