MR DUTHIE AT THOMAS’ HALL.

New Zealand Times, Volume LVII, Issue 2415, 22 January 1895, Page 2

MR DUTHIE AT THOMAS’ HALL.

As a politician Mr Duthio is pessimistic, and, whenever it is a case of pessimism, a little over credulous, as, for instance, when he feels sure that the Government has bought an estate at Kaikoura, and another from Mr Douglas of Pomahaka fame. Kaikoura, however, we may observe in passing, is a very good place for a settlement, a place where such a thing is very badly wanted. We may so far agree with Mr , Dnthie’s , involuntary testimony to the practical good sense of .. the Government, - as to express regret that they have not got any place secured at Kaikoura. We mayjgo -further V apd gently remind Mr D.uthie that purchases of this kind are made by a board duly ordained’and set up-by a law which he himself helped to pass. Under the circumstances, to talk of the Government buying estates is a shade wild. We ore not surprised at the , mistake, because in the matter of mistakes, if we are to judge by Friday night’s performance; Mr Dnthie is consistent. He took up the exploded Pomahaka bubble blown by Mr Scobio Mackenzie, and he repeated every misstatement and every absurdity, from which even the leaders of the Opposition shank when they wore discussing the thing ; in Parliament. Some of these - fallacies wore really too glaring- at this distance of time, ... -For instance, there was the old, story .: of the petition got up by Mr Douglas, but the fact-is well:, known! that the Purchase Board decided to buy without having seen

Ibo petition. There is also the stupid charge that the valuator was not appointed in Dunedin; whereas tho fact is that he could only have been appointed wherehe was appointed, viz., in AVellington; which was tho headquarters of the Purchase Board. Particularly rich is the idea that the Munster of Lands broke his word by appealing to a Parliamentary Committee. Hero is a legislator who evidently does not know that Parliament is the highest Court to which a subject of this realm can appeal for judgment. When Mr McKenzie said ho would --o to the highest Court, it was .quite well understood that he meant Parliament. But it has been reserved for tho ingenious Mr Duthio to discover that for a man to keep his word is precisely the same thing as to break it. However, even.that curious feat is not astonishing, because on a simple question of fact Mr Dnthie got into a hopeless muddle. One telegram was missing when tho evidence was taken in the Pomahaka case, and only one; and the purport of that telegram was in evidence. Nothing more was required to enable anyone to arrive at a clear judgment. But in the face of that fact Mr Dnthie ventured on the remarkable statement that owing to tho absence of missing letters and telegrams the truth on some points was much obscured. It is simply impossible to understand how anyone conversant with the facts could have made such a statement. Quite worthy it isi of tho man who, after declaring solemnly that he made no charge against the officers of the department, gratuitously insulted a body of honourable men by suggesting that advantage should bo taken of the power of “largesse. It is a pretty little series of blunders, which breaks clown every point in Mr Dnthie s Pomahaka indictment. But he was not content with that proportion of errors for one night. He insisted on making an astounding addition to the series. When he produced those very bad samples of corn to give interest to his otherwise bald narrative he spoke with the air of an experienced agriculturist. But every tyro knows that there are soils which when first ploughed give very bad results, as they require exposure to the weather to get them into working order. The land at the Pomahaka is of . that class, and if Mr Dnthie had kept his eyes about him as he professed to have done, he would have seen 1200 acres on this very property lying almost undisturbed after a first ploughing, left to tho actiou of a year s weather. In suph soils the farmer will put in a crop in the hope that the land may benefit, but ho never expects’ any result until after the second year’s ploughing. But Mr Dnthie gathers of tho proceeds of the first year’s crop and solemnly asks us to condemn tho land. As an agriculturist it is clear that Mr Dnthie has even more to learn than as a politician.