THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 1898. CROWN PROSECUTOR OF DUNEDIN.

Temuka Leader, Issue 3258, 17 March 1898, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 1898. CROWN PROSECUTOR OF DUNEDIN.

By the death of the late Mr flaggit a vacancy has occurred iu the Crown Prosecutorship of Dunedin. The position is a valuable one ; it is iu the gift of the Goreroment, but for some reasou they have not so far made auy permanent appointment. For the purpose of conducting the criminal business of the Supreme Court iu Dunedin recently they appo nted Mr J. F. M. Fraser and Mr Chapman temporarily, but why they did so is not quite clear. It was said that it was because there remained an arreaia of work which required attending to, and that two were necessary to do it. The excuse will not hold water. If one had been appointed, and there was fhoro work than he could do, ho could easily have got other lawyers to assist him, and the business directed by one head would have been bettor done than it could be by two heads working quite independently of each other. But for some reasou the Government show a good deal of hesitation iu making the appointment, although we cannot see any reasou why they should experience auy difficulty iu the matter. When Messrs Fraser and Chapman wore appointed temporarily the Otago Daily Times published a very unfair article on the subject. It praised up Mr Chapman, and said that unquestionably he was extremely suitable for the position, but said nothing for or against Mr Fraser. By implication, therefore, it practically said that Mr Frase? was not suitable, but when it is known that Mr Chapman is one of the directors of tjhe Olago Daily Times, its sense of decency, good taste, and common honesty will be appreciated. No one will deny that Mr Chapman is suitable for the position, but so are dozens of other Dunedin lawyers, and we cannot see that ho has auy greater claim than any of them, unless it is that he has acted as counsel for Mr Ward in tho many lawsuits iu which ho has been recently involved. He has no claim whatever on tho Government, and there is no reasou on earth why ho should get it any I more than any of the other competent Dunedin lawyers. On tho other hand Mr Fraser’s claims are so conspicuous that wo feel both disappointed and astonished at the Government hesitating for ouo moment over tiio question of appointing him. He is ono of tho loading lawyers of Dunedin, as witnessed by the fact that ho is sometimes employed to come to Timam and Ashburton to conduct cases. He is also a gentleman of excellent character, very highly respected by all sections of the community, and iu every possible way suitable for tho position now vacant in Dunedin. If Mr Fraser were not lit for the position we should be the first to object to giving it to him, but ho is fit for the position, his claims are unquestionable, and ho ought to get it, and if ho does not get it his many friends will bo very much displeased. Wo have noticed frequently that the Government have apparently aimed at placating their opponents by giving some of them the fattest billets in their gift, to wit, the appointment of Judge Edwards, and so on. What is the result / Next day the scream of “spoil, to the victors” is set np, and they are denounced as corrupt and dishonest. Let them do what they may they cannot please their opponents, nor can they soften by one iota the bitterness by which they are invariably assailed. It is therefore absolutely useless to try to please them, and consequently the proper thing for tho Government to do is to stick to those who have stuck to them. That is the way to keep a party together ; that is the system adopted iu England, and wherever Party Government is in existence. Who ever heard of an Eng- | lish Conservative Government giving important appointments to Liberals ! Nu one, and in the same way no ouo has hoard of Liberals giving appointments to Conservatives. Neither party complains of tho system, it is recognised as right, but in New Zealand it is wrong for the Liberal party to appoint auy of their ow n

supporters. The Government should take no notice of this, but appoint their own friends to vacancies as they occur. No one should be dismissed to create a vacancy, to do so would be villainous, and could not be tolerated under any circumstances. But wherever a thoroughly competent Government supporter applies for a vacancy he ought to get the appointment in preference to the Conservative. The Conservative party will, no doubt, get into office some day, and when they do the supporters of the present Government will not then get appointments. In the case of Mr J. F. M. Fraser, he is without doubt as suitable for the position of Crown Prosecutor as any lawyer in Dunedin, and has every right to the ap poiutmeut. We therefore trust that he will be appointed, as no one else has so good a claim.