THE PELORUS GUARDIAN FRIDAY NOVEMBER. 28, 1890. By whom are we to be Governed?

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 1, Issue 87, 28 November 1890, Page 2

THE PELORUS GUARDIAN FRIDAY NOVEMBER. 28, 1890. By whom are we to be Governed?

Our readers, like ourselves, are no doubt getting nearly tired of the discussion of political questions to the exclusion of all other subjects, but as this is about the last opportunity we shall have of addressing the whole district before the election we feel that wo have a duty to perforin in the interests of the colony and the district, however distasteful to us the performance of that duty may be. It would be far more congenial to us to write on a subject which would meet with general approval, as we know that in an election contest we shall not please everybody, and may possibly tread on the toes of those for whom we have the greatest personal respect. The question which is asked at the head of this article is one which it would be i well for every elector in the colony to ask himself and to ponder over before he records his vote this day week. Every elector has a solemn duty to perform to himself, to the country, and to the children who are to come after him, and on the performance of that duty will rest the destinies of this young colony for many years to come. New Zealand is acknowledged far and wide to be one of the best estates in the world, and if it had been properly managed the people would have now been enjoying happiness and prosperity beyond measure ; but nobody can deny that instead of this the people are heavily burdened with taxation to an almost unbearable extent, and we have been on the very verge of bankruptcy. We ask : Is this a satisfactory result—does it reflect any credit on those who have had the management of its affairs? We do not think there is any man in the colony who would have the temerity to rise up and say, Yes. Then the next question comes, are we to allow the same men who have brought about this wretched state of affairs by their culpable mismanagement to continue to bold the reins of Government ? We think that the voice of the people from one end of the colony to the other will say emphatically, No, There is no occasion for us to turn over the pages of history and lay bare before the electors the wretched past, most of them know too well what a frightful mess has been made of the government of the country, and the bare fact remains that with all the advantages we possess we are one of the heaviest taxed countries in the world, and some of our best men have been leaving the country in disgust, when thousands ought to be coming here to still further add to our prosperity. It is enough to make any one grieve to think what a bright and happy state of affairs might have been existing at the present tiuje if only our legislators had shown even the most feeble statesmanship; but such is not the ease, and it is no use crying over spilt milk. We can, however, avoid a recurrence of the mistakes of the past by a judicious selection of men who are not likely to bring down the wrath of an indignant public by playing fast and loose with the public estate for their own and their friends benefit, while the majority are left to mourn. If we may judge by the interest taken in the present elections by the whole colony the people have stood it about as long as they intend to do, and have determined to put their foot down against a continuance of what can only be designated as a wretched and expensive farce. We hear a Jot about Sir Harry Atkinson having put the finances of the countrymen a sound basis and creating a surplus, but how has it been done f Why, by taxing the people ! We have said over and over again that any Government could hive a surplus if they liked to tax the people siff-

fieiently, but the surplus is not the result of increased wealth, it is simply the result of increased taxation. Ii doss not require any statesmanship h do that; but it does require statesmanship to increase the wealth of the country by encouraging the development ol its natural resources. Has this been attempted in the slightest degree ? We say most decidedly it has not; nothing has been dona only what has been absolutely forced on the Government by the voice of the public, and there would have been no talk oven now of settling the land or adopting any measures to increase our wealth had not public opinion demanded it, and if the electors do not insist on it being carried into effect it will only end in promises as it has done on other occasions. Sir Harry Atkinson should command the respect and esteem of every man in the colony, but what the people want to know 7 is, does he govern the country ? Is not the country governed rather by land monopolists and monetary institutions through Sir Harry Atkinson ? Because if we are to judge lay the laws which have been passed, the appointments which have been made, and the whole actions of the Ministry, w 7 e can arrive at no other conclusion than that Sir Harry has but very little voice in the matter, but he and his party have only been aclhg as agents for a select few wdio wish the country wniiced for their especial benefit. And that brings us to the question which heads this article—“By whom are w 7 e to be governed ?”* Are the people to govern the country through their representatives, or aro a few 7 cliques to direct its destinies to their own advantage and make the bulk of the people suffer ? This question the electors can answer at the ballot-box on Friday next, and say w’hether they will continue to Be like dumb driven o'lttln, Or be heroes in the strife. So far as the Waimea-Pioton seat is concerned we have only two who w 7 e fancy will have any say in the matterone is a Ministerialist, and the other has emphatically declared against the Government. The first is Mr Hursthouse, who w r as to stand for the Puller, then for Nelson, and finally settled on Waimea-Picton. This added to the happy-go-luoky way he has of stating w 7 hat he thinks without apparently giving any thought to the subject shows that he has not only no decision of character, but no earnestness of purpose. This is sufficient in itself to cause us to view his candidature with disfavour, for the essential requisite in any public man is to bo earnest and determined in the discharge of his public duties. Then we have had it fully made public, and it has not been denied, that two or three met together in Nelson, and came to a nice little arrangement by which the Buller, Nelson, and Waimea-Picton should be divided between them. We rather fancy that the electors will resent this. These are the little arrangements which have been made in the House every session and which has brought the country to its present unsatisfactory state. It is for the electors to say whether they are going to be hoodwinked any longer by these unholy compacts, and allow a few men to govern the country just as they think proper, or whether they are going to assert their rights and declare that they will have no more of it, It may be asked, what guarantee have we that Mr Mills will not go and do likewise ? This is the guarantee the electors will have: There is a strong feeling throughout the polony on the part of the Press and public against the present administration, and if a large majority are returned pledged against them it will stand as a warning to any future Government that the people are not going to be humbugged any longer. We believe this will be the verdict of the country, and we feel certain that it will be the verdict of the electors of Waimea-Picton. The sober earnestness of Mr Mills’ address stands out in marked contrast ayltli tl)o careless statements and levity of Mr Hursthouse, and for energy and determination Mr Mills stands head and shoulders above his opponent. These are the qualities which go to make a useful public man, and the possession qf which will enable him to accomplish more in a week than the most polished speaker could hope to do in a twelve-month. Added to this is that Ijis sympathies are in accord with the working settlers and working men of the country, which is sufficient in itself to recommend him to the electors of this constituency. It is in the character of the man himself to which we look for good results rather than in the views he expresses, for nothing can change his natural good qualities, but his opinions must necessarily bo tempered to fit in with those held by the leader or party he elects to follow.