POLITICAL NEWS AND NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 8036, 25 August 1887, Page 5

POLITICAL NEWS AND NOTES.

(by telegraph.—own correspondent.] Wellington, Wednesday. THE ISSUE OF THE WRITS. The writs for the general election will be issued to-morrow. They will bo made returnable for the 21st of September or thereabouts, and Parliament as already stated, will assemble for the despatch of business in the first week of October. SIR GEORGE GREY IN DEMAND. I learn from a correspondent that a requisition has been sent to Sir George Grey from Oamaru, asking him to address the poople in that constituency, and that Sir George has consented to deliver an address thero, but the date is notjfixed. MR. BALLANCE AND HIS PROTEGE,

A statement has gone tho rounds of the press to the effect tnat the Hon. Mr. Baliauce was supporting a candidate who in an election speech doseribed Sir Julius Vogcl as a " political gambler, who played with loaded dice." The Native Minister this afternoon drew my attention to this statement, which he pronounces as worse than a direct falsehood, being both a auppresslo veri and sugijestio falsi. The true case is this : Mr. Hutchison opposed him for Wanganui in 1884, and it was in an election speech at that timo that Mr. Hutchison usod the above expression. Three years later (that is in the present year) Mr. Hutchison is standing for Waitotara as a "Government supporter," aud in all his speeches ho has spoken highly of Sir Julius Vogel. At Patea Mr. Hutchison was asked whether he had throe years before used the above expression, and Mr. Hutchison admitted that ho had used the words. The Hon. Mr. Ballanco complains that tha admission of " having" used them "has been tortured into a statement that Mr. Outobison had repeated them but Mr. Hutchison himself has publicly denied that ho had used the offensive term during the present election. This is in a letter to a Wauganui paper. Moreover, Mr. Hutchison has revised and republished two of his speeches, aud in both ho speaks in appreciative terms of Sir Julius Vogel.

FOXTON AND WAIKARAPA. Mr. Lawson has come forward to contest the seat for Foxton with Mr. J. G. Wilson, of course in the Ministerial interest. Mr. G. 8. Thynne is alio spoken of as a probable candidate. It is said that Mr. Bunny has so gained upon Mr. Buchanan in Wairarapa that the contest betwoen them will be very keen. THE NATIVE MINISTER AND WI PERE. A complaint comes from the East Coast that the Native Minister ha* been improperly using the influence of his office to secure the election of Wi Pere by means of memorandum telegrams, but the Native Minister donies that he has ever used memorandum telegrams." He has answered questions put by the natives by ordinary telegrams. SIR JULIUS VOJEL. Sir Julius Vogcl is expccted to return to Wellington about the '2nd of September.