POLITICAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 9367, 25 November 1893, Page 4

POLITICAL NOTES.

If there is one feature more than another in the present general election that must strike an intelligent and thoughtful observer, ib is the prominence which is being given to character as opposed to mere political creed. The electors generally are demanding that their representatives shall be men of high principles, of great intelligence, of independent minds, and men who have the necessary qualifications to govern a young community with the promise of a great future before it. Hitherto, at such a crisis as the present, ib has been too often a subject of regret to all thoughtful persons that the best men failed to come forward ; and it is extremely gratifying and a most hopeful sign of the times that, at least as far as Auckland city and many of the surrounding districts are concerned, this reproach has been removed. In Sir George Grey, the services of a man of European reputation as a statesman, and who more than any other has moulded the destinies of this colony, are placed at the disposal of the citizens of Auckland. His splendid generosity as a private citizen need not here be referred to. Another gentleman of high attainments, colonial experience, and unblemished character is Mr. C. E. Button. He is by no means a party man or an extremist in any direction, and in him the citizens have a man in whose integrity they may place absolute confidence. In every way a suitable colleague for two such men as these is Mr. E. Withy, another of Auckland's most trusted and able citizens. It is true that he holds certain theoretical ideas with regard to land tenure, but there is no likelihood of these views entering the .region of practical politics during the present generation. Mr. Withy's honesty of purpose none can deny, and his intellectual independence, which prevents him from being dragged at the wheels of any party, all must respect. These three gentlemen would prove representatives of whom any city might well be proud, and we venture to say that no other centre in New Zealand can boast of three more gifted, honest, and conscientious candidates. These men are distinctly nonparty men; but they are men who can be relied upon to give an impartial and intelligent consideration to any question that may come before them, and having managed their own personal affairs with conspicuous success, they may be safely entrusted with the conduct of the business of the country. In the same category as the gentlemen above oaentioned may be placed Mr. W. S. Allen, who is contesting the Parnell seat, and Colonel Burton, who is one of the candidates for the Bay of Plenty. All these candidates we have mentioned are men of sterling honesty of purpose, who are not attracted to politics by the hope of obtaining £240 a-year, who, in short, are not endeavouring to make a living out of the pockets of the people. They are men of standing and character, of high principle and purity of life, who are loved and respected by all who know them for their conscientiousness, their straightforwardness, their honesty of purpose, their intelligence and capacity, end above all, their earnest desire to do what is right and just for the well-being of the people as a whole without reference to party or creed. If New Zealand is to become a great and prosperous nation, we must take care that the management of its affairs is placed in the hands of able and responsible men, instead of being left to the control of mere party hacks and political adventurers.

As polling day approaches (telegraphs our Tauranga correspondent) the air ie thick with rumours of political moves to secure this electorate for the Government. It is rumoured, and the rumour receives general credence, that the Premier has been telegraphed to that either Mr. Kelly or Colonel Fraser must retire, to give the other one a show. Tho reward of the retiring candidate is to be promotion to the Legislative Council. Another move is being made to got the three outsiders to retire in favour of the present Liberal nominees, but it is more than doubtful if votes will follow, as electors decline to be led like a lot of sheep. So far the opinion amongst country settlers is gaining ground that Colonel Burton's utterances are straight to the point, and worthy of more consideration and attention than the rambling generalities the Liberal candidates so freely indulge in. The Herald leader of last Wednesday, relative to the incidence of the land tax, has attracted considerable attention, and extracts from it are being posted up about the town.

Unless Mr. Seddon can be induced to offer a seat in the Upper House bo either Mr. Kelly or Colonel Eraser as a bribe for withdrawing from the contest both are likely to go to the poll. They are feeling the effects of Colonel Burton's candidature. He is rapidly gaining ground. It does not matter much to him whether Mr. Kelly or the other Colonel is shunted into the Legislative Counoil. The electors, as our Tauranga correspondent says, are nob dumb driven cattle to be rounded up under the lash of the Government stock rider. Mr. Kelly's case, for instance, must be bad indeed, when he has to cut the painter with voracity, and assert that Colonel Burton is being backed up with the money of the National Association. Government nominess are so accustomed to financial aid from mysterious sources that they naturally look upon every candidate favoured by an association as its paid hirling, " Yesterday the secretary of the National Association received a telegram from Opobiki to the following effect:—" Kelly asserts association are backing Burton with money, and that you have organised' electorate " for him. Please reply full denial at once." To this the secretary had no hesitation in replying in the following terms :—" Kelly's statement that National Association assisting Colonel Barton with money, absolutely false. It is against our principles even if we could draw upon Consolidated Fund." The Association have not, like Messrs. Seddon and Company, control of bhe public exchequer to further the candidature of their favourites.

