NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, November 10, 1855.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume X, Issue 1072, 10 November 1855, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, November 10, 1855.

The members of the Provincial Government, having gradually lost the support and forfeited the respect of the well-educated and reflecting portion of the community, of whatever station in life, now pretend to throw themselves into the arms of what they choose to distinguish as the “ working-men.” While professing, however, to do so, —-while openly declaring that the opinions of the people could only be taken by numbers, —they were really grieving at the small number of persons, respectable by their intelligence rather than their wealth, on whose confidence they could rely. Even in the course of that offensive canvass of the town, which they undertook in order to procure signatures to Dr. Featherston’s requisition, Mr. Fitzherhert is related to have said to one of the leading merchants, whom he was endeavouring to entrap into doing so, “that he would rather make a convert of an educated man like him, than fifty such * yokels ’ as were te be met on the beach.’. While the Independent, writing for the Govern, ment, has been describing the opposition as composed of a few merchants and the stupid “ shopocracy ” who depend on them, the active supporters of the Government have really been of that class. The Joint-Chairmen of the Government Candidates’ Committee, are Mr. Waring Taylor, & merchant, and Mr. Holdsworth, r shopocrat. Their Secretaries are Mr. James Smith, an auctioneer, and Mri J. 11. Wallace, formerly a small merchant, now a land agent. Their most active canvassers are Mr. Carter, a builder and Government contractor, and Mr. Plimmer, a builder and oivner of large property in land and houses. The two last each employ a large number of men; and exercise a control over their minds and votes which wo should hardly have believed to exist in this country over "working-men,” on the part of their employers, if we did not plainly observe it. It is proverbial among those who converse on the chances of the forthcoming election, that if a man’s name is m mtioned as being. “Pliminer’s man” or “Carter’s man,” he is considered as safe for the Government side as though he were the miserable dependent of some titled boroughmonger of the old country. We should be the first to acknowledge the real amount ot political intelligence, which is to be, found among actual “working-men,” and to allow them equal rights, and equal consideration, with any other classes; but we cannot perceive toy political intelligence in those who blindly follow their employer’s directions as to politics, and who are counted in the body politic as merely the following of Carter or Plimmer. Fancying that, by their clap-trap pretensions to be the exclusive friends of the “ working-man,” they had secured the approval of the greatest number, the members of the Government determined to test the real state of popular opinion with regard to themselves at a public meeting. They selected their own subject for discussion, their own chairman, their own time and place, their own antagonist, and their own manner of conducting the meeting Although they were the challengers, they chose their own weapons, umpire, audience, ground, antagonist, time, and mode of fighting. And, even under such advantageous circumstances, they received, at the very largest public meeting that has yet been held in Wellington, the most signal defeat, —the most umnistakeable expression of disapprobation,—-the most decisive vote of “ want of confidence,” that ever a Government received from a popular assembly. We de&ribed, on Wednesday, the failure of their attempt to inveigle Mr. J. Wakefield, and Hart and Carkeek’s Committee, into a discussion of certain charges, which they alleged him to have brought against the Government (on the 6th and Bth of October, and elsewhere since), at a “public meeting ’ which should be addressed by no other person than five of the Government officers whom such charges would, if true, affect, and Mr. Wakefield. In the course of Wednesday, they tried to inveigle the Committee of Messrs. FI art and Carkeek into takipg on themselves the responsibility of these charges, whether really made by Mr, Wakefield or not, by cooperating with them to hold a public meeting for their discussion, —cedingatthe same time, the point, that any elector might address the meeting, provided he confined himself to the. question at issue. Directly Mr. Wakefield became aware of this attempt, he wrote a letter to Mr. Hickson, the Chairman of Messrs. Hart and Carkeek’s Committee, taking on himself alone the entire responsibility of whatever he might have said in public, at any time or place, without their authority ; pointing out that these charges were alleged to have been made by him long before the Committee was formed, and before either Mr. Carkeek or Mr Hart were candidates; and begging the Committee not to be deterred, by such electioneering dodges, from their exertions to secure the return of Mr. Hart and Mr. Carkeek. The Committee entirely concurred m Mr. Wakefield’s opinion ; and' sent such an answer to the Committee of the Government Candidates as convinced them that their battle, if battle there wasto be, must be with that gentleman alone ; and that witn him alone must . they come to terms as to the preliminary arrangements. On Thursday morning, accordingly, the Secretary of the Committee of Dr. Featherston, Mr. Clifford, and Mr. Fitzherbert informed Mr. Wakefield that they had called a meeting of the friends and supporters of those gentlemen that evening for the purpose of hearing a discussion of the charges “lately brought by him against the Provincial

