The Opunake Times. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1896. TARANAKI ELECTORATE.

Opunake Times, Volume V, Issue 222, 20 October 1896, Page 2

The Opunake Times. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1896. TARANAKI ELECTORATE.

Mb C. E. Bellringer, one of the candidates for the Taranaki electorate, addressed the electors at Opunake on last Tuesday evening. He is a fairly fluent speaker, and got through his task very well. He appears to be a very earnest young man, and with time and a little more study of political questions may develop into a useful public man. He does not appear to realise that there should be a platform for men who seek to guide the destinies of a young nation, in which patriotism, sterling honesty of purpose, and definite aims should be the chief planks. He claims to come forward as an Independent candidate, but the cloven hoof was apparent throughout his address. He admits he does not know what the programme of the Opposition would be if they obtained the reins of power, as he says they declined to make it known, and then, without waiting to hear it, he unhesitatingly condemns them, and states he would not support them. Where does independence come, in ? We would call a man an Independent who waited till he heard the evidence or proposals of both sides, and then gave his support to the side which he considered was prepared to do that which would produce “ the greatest good for the greatest number." On the contrary, Mr Bellringer showed that the Premier was an untrustworthy politician ; that he had permitted certain things to be done with regard to finance, which, being done by a private individual, would land him uncomfortably close to the penitentiary ; that the Minister of Lauds was ditto ; that the Minister of Public Works and the Minister of Defence were pitchforked into the Ministry on account of where they hailed from, and not on account of any merit they possessed; yet, with all this damnatory evidence that they were not worthy of the confidence ot the country, he was prepared to give them his support, provided, no doubt, they would be led by him as to what policy they would adopt. If this is what he looks on as independence the word has attained a new significance. We looh on it as the very worst form of servility. We can admire, to a certain extent, a man who gives an unwavering support to a party, and who always looks for their” good points, of which every party and individual has some, and, who is to their faults a little blind, because, if such a course has no other recommendation, it, at any rate, is consistent. But when a man sees the glaring redness of a party’s sins, then takes the rhetorical brush and adds another coat of brightest scarlet to them, and after doing so, says he is prepared to support such men, in any circumstances, the electors may well exclaim, “ save the country from such representatives.” He condemned Party Government, and stated it was not like Party Government' at Home. Why is it not like Party Government at Home ? Because the electors return members who are not possessed of the requisite patriotism and knowledge necessary to fill the positions of representatives. Party Government is quite a desirable form of government so long as the people choose representatives in whose integrity they can place reliance*. So long as the electors allow themselves to be actuated by a policy of individual grab, no alteration for the better will take place in our system of government. As the electors are, so will their representatives be. Let the electors aim higher, and they will be bound to select representatives worthy of them. He favors an Elective Executive iu order to counteract the evil effects of Party Government, but admits that ho does not know of any place where such a system has had a trial. He says the leaders of both parties are strenuously opposed to such an innovation, because they have tasted the sweets of office and power. Is it not more probable they oppose it because having been entrusted with the responsibilities of office they know that such a fad would be unworkable. In all businesses or undertakings a man usually thinks he could run any other man’s business better than the proprietor, and thinks there is no difficulty in running any business but his own. This is because ho lias some knowledge of his own troubles. So with the leaders of parties. As a corollary to the Elective Executive he favors the Referendum, by which all measures of importance would be submitted direct to the people. This has been tried in Switzerland, but is not working out so satisfactorily as was anticipated, because on the one frontier German interests preponderate, and on the other French interests. The very fact of outside influences being able to interfere w:ch the will of the people is proof that the will of the people being exercised in any such direct form is not the panacea it is cracked up to be. In the face of so many new notions beiag brought forward, the wonder to us is that no member has brought forward a scheme of erecting a number of penny-in-tbe-slot machines in the sacred precincts of the Government grounds at Wellington, where y)u would be able to slip in your penny and get the particular kind of measure passed for you that you required. If the Referendum would do away with the Parliamentary farce of sending men to make ansi amend laws, who know little or nothing of the laws al-

ready on the Statute Book, then we think it might be productive of some good, as a third the number of fairly paid, honest, and zealous men would conduct our affairs with much more advantage to the taxpayers than the present heterogenous mob of two hundred and forty pounders. In every walk in life a man must serve a certain terra of apprenticeship before he is considered fit to be entrusted with a position of responsibility and trust, except for the most important of all, Parliament. If a man has served his fellowmen by taking a part in the various forms of local government, and has done so with credit, then he may justly aspire to serving his country as a Parliamentary representative, because he will have acquired a knowledge of what governing is, and may reasonably be looked to to acquit himself in his higher sphere with credit.