The Government organs' and some of the Government candidates, notably Mr, Gerald Peacocke, are endeavouring to make political capital out of the Cheviot estate sale, by representing that it was a great success. Now what are the facts The Government (says the Christcburch Press) determined to offer to the public 33,474 acres of the pick of the agricultural land, together with some village settlement and town lands. Qf the agricultural land, soma 12,500 acres were offered on lease in perpetuity, 1580 for village homesteads, 2500 acres as grazing runs, and some 17,000 actus were offered for sale for cash. Now, it is perfectly true that the land offered on lease has been taken up, but no practical man will venture to say that the rentals agreed to bo paid for those leases are any test of the real value of the land. As one tenderer said in our hearing, "Oh, well, if the land goes up in value I can sell my lease, and if it doesn't, the "Government cin get nothing out of me but the six months' rent." In fact, ib is fully recognised that it was with many of the tenderers " heads they win, tails the Government lose." Men and women also who had never been near the land tendered for it, thinking that they had a grand chance for a spec in land at the small risk of six months' rent. The true value of land can only be shown by proving its earning power or by actual gales for cash. Now what was the result when the Government attempted to effect sales? Why, the attempt to sell has been a miserable failure. Out of the 17,000 acres offered for sale, including the 5000 round the homestead, only 1266 acres were sold. And why? Simply because the land was valued at too high a price. And yet it is a "Liberal" Government forsooth that) attempted to sell land to the people for more than it was worth.

The Hon. John McKenzie— for short " the Hon. Jock" by bis familiars— has lost his temper, and has descended to the language of a fourth-rate costermonger to abuse and vilify his opponent. He denounces him as "the biggest liar in New Zealand," and declares that his Palmersfcon address " contained about 40 per cent, of claptrap and bunkum, 4.0 per cent, of buffoonery and play-acting, about 10 per cent, of unadulterated political lies, while the last 10 per cent, was made up of insinuations of the basest character against himself !" This rhetorical' effort (remarks the Dunedin Star) is strongly suggestive of the American platform, and may perhaps be understood to indicate the inclination of the speaker towards the more objectionable political institutions of the Great Republic. The great offence of Mr. Scobie Mackenzie in the eyes of the Minister of Lands is the exposure of the pretensions of the Government in respect to the working classes. Mow it is upon these classes that they rely for a favourable verdict at the hands of the country, and Mr. Scobie Mackenzie has committed an unpardonable sin in stating succinctly and demonstrating conclusively that nothing practical has really been done. The only useful measures for improving the condition of the workers which have passed into law were originated by the previous Administration, while Mr. Reeves's Laboui Bills, almost without exception, would tend in operation to be productive of barn rather than good to the classes they are professedly intended to benefit. These facts were pointed out by Mr. Scobie Mackenzie, and he rightly affirmed that they had not been sufficiently considered lby those mos* intimately concerned. Is any working man, he asked, one penny the better for the Ministerial policy ? Is it not, on the contrary, the case that the conditions o: labour are at present less favourable than they were in 1890? Mr. McKenzie takes credit for legislation designed and proposed, and in some instances effected, by the Atkinson Government ; and he further vaunts as an accomplished fact the success of the co-operative system, which is admitted on all sides to be still upon its trial. He does nob really attempt to answer his opponent or venture to explain in what manner or in what degree the " working man" has bean benefited. "Silence," under the circumstances, no doubt was "golden;" and he could nob -even assert that any attempt had been made by proposals for the relief of indirect taxation or otherwise. It has, indeed, been distinctly intimated by the Premier that there is no intention of reducing the burdens of the people, bub that taxation is to be kepb up to a maximum in order to provide the State with funds to employ labour on cooperative works. The industrial classes fail, it would seem, to see that the cost of carrying out this policy must, as Mr. Scobie Mackenzie points out, fall most severely upon themselves, whereas the encouragemenb of private enterprise and industry would lead to the ' legitimate employment of labour without charge to the country.

On this subject another Southern contemporary has the following :—" No person in his senses will deny that any legislation which may have the effecb of doing away with any necessity for industrial strikes must be of benefib to the community. No one knows better than the workers that the strike is one of the most clumsy and ineffective methods of modern industrial warfare. It matters little which way a strike may terminate, both strikers and employers must lose. The most intelligent labour leaders throughout the world freely admit this, and both employers and employees look anxiously for some means by which disputes may be adjusted without recourse to the ' lock-out' or the •strike.' Mr. W. P. Reeves has essayed to supply the desiderated means to New Zealand. He has succeeded in framing a measure utterly unworkable, of the most absurdly inquisitorial nature, and one which, if attempt were made to carry it out in its integrity, could only eventuate either in the abrupt closing of nine-tenths of the industries in New Zealand, or in utter defiance of the law.

