THE WOULD-BE MAN.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 866, 18 August 1879, Page 2

THE WOULD-BE MAN.

[To the Editor of the Herald.] Sir, — Tn Captain Morris' address to the meeting of Saturday night, the most was made of the so-called blots of policy of the present Ministry. We, however, heard very little of what his party intended to do. By inference ho led the meeting to believe that, as his party .would-be m power, and the spending of the five-million loan would be with them, he would be able to get a fair shave of that money for his districts. He made the most of the £350,000 sent Home, bnt failed to tell the meeting that the money was required to meet liabilities which have to be met next month. Now, as we are again borrowers m the money"\iiarkets, 'it seem 9 to me that as a matter of prudence, the Government were justified m • not- depending upon any portion of the proposed loan ■to mcct 1 this liability. It is not my intention to criticise at length the arguments adduced m condemnation of the prey Ministry, bnt rather to question the right of Capt. Morris to expect that he m his labours of the past has earned, or that m the future, he would earn the confidence of the electors. Capt. Morris has the credit of sincerity m his political convictions, and honesty to his party. This, m the past, as far as we are concerned, has been carried too far for the interests of the district ; a man of more moderate views would do us infinitely more good. Of the £20,000 which Capt. Morris claims to have been spent m the district, since he has been

our representative, how much was obtained through his efforts. He lias done a good deal for his party, but absolutely nothing for the constituency. Ho has told us that he will not support Sir George Grey, and, by inference, Sir George's party. Now, whatever objection there maybe to Sir Gteorye Grey personally, his party have done a great deal of good. The attempts to: secure a measure of taxation which would press more equitably upon all classes of itself is a measure of which one need be proud of. Another measure is the putting a stop to the trafficking by its officials or friends, m Native Lands, to the detriment of the public estate. I altogether fail to see that Capt, Morris has earned the right of re-election at the hands of the constituency m this district. He 1 denies that there "are two defined parties or distinct political platforms upon which to (to to the country. It is clear that Sir Georgo's platform is marked enough I am inclined to think that Captain Morris' party, if it is a party at all, may be described as a coalition one, they have bounded together not so much to enunciate any defined policy as against the other side, but rather to drive Sir George Grey from the, Treasury benches. To speak plainly ifc is more a question of office than of measure. To gain this point Fox has joined with Atkinson, a member of a family, that Sir William once solemnly said it would have been better for the Colony to have given half a million of money to leave it. Captain Morris by inference said a new man would do us very little good, to put it shortly, that he would be of little use for awhile at log-rollfhg. I hope that political life has a higher aim than this. Let us have a local man whoever he may bfi, one whom we. would have more opportunities of meeting than would be afforded by our electing: a gentleman who lives out of the district. — lam, &c, Nestor.