OBSERVATIONS

Observer, Volume X, Issue 623, 6 December 1890, Page 3

OBSERVATIONS

ON THE ELECTIONS

SAVING- in previous issues given my views on political subjects, as well as my opinion on the various local candidates and their chances of election, I now propose to devote a little space to noticing the contests in the city and suburban constituencies, and indicating the men whom I would like to see returned, in the interests of the colony. In doing so, I shall sink all feeling of friendship or private preference for individuals, and it must be understood that I shall make no attempt to ' tip ' the winners, or guide people who wish to bet on the result. Headers will remember that I place personal character before political profession, and other things being equal give the preference to men of progressive ideas, who are opposed to class legislation.

A tremendous mistake has been made at this time, in trying to make permanent the class prejudices which some interested people fostered during the recent strike. No greater error was ever made than that of running Labour or Capitalist candidates. I should be sorry to see a single candidate of the extremist sort returned to Parliament. Our members are supposed to represent constituencies—not a class or section of the people, but all classes and interests. It is right and proper for organised sections of the community to support the candidate whom they consider best fitted to serve them ; but it is another and totally different thing for any section of the people to arrogate the choosing of candidates and to attempt to impose these candidates upon a constituency. Neither publicans nor teetotallers, neither employers nor employed ought to claim a monopoly of electoral rights and legislative wißdom. If our community is to march to freedom and equality, it must march in a solid column, and not in straggling parties. The men who advise sectional representation are foes of the masses, and their motives should be closely examined. The uniting of interests is the aim of an intelligent Democracy.

Another preliminary remark may be allowed. The men now before the country aspire to be made representatives ; but scarcely one of them is in any sense a representative man. Eepresentatives ought to be freely chosen by the people ; but these men are nearly all thrusting themselves into public notice and begging for Bupport. The natural consequence of this system is that the House of Bepresentatives has not in the past contained representative men, and the men now before the country are most emphatically not the men whom the people would have asked to serve them, had they a free choice in the matter. Even when chosen by caucuses, the candidates do not represent the will of the majority, but are « compromise men.' A remedy for this ought to be found. Taking things aB they are, I will first of all notice