Government of peculation and jobbing of the Waste Lands,” that the meeting had been called in that manner “ to prevent disturbance and to confine the discussion to the question,” but that all electors would be permitted to address it, and inviting Mr. Wakefield to attend, “ in order that you may substantiate,” writes the Secretary, “ the grave charges you have made against the Provincial Executive.” Mr. Wakefield replied, thanking the Committee for their courtesy, but reserving to himself the right of deciding, in the course of the day, whether he should attend a meeting “ so constituted.” He also warned the Committee not to publish again, in placards, assertions with regard to his conduct which, if unfounded, would be libels on his character. The committee took no notice of this request, but issued fresh placards in the course of the day, again asserting that Mr. Wakefield had made charges of “ peculation and jobbery” against the members of the Provincial Government. This was one of the most unfair proceedings of the Government party ; because it strongly prejudiced the public mind, beforehand, in favor of believing that Mr. W. had made such charges, icithout first hearing his own explanations as to whether he had or had not. It became generally known, however, in the course of the afternoon, that Mr. Wakefield intended to meet the whole batch of Government officers, fight them on their own ground, and, if there should be any doubt as to the veracity of those “ honourable gentlemen” on one side, or of himself on the other, to let the public assembly judge. From the length of the proceedings which lasted till halfpast one o’clock in the morning, and from the pressure of former matter, we have been obliged to postpone a full report of them till Wednesday next; but the following will, we believe, be found an accurate summary of what took place:—

PUBLIC MEETING, ON THURSDAY, Bth NOV. The Hall of Nations was well filled from an early hour, and was thronged during a great part of the proceedings, as well as at the termination, when the decision of the Meeting was arrived at. There must have been neaily 600 persons in the room, of whom some 30 or 40, however, were boys. At about a quarter to eight o’clock, J. C. Raymond, Esq., J.P., Manager uf the Union Bank of Australia, took the chair. He explained that he had been requested to do so by the Committee who called the meeting; that he should not have consented to do so if he had considered the meeting one of an electioneering character ; but that, the character of the Government officers having been represented to him to be at stake, he had thought it not unbecoming in him to consent to preside. Mr. Fitzherbert, the Provincial Secretary, spoke first, very briefly, and read from a written paper the following statement, as containing the particulars of the matter for discussion :—

At a public election meeting at the Hutt, on or about the 6th October last, at which meeting Mr. Renail and Mr. J. Wakefield were opposing candidates, Mr. J. Wakefield described Mr. Renall as a supporter of the Government, and in order to shew up the sort of Government he was supporting, he made the following charge, viz.,— “ That the members of the Executive of this Pro viuce had peculated and robbed the public lands to such an extent, in collusion with the Commissioner of Crown Lands, that in comparison with- the gains they thus made, their- own salaries were a mere trifle or ■bagatelle.”

Nr. Jerxingh/m Wakefield was then called on by the Chairman to make such statements or explanations as he might choose relating to the above matter. 'He was received with loud, general, and prolonged applause. He deli vered a speech of two hours and a half in length, which is considered by most of his hearers as the best that he ever made, and which was certainly the most effective that has been made at a Public Meeting here for many a day. The interest of the audience never flagged during the whole time; and repeated bursts of applause followed the clear exposure which he made of the dishonest manoeuvres of the Government officers and their party in trying to crush him, as a leading political opponent of theirs, by fixing on him the unfounded stigma of having falsely calumniated them. He began by shewing that he stood there as an accused person, and asked for a written copy of the accusation, or indictment, against him, which had been read by Mr. Fitzherbert. This was handed to the Chairman by Mr. Fitzherbert, who meanly begged him to “ take care of it.” Mr. Wakefield observed, that it was of much more importance to him than to Mr. F. that the document should be preserved, and its contents recorded. He then commented on the manner in which the “tribunal” had been constituted, expressing his thorough confidence in the impartiality and ability of the Chairman, upon tlic vliulcc Uf wnom lie bad not even Deen consulted, but remarking that the meeting was one of the “ friends and supporters of Dr. Featherston, Mr. Fitzherbert, and Mr. Clifford,” although other electors were at liberty to address it. He asked the Committee of those gentlemen, and pointedly Mr. Waring Taylor and Mr. Holdsworth, the Joint Chairmen, “ whether they could, after all that had passed, as men of honor say on their consciences that they were not prejudiced against him already to a greater or less extent ?” Those gentlemen looked very blank at the question, especially when Mr. Wakefield quoted Mr. Holdsworth’s prejudiced replies to Mr. Toomath’s questions on Tuesday night, (see our report of Tuesday’s meeting). Mr. Wakefield also asked why, after informing him only late at night on the sth of November, of their intention to bring the in atter for ward for public discussion, they had not given him time to reply, before they issued placards to prejudice the public in favor of a belief that he undoubtedly had made the charges ? He then alluded to the manner in which Mr. Fitzherbert in that room some nights before, and Mr. Brandon and Mr. Fox at Karon, on both occasions in his absence, had also donp their best to prejudice the public mind in the same way. He read, from the Independent, a report of Mr. Brandon’s words at Karori, taking it for granted that Mr. Wakefield had made the assertion complained of, and, on behalf of his colleagues and himself, denouncing the as. sertion as “ an atrocious falsehood, and dam.