The intelligence conveyed by the cablegrams this morning is to the effect that the Matabele are completely broken up by the recent military operations of the British, and Lobengula is endeavouring to escape northwards across the Zambezi, with a few devoted trusty followers. His capture is regarded as certain, and this event, as in the case of Cetewayo in the Zulu war, will no doubt close the campaign. Russia appears to be intriguing with Greece, in view of possible contingencies in the East, and has promised to hand over Crete to her after the next war. The civil war in Brazil is still progressing. An insurgent ironclad has been sunk by a land battery, and her crew of 150 men perished. There is stated to be great distress among the Indians in the province of Quebec, some hundreds having died of starvation. The Employers Liability Bill has passed all its stages in the House of Commons. The Radical members who felt aggrieved at Lord Herschell's action to the deputation which waited upon him re country magistrates, have brought his conduct under the notice of Mr. Gladstone, bub the Premier declined to interfere, so there is likely to be further trouble on that subject. The Herald Monthly Summary, for transmission by the next outward San Francisco mail, will be published next Friday morning. Those desirous of forwarding the summary to their friends in Europe, America, etc., will have ample time to do so, as the newspaper mail closes on Saturday next, at halfpast eleven a.m., up to which hour orders for mailing the summary will also be received at the Publishing Office, Queen-street. Tbi9 mail will be due in London on Wednesday, 3rd. January,

