THE Thames Advertiser. Favour to none; fear of none; justice to all. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1896. THE MINISTER FOR PUBLIC WORKS.

Thames Advertiser, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8596, 27 November 1896, Page 2

THE Thames Advertiser. Favour to none; fear of none; justice to all. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1896. THE MINISTER FOR PUBLIC WORKS.

Mr Hall-Joses cannot altogefcher feel comfortable in his position as Cabinet Minister. Hansard tells too mail)* tales to suit him, w .should think. Tt shows that his utterances to da) are just die very opposite of his utteranc sja few short months ago —what lie previously denounced as transgressions on the part of the Government h» now upholds as actions quite in the interests of the colony. His speech at f iinarti the other day is taken as the basis of his present opinions, It was a speech as dry as saw-dust—full of statistical information, and in fact much on tire lines of the Premier's at Potoni', It was necessary, of course, for bun to refer lo the banking onquiry, and his remarks thereon form one of the chief claims to the distinction of a double personality. It will be remembered that the telegraphed report said in effect that the Hon, Hall-Jones defended the Government in regard to tlio banking business, and he claimed that the enquiry had entirely freed Mr Ward from all suspicions of having made a wrong use of his ministerial office in matters pertaining to eithor the Bank of New Zealand or (ho Colonial BankNow, if wc turn up Hansard what do wc find 1 Wc find that Mr IlallJones, I

member for Timarti (that was in tho 1895 session), said he was quite against tho two million guarantee, and, further, ho was opposed to the acquirement of the Colonial Banlc; but let us quote from his speech in the House when the Banking Bill was tinder consideration, the most suitable extract for our purpose being as follows: W On the third reading of die Bill I shall deem it my duty to call for ftdivifiion,sons to have the names of those members of this House who vote for this most iniqui< toua proposal recorded. Much as I am in sympathy with t|ioparty towhich I belong, I am confident that tin? electors will ultimately look upon this

measure as one of the greatest curses

ever indicted upon the colony;" A most iniquitous proposal in 1895, according to J)p. -Hf\\ (Mr; HallJones, member for Timara), and the same thing when carried into effect is, according to Mr Hyde (Hon W, HallJones, Minister for Public Works), the best thing that could have been done for the colony, Sow wo

will see other contradictious. The conversion of the sinking funds

for one thing, In the TfiMru speech the Minister spent a little time in attempting to show that tho Government had committed no" wrong under that head, In the Ilouso jji 1895 he said in connection with the snme mutter :-*-I also disapprove of what is suggested in the (Statement— taking tho sinking funds $f the loans to local bodies, If this is done, every hundred poumls wo lend to our local

bodies will be another hundred pounds added to the colonial debt." At Timoru he showed what had been done for the workers; in 1893 lie said in the

House '.—" When wts hud the Budget of last year before us I had to pointout on that occasion that there was very little In that Budget to benefit the working elusses,Jand I find nothing more for them in this Budget; than in the Budget of last yean lias the colony improved since then f The posi.

tion now is worse instead of better* ~ Does tho Government really know tho position ? I have sometimes wondered whether they do. . . . It is too much tho fashion hv one member after another to set up ftiidexpress the opinion Mint the depression has passed away, that the times are improved, that the government is doing its best for the

\vorfung4jmn, and that everyone is to hi happy for ever afterwards*'' Other instances can be quoted of the way Mr Kall-.Toni'H has ch;.jij;ed his opinions in the short spare of little over twelve months, but enough hasten said to prove that the lninisteriaJ ac* cording to his idea, was worth throwing oft oiie mantle for arid putting on ivtij other. Truly government by party is full of a-inbiqaities,