nable calumny, and any man who could make it a liar and a slanderer”; and of Mr. Fox’s similar words at Karori, “ a more infamous falsehood, a more barefaced liecoukl notbe uttered,” and M r. Fox’s vapid threat, that if Mr. Wakefield did not accept Mr. Fitzherbert’s challenge to substantiate his charge at a public meeting before Saturday, the lOthinst., “he would not only denounce him as a liar, but would post him as such!” He shewed that Mr. Fitzherbert had not so challenged him, except at a meeting -of his own friends and supporters, when Mr. W. was not present; and that the first challenge of the kind received by him was the letter of the sth November, inviting him to come one against five, or to be made a “sandwich” between the Provincial Executive on the one side, and the officers of the Land Department on the other. He had not come in consequence of Mr. Fox’s threat, for he could rely confidently on the judgment of the Wellington public, which had known him at different times during the last fifteen years, as to his own veracity compared with Mr. Fox’s. But he was content to take the present meeting for a competent and fair “ tribunal,” and was satisfied with laying the whole case before them. The only answer given to these preliminary thrusts at the Government officers and their following, was a vigorous expression of approval by the meeting, and chap-fallen looks on the part of its conveners. Mr. W. then addressed himself to the charge itself. He read extracts from reports in the Spectator of the speeches which he and Mr. Fitzherbei't made at the Hutt meetings on the 6th and Bth of October ; shewing that he had not on the 6th accused the Government officers, or any one of them, of actual peculation or jobbery, but that he had asserted that, under the present system, there were ample opportunities for them to do so; and that, when Mr. Fitzherbert misrepresented, or affected to misunderstand that assertion, he had taken the earliest opportunity of explaining, on the Bth, when Mr. Fitzhcrbert absented himself, clearly and distinctly what his meaning was. He then shewed that the present movement was merely an “ electioneering dodge” of the grossest character, intended to divert attention from the merits of the rival candidates, and to avoid bringing Dr F. before a public meeting; since the Government officers had, for a whole month, omitted to take any further notice of the affair. He went into the charges which he really had made against the Government, of improperly withholding information from the public relating to the public lands, so as to make it more possible for favoritism and jobbing to take place. He clearly convicted them by facts, dates, and figures, not only of such misconduct, but even of having bralien the law, as amended by the Provincial Council, in not having published the required monthly returns. He concluded by an earnest appeal to the public, as to whether they would allow him to be crushed, or choked off, by the Government party in the manner intended by this, attack on him, because he had chosen to “ bell-the-cat,” in pointing out the real evils and dangers of leaving the system as it is, and handing over greater powers to the men now in office. He declared his intention to persevere in his present course, which he conscientiously believed to be right, even if he should be for a time crippled or injured by such attempts; and he left the decision that night confidently to the audience. We have no space to describe the cutting irony, as well as serious reproof, which Mr. Wakefield administered in the course of his speech, to the members of the Government. Having been called on to speak first, and it being uncertain whether he would be allowed a reply, he answered everything by anticipation which his accusers could possiby say; and when he sate down amidst thunders of applause, it was evident that no cunning, persuasiveness, or sophistry on the part of the Provincial Secretary, no legal quibbles on the part of the Provincial Treasurer or Solicitor, would be able to remove or weaken the impression he had made. Mr. Fitzherbert then spoke for nearly two hours, to a very impatient audience, whose repeated disapprobation he provoked by his own manner and matter. He dwelt strongly on the fair character of the present tribunal. He read from the Spectator, which he called Mr. Wakefield’s “ own paper,” only part of what Mr, W, was reported to have said, and his own reply,—carefully omitting any notice of Mr. W.’s explanation on the next day,— and persisted in asserting that Mr. W. had made the alleged charge. He accused Mr. W. of digressing from the question at issue, and himself digressed on every possible opportunity. He defended himself and his colleagues from the charges which Mr. W. had not made, and took no notice of those which he had mado and substantiated. He brought as evidence, his own of what Mr. Wakefield said at the Hutt, a letter from Mr. Renall (Mr, W’s. opponent on that occasion) I and his own account of a conversation^ he (Mr. F.) had had with Mr. Leonard 1 Young, whom he described as of no party. (The fact being, that Mr. Young voted against Mr. W. at that election). The meeting asked where these witnesses were. Mr F. concluded, after long quotations from the proceedings of the Provincial Council to prove he had not jobbed in buying land at Wainuiomataa, and statistics to shew that the sheepruns were chiefly in the hands of opponents of the Government, by calling Mr. Wakefield a liar, and engaging, if he did not retract his accusation, to post him as such. The Chairman then proposed to put an end to the meeting, by giving his own sentence as a sort of judge; but this was evidently not approved of. Mr. Stokes made some strong remarks on Mr. F’s. assertions that the Spectator was under thfe influence of Mr. Wakefield.