-«Tho s.s. Aorangi has arrived at Hoba from London, as will be seen from our ahi ping intelligence. Among her New Zealat passengers are Lady and Miss Gorst. Yesterday the Rotorua railway extensit from Putaruru to Tarukenga was open( for traffic. The first train was run fro the Rotorua end. About two coach loa< of passengers reached Tarukenga fro Rotorua, principally tourists. The perm nent way is in fairly good order, but tl removal of the superincumbent earth of tl two large landslides has nob yet bet undertaken. The work will be done in tl intervals of the trains running. The many friends of Mr. Henry Worthing ton, headmaster of the Wellesley-stroi School, will be glad to learn that he much improved in health by his trip acros to the other side. He is at present i Sydney, and it is hoped ho will rotur fully restored in health. It is notified by the Registrar of th Supreme Court, by advertisement in anothe column, that the criminal sittings of th Supreme Court, which were to have coir mencedon Monday, at eleven o'clock, havi been postponed until eleven o'clock o Thursday, and witnesses and parties ir tere'ted in the cases, as well as jurors, ar notified that they need not attend unti Thursday. The adjournment has taken plac in order not to interfere with thefranchise b withdrawing jurors and others from the! various districts, and in every casein whic! it was possible to reach country constable who have charge of cases, they have beei notified of the alteration of the date b* telegraph. We have to thank Mr, J. M. Salmond of Karotonga, (or sample of lime pickles a: prepared by him. The superiority of tin lime fruit for pickling purposes is no as yet properly appreciated in this colony but in " the land of the castes and curries,' it is esteemed as an indispensable adjunct to ttie national dish. Greater praise coult not be bestowed upon the article as manu factured by Mr. Salmond, than to say thai the .sample received is fully equal in poini of flavour to any that could be procured ir: India, although the fruit has evidently been pickled only recently, and its quality will improve with age. An inquest was held yesterday afternoon before Dr. Philson, Coroner, in connection with the dead body of the child discovered in the harbour on Thursday. Mr. John Abramson was chosen foreman of the jury. Dr. Bakewell gave evidence to the effect hat in all probability the child had never ! '"bed. Cordon Dignan. one of the boys that discovered the body, also gave evidence Sergeant Macky was also examined. There was nothing to show how the body got into the water. A verdict of " Found dead in the harbour" was returned. An adjourned meeting of the Auckland Rifle Association was held at the drill-shed last night to consider and decide thequestion whether the matches for the next meeting, to be held on the 'J3rd and '26th of December, should be tired with Snider or MartiniHenry rifles. There were 19 present, and ex-Captain Hazard presided. There was a strong feeling amongst some of the marksmen in favour of the Snider, and an equally strong expression in favour of the superior weapon. A vote was taken, 9 voting for Sniders and 9 for Martini-Henrys. The chairman, who had not given a deliberative vote, gave his casting vote in favour of the Martini Henry rifles, and that not only fixes the weapon for this year's competition, but virtually for the future, as it is expected that by next year the volunteer corps generally will be equipped with the Martini-Henry rifles. There died at Sydney, on the 17th inst., Captain Curphy, late of the steamer Fiona, who had bsen in the inter-colonial trade for many years past. Ho was well known in Auckland, having frequently visited this port. He was related to Capt. Fisher, late deputy harbourmaster of Auckland. Yesterday morning, a man named Daniel Munroe, a carter in the employ of Mr. J. J. Craig, met with a painful accident by falling off his waggon. He was coming down Wyndham-street with a two-horse waggon, when on putting on the break it gave way, and he fell over behind the horses and in front of the waggon. One of the wheels ■went across his right leg, severely lacerating it from the ankle to the knee. No bones, however, were broken. Dr. Hooper attended to the man, and then Constable Lynd took him to the Disttict Hospital for further treatment. In yesterday's issue we gave some particulars concerning the case of Arthur Devitt, a gumdig','er, who attempted suicide by cutting his throat with a razor at the Victoria Hotel at an early hour yesterday morning. Levitt's mate, George Campbell, was sleeping in the same bedroom, and he states that he left the bedroom temporarily about 12.30. On his leturn, in ten minutes, he found Devitt lying on his back on the bed with his throat cut and the razor in his left hand. There was a pool of blood on the floor, and the bedclothes were also stained. Campbell can give no reason why Devitt attempted his life. There was a letter lying alongside Devitt, addressed to a young" woman in another hotel, also a i piece of ribbon and a lock of hair. Devitt belongs to the No&tjiern Wairoa, and had been "staying at the Victoria Hotel for a week. He is a single man, and about 25 years of age. He is progressing favourably it the Hospital, notwithstanding the nature of his wounds, but it will be sometime aefore he will be able to be discharged from :he Hospital. On Thursday night a man named Edward Walsh was taken to the Hospital, having been found lying on the footpath in Hob- j son street, apparently under the influence ■}( liquor. His hands and arms were badly jut, it is stated, through breaking seven panes of glass in the City Hotel. Dr. Hooper attended to the man's wounds, and the police then removed him to the Hospital. Tenders were invited pome time ago for ihe erection of new St. Paul's Church, and r hen they came in the two lowest tenders were found to be those of Messrs. McLean and Morris and of Mr. Grandison, the latter being the lowest. The plans were reduced, and 'again tender*, called, Messrs. McLean and Morris's being the lowest, £6100, and Mr. Grandison's £6300. The former tender has been accepted, and the contract time is twelve months. Under the modified plan the chancel will be left unbuilt, and a portion of the tower and spire, bub before the building is available for divine service it will be necessary to erect a temporary chancel at a cost of £300. For the carrying out of the modified scheme all the money is in hand, consequently the church will be completed, so far as this contract is concerned, free of debt. Last evening Ernest Lewis, a passenger by the ss. U'aihora from Sydney, was arrested by Customs-officer Loekie and Chief Detective Grace on a charge of a breach of the Customs Act by evading duty on a quantity of jewellery, value £40, consisting of watches, rings, etc. The detachment of the Auckland police who have been engaged during the past week in gun drill at Fort Cautley, yesterday had some target practice. A target wae placed in the Rangitoto Channel, at 1800 yards, and the practice with shot is stated to have been very good. A special temperance demonstration under the auspices of the Primitive Methodist Open Air Mission will take place at the junction of Grey and Queen-streets this evening. Several speakers will address the meeting on the direct veto and the Government Liquor Bill. A epeciil general meeting of the Auckland Yacht Club was to have been held last evening, but lapsed for want of a quorum. At the Opera House last night the Bland Holt Dramatic Company repeated the intensely interesting drama, "A Million of Money." There was a splendid attendance. The piece went off most successfully from every point of view, the greatest enthusiasm being manifested by the audience. The fine scenery was again the subject of much favourable comment, and each performer acted with praiseworthy ability. " A Miillon of Money" will be staged again this evening. In response to the invitation of StaffCaptain and Mrs. (irinling, a goodly number of the soldiers and friends of the Salvation Army spent a social evening together in the Albert-street Barracks last evening. The brass band supplied the music, a number of songs were sung, and during the evening tea and light refreshments were handed round. The list of contributions to the self-denial fund were read out, amounting in all to £40 15s; this as against £33 2s collected last year, shows an increase of £7 13s. Staff-Captain and Mrs. Grinling, of the Albert-street Barracks, and Ensign Gunning of the Rescue Home, will be farewelling on Sunday week.