NAPIER.

Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3327, 21 August 1879, Page 2

NAPIER.

Last' Slight. The. Star, the new Liberal paper, has been a great and unexpected success. It was started to assist' Government candidates in election,, but will now most probably be continued. The nominations for Napier are fixed for the 29th, the election for the Bth September. The Clive nominations on the 30th, election 10th. There is again some talk of bringing out a Ministerial candidate to oppose Mr. Ormond at Clive. ', but it is difficult to select a man who would run, well, the Hon J;" Slteehan having declined. Mr ' Sheehan was' also pressed to stand for Napier, where his election would have' been a dead certain t

One of most unanimous and enthusiastic meeting^ ever held -ia JS;apier;.assembled at the Theatre to Hear the Hons.J. Sheehan and Cbi. Whitmbre. , The Hon. J. Sheehan was greeted with a perfect oration. His speech was j?reiitry rdevoted to local matters, but he touched on various points of the Liberal programme. Referring; to the position of parties," He said th^ colony was now. divided into two camps, which were really Liberal and Conservative^ though the Conservatives repudiated their title." When the Liberals wanted to fight and went to the opposing camp they found it all deserted, arid no one left 'to fight. Ttidy sorrowfullyreturned to .their own camp when th;ey : , found, the Conservatives..-1 snugly ; en*: sconsed there, . and actually cookipg with the Liberal billies. That was b^ad enough, • but they made, matters worse by claiming the,billies as their own.H He said that much of the opposition shown towards the Ministry was due "to their action in regard to native lands, preventing speculators acquiring them to the injury of the State, and often with the aidot" State officials. The vastly greater prosperity of; the South Island was due to the fact that, in the- early days, the' .Grown had extinguished the native title, but it could, not be done in the JNorth Island;,ftPhere were two. or three, ways of dealing with the question.' ThVfirst was that advocated by the Oppositions-free trade in native land. To that proposition he gave [an emphatic " No." It did not; mean free trade, but a close market for few. who understood the Maoris^ and cbuld ideal with them. The rank and file of'the, people could not enter (that market. The .law must be framed to, enable the to buy the land^pr else half a century hence New Zealand might* be in the same evil plight as England to-day. Another way to deal with native lands; was to ■ prohibit,private purchaspij* treating!with the , Maoris.: A third, and to bis mind the most satisfactory method, was for the Government to undertake the sale of land on behalf of the natives 1, putting it up to auction, and after deducting all expenses 'handing them the balance.' : If there had been wise land laws in force in Hawke's Bay for the last fourteen or fifteen yeap, the province would now have been iri a Very different position; ' ' -v The Hon. Colonel Whitmore - spo^e strongly in support of Manhood Suffrage, and against Chinese immigration. j Unanimous totes :df thanks , were cassed. ".'■"■"■'''. .;■■ ',''","'' . : ..*,•', .. !

(Bsm Pbess Agkenc*.)