THE LINWOOD ELECTORATE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5994, 1 August 1887, Page 3

THE LIN WOOD ELECTORATE.

(From the Lyttelion Times.).

Mb Flbsheb has declined to take the good advice given him. There is nothing to be surprised at in this. How often is good advice taken ? Much less frequently than bad medicine, though ihe latter must be almost as unpalatable. Mr Plesher, had heretired from the Linwood contest, would, without doubt, have done a boldly I generous act. He has so far declined. t to win the honour which he might I have gained in this way, and prefers |at present to hold on. The outside chance of winning Linwood for him- ! self appears to weigh more with Mr I Plesher than the certainty of winning the seat for his Party by retiring. We still hope that Mr Flesher will gain credit for himself, and Linwood . for Mr Loughrey, by standing gracefully aside. If he should refuse to do so, he will merely show that he is not superior to the common weaknesses of poor humanity. We have lived too long in the world to expect to often see examples of self-sacrifice in politics. Mr Plesher is reported to have said the other night at the East Town Belt that he thought his vote would be as useful to the Ministry in the House of Representatives as Mr Loughrey's. Very possibly, but that is not the question. The question is whether Mr Reese's vote would be as useful to the Ministry as Mr Loughrey's. Mr Plesher would, we are sure, iat once admit that it would not. If ■ anything could make Mr Reese's 1 reputation worse than it has hitherto been it would be his latest attempt to shuffle out of his plain, straightforward declaration, made in the House, of an intention to support Major Atkinson. Is there anything in the world out of which Mr Reese would not attempt to wriggle ? We hope Mr Plesher will not let him wriggle back into Parliament. The position is this : Mr Loughrey's election is almost a certainty, but in a true blue Government constituency like Linwood it ought to be quite a certainty. Mr Plesher, with a very j poor chance himself, splits the Ministerial vote so as to hinder Mr Reese's chances from being absolutely hopeless. This is not as it should be, and if Mr Plesher will not retire outright, he should be prepared to submit the matter to an impartial Court of Arbitration. We feel sure that by so doing he would set an example that would be applauded throughout New Zealand.