The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29th, 1882.

Southland Times, Issue 4489, 29 November 1882, Page 2

The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29th, 1882.

Since we took Mr Kingsland to task about his non-progressive views regarding the New River, he has spoken twice, but without showing that he has any stronger appreciation than he had before of the value of a harbor to Invercargill. He is lukewarm in all his utterances on the subject, and will never be the man to push New River improvements as the great means of advancing the interests of the town. "He was in favor of keep- " ing the river open to vessels of a ton- " nage that could cross the bar, if it 11 could be done at a moderate cost." " When tbe time came he would be the "first to spend money on the harbor." We object to tbe ring of these sentences, and fear that whatever Mr Kingsland may do will be in the way of obstruction and not of advancement of harbor improvements. If we are rightly informed, already have the works constructed had the effect of considerably deepening the channel, and the time has come for seeing what further can be dove in the way of harrowing or dredging further down. Mr Kingsland speaks of us as a small community, and of our importations as being small ; but from present appearances direct importations are likely to increase soon, and we must be preparing for this and for an increase in the population. To remain at a disadvantage such as we are laboring under at present is the sure way to keep down our population, and keep down our imports. What we should like to see is not rashness, but a progressive spirit, and a determination one day to have a port of our own. Mr Kingsland's argument about Glasgow is not a very fair one. It is 150 years or 30 since Glasgow began to make a harbor, and she began when her population was a very small one. We do not desire to emulate Glasgow in her recent expenditure, but we desire to emulate her far-seeing spirit that caused her to start early on the career that has led to such amazing prosperity. We do not say that anything Mr Kingsland could do, if he were elected Mayor, would likely have much effect in keeping back the New River, but we naturally dislike to see any influence created that would be adverse to a scheme that vre regard as of the first importance. Mr Kingsland complains that we have dropped him, but it was rather he that fell away from us by his heterodoxy, We fancy that this New River business is the only one on which we differ from hi*a, and we regret very much that we differ from him at all. We hare not a word to unsay of all that we stated in regard to his general fitness for tbe office of Mayor, or the claims that he has established on the community by long and faithful Bervice. It will be for every elector to determine what weight Mr Kingsland's views on the New River ought to have in settling the question of his eligibility. Many will determine the one way, and many the other— we mean many of those who go strongly for our having a port as soon as possible, We at least have done our duty in calling attention to what we consider the weak point in his candidature, and we now leave tbe matte? in the hands of those concerned.