Mr. Wakefield called on any Hutt elector who might have been present at the meetings in question, to give an account of his impression as to what he (Mr. W.) had said.

Mr. F. D. Bell, who was received with much cheering, said his impression of what was intended to be conveyed by Mr. W.’s words differed entirely from that of Mr. Fitzherbert and Mr. Renall. He understood him to assert only that the power was in their

hands to profit by their official position, not that they had done it. lie had told Mr. Renall so, in a recent conversation with him. But he believed many, both at the Hott and here, were under the impression that Mr. W. had made a direct accusation. Such an impression had gone abroad ; and he had blamed Mr. W. as a leader of opinion, for having contributed to let it do so.

This evidence confirmed the meeting in their favorable inclination towards Mr Wakefield. Mr. Moore then proposed, and Mr. R. J. Duncan seconded the-following resolution:— That it is the opinion of this Meeting that Mr. E. J. Wakefield’s explanations are perfectly satisfactory, and that the charges alleged by the printed placard to have been made by Mr. Wakefield at the Hutt Meeting, on the 6th and Bth October, have not been established to the satisfaction of this public meeting.

Mr. Fox, the Provincial Treasurer, who was by no means well received, tried to explain why the Government officers had not taken earlier notice of Mr. W.’s statement: and went into explanations to shew that he had not personally jobbed in the public lands. Mr. Holdsworth proposed the following amendment, which he thought would meet with the approval of all parties, if Mr. Fitzherbert would only retract his threat of posting Mr. Wakefield as a liar :— That the explanations which have been made fully exonerate the Executive of this Province from the charges which it is believed had been entertained respecting them. Mr. J. H. Wallace seconded it. Mr. Bell then went, at some considerable length, into the general question, in order to defend his own integrity, and that of all the Government officers, General and Provincial, and to shew that no jobbing could take place under the present system.

Mr. Fitzherbert positively refused to re tract his threat, unless Mr. Wakefield retracted his charges. To the surprise of most people, and to the indignation of many, Mr. Holdsworth did not, as he certainly ought to have done, withdrew his amendment in consequence of this declaration.

Mr. Wakefield said he would not retract any charge which he had made; still less any which he had not made. If the officers of the Provincial Government thought it dignified to post him as a liar, he would throw “liar” in their teeth, and let the public judge. Thunders of applause followed. The Chairman put the amendment first, which was rejected by a large majority. The original motion was then put, and so many hands were held up for it that the Chairman at once declared it carried amidst deafening shouts of applause. The numbers appeared to us about five-sixths of all the people in the Hall. Three cheers and “ one cheer more,” for Wakefield, three deep groans for Fitzherbert, and a vote of thanks to the Chairman, wound up the proceedings at about £ past one o’clock on Friday morning.