The Sydenham Election.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5611, 6 May 1886, Page 3

The Sydenham Election.

+ THE POUR CANDIDATES. TO THE EDITOR OF THE STAB. Sib, — I would like, with your permission, to say a few words in reference to the candidates who are wooing the suffrages of the constituents of Sydenham. I see that j there are four nominated. If there was a , time when wo should select wise and j faithful legislators to govern the people • righteously, I think it is now ; and if we can find one gentleman out of the four ■with staunch principles, let us, as wise electors, put him in as our member. First we have Mr J. L. Scott, a man who has been in our midst for some length of time, who has done something to advance the industries of the Colony ; a man of social and intellectual standing ; a man of temperance principles, and one who speaks out fearlessly, irrespective of the votes he may lose by so doing. He is ] in the prime of manhood, with, I hope, a grand career before him. I hope the mechanics, the temperance people — all the electors of Sydenham, will do all they can \ to secure his return to Parliament. j Next comes Mr E. M. Taylor, who thinks \ that he has claims on the electors. For ! myself, I don't see anything very brilliant ] about him, without it is his top pate ; i neither do I Bee that he ha 3 done much for i us. He has just lately cropped up like a : mushroom in a shingle pit. I wonder ] what he means by " a vote properly i managed bringing about little things." • Does he mean that he is going to sell his ! vote, so long as he can get the showgrounds I for the people o£ Sydenham ? If so, I say | we don't want a man who will hawk about ' his vote for such a purpose. Neither do ! we want a Court-house in Sydenham, with a Resident Magistrate, because we have ] one " R.M.," and that is one too many ; now. j Next comes " Sam Andrews," as he is j generally termed, one who has had a career ; j one who voted for the ten per cent reduc- 1 tion, and admitted that he did it in " a j mistake." We want a man who is clear in j the head, and who will not be led into j mistakes by the cunning dodges of political ; leaders. - And, to bring up the rear, comes Mr S. C. Jolly, whose ideas about produce and producers are wide of the mark. He contends that none are producers but farmers. So much for him. Now I think it will not puzzle us much as to who we shall send to second the AddreßS-in-Reply. By all means let Scott go up to do it. — I am, &c, AN UNPLEDGED CONSTITUENT. Huxley street, Sandridge. MR S. P. ANDREWS AND THE WAGES QUESTION. TO THE BDITOB OF THE STAB. Sib, — Mr S. P. Andrews has been trying his hand at persuading the electors of Sydenham to believe a garbled and evasive account of his notorious 10 per cent reduction vote of 1880. He must surely think the working men of Sydenham have very bad memories, or he gives them credit for being the biggest fools in New Zealand. I propose to give a few simple facts, and if he attempts to deny them or equivocates any longer, I will ask your permission to quote a few extracts from that volume of ' Hansard which he finds it so convenient to ignore, and which he finds it impossible to explain. The motion of Mr Saunders provided i " that a reduction be made of not less than ten per cent from all salaries, pay, and wages, excepting officers of the Legislature, who shall be specially dealt with." To this, Mr Thomson moved an amendment to the effect "that salaries above .£250 should be reduced 12-J per cent, and above JESOO 15 per cent." I Mr Speight moved the insertion of the j words "over JE2OO per annum" after " salaries," and the omission of the word " wages." Now, Mr Andrews voted against both of these amendments. In the division on Mr Speight's amendment, which, you will see, raised the distinct issue of whether the wages class should be reduced or not, we find on the side against reduction such names as J. T. Fisher, Macandrew, Tole, Richardson, Seddon, Speight, Turnbull, Montgomery, Grey, and Ballance; while on the other side, alone, amidst the members of the Hall-Atkinson party, stands Mr S. P. Andrews. Why did he stand on this occasion so distinctly apart from all the other Liberal members of Parliament ? Simply because the Hon J. Hall had chucked him under the chin and cajoled him a little ; and to put no worse construction on the matter, he was so flattered as to lose his head and completely forget the class he was sent to Wellington to repre sent ; nay, worse, he not only forgot them, but on the most critical question that ever came before Parliament while he was there, he voted against them. It was twelve months after this, when he found himself in utter disgrace in Christchurch, that he asked the question he has been reading to the Sydenham electors, to try and improve as far as possible his fallen position. I would fain have allowed this miserable piece of business to have been forgotten, but as Mr Andrews has seen fit to revive it, I consider it only fair that the electors of Sydenham should be in possession of the actual facts. — I am, &c, ELECTOR.