The Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1887. SIR GEORGE GREY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1650, 22 October 1887, Page 2

The Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1887. SIR GEORGE GREY.

There is no member of the House of Representatives in whose actions more interest will centre for the next few weeks than in those of Sir George Grey. He was a violent opponent of the late Ministry, and did his best to oust them from office, and how he will behave towards the new team is a matter on which few seem disposed to speculate. His opposition to the late Government arose from a dislike of Sir Julius Yogel. Por some reason best known, to himself he entertaina a wholesouled hatred of Sir Julius Yogel, and he was actuated by that feeling in his opposition to that Government more than by anything else. It cannot be said that he has any great liking for the Atkinson party. He has ever since he entered Parliament been the sorest thorn in their side; he has been the most unrelenting and bitterest of their critics, and now time alone can tell how he will treat them in the coming struggle. .Here is a specimen of his denominations of the late Atkinson Ministry as it appears in Hansard:—

“ I charge them with being the Continuous Ministry, who for years have held office, and have robbed tiie people of th ; s country of their lands; have rendered women and children landless; havenerverted a great estate given to New Zealand by a munificent nation ; who have squandered the revenues of the country, and incurred great debts to give value to the property of their friends, taken from the people ; and who are striving to make the poor and wretched of New Zealand pay, by taxation, the interest upon that debt, and ultimately become liable for its principal. I charge them with that in the name of New Zealand and its outraged people. I charge them, Sir, with having filled offices with their friends. I charge them with having committed many wrongful acts against this country. I charge them with having dragged to the bar of this House and prosecuted for libel an innocent person because ho exposed their acts. 1 charge them with having ra unr tained at the public expense a libellous newspaper to libel those who wera opposed to them in politics. I charge them with having defended the libeller who, in that paper, libelled innocent men, and with having caused the public revenue to bear the charge of defraying the damages awarded to the injured person, I charge them with allowing Native lands to bo improperly acquired to a vast extent by friends whom they favored.’ I charge them with having allowed the pub'iclands in like manner to be taken, and then with having availed themselves of their power in this House to pass laws which relieved them ftom the liability they bad incurred in consequence of haring broken the general liiyrs of the country. I charge them with having placed ip a favored bank large sums of money unlawfully, and with having, by a subsequent Act, endeavoured to m ke good and lawful that which they had dona, I charge th p m with having used this House often for mere party purposes. I. charge them with having given works to favored localities, in order to endeavour to lead the members who represented

those places to support them in their position. I charge them now with wrongfully sitting there, and bringing on this dobate.”

The person dragged before the House and prosecuted was Mr George Jones, of the Oamaru Mail, bat he got the best of them. The allegations contained in the above quotation are about the strongest we have come across, and, if true, as wo believe they are in the main, it appears to us that the knowledge that Major Atkinson has been guilty of such maladministration ought to be sufficient to cause not only Sir George Grey but every honest man to vote against reinstating him in power. And futhermore, we think Major Atkinson ought to have been prosecuted for his evil doing. When the question of the purchase of the Waimate District Railway came up Sir George Grey had serious notions of instituting legal proceedings against Major Steward and we believe Sir Julius Vogel, but we never heard that he took any steps against the Continuous Ministry. Buc the great point is, How can he support now a Premier whom he has denounced in such scathing terms a few years ago ? or can he face the country and ask the people to admire hia consistency ? He has spoken disparagingly of the late Government; he stumped the country to damage them in every possible way, but in no way has he made any charges of corruption against them, yet he has helped to turn out an honest Government to reinstate in ; power the author of all the logrolling, which has reduced Kegh»Sealand to her present position. the exception of Mr Scobie Mackenzie no candidate during the recent elections attempted to show that the StoutYogel Government had been guilty of corruption. They were charged with not having retrenched to the necessary extent, but want of honesty was not thrown in their face. Sir George Grey has therefore turned an honest Government out of office only to replace in power the man he has so frequently accused of dishonesty, and it appears to us that it will take him all his time to make people believe that in doing so he has done the best be could for the' colony. We are afraid the day when much reliance could be placed on Sir George Grey’s actions has passed by for ever. He is becoming more and more erratic, and having taken shelter now under the umbrella of Major Atkinson seems to place him in the neplus ultra of inconsistency. But after all it is probable he will not remain there long, and will continue his willo’-the-wisp career to the end.