WESTPORT ELECTION.

Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 153, 27 January 1868, Page 2

WESTPORT ELECTION.

THE NOMINATION. On Saturday, at noon, the nomination of Candidates for the election of a member to serve in the Provincial Council, Nelson, took place in the front of the Court-house, there being between 100 and 200 persons present. Commissioner Kynnersleyj Returning Offier, having read the writ, called upon the electors present to nominate any person who was duly qualified to serve as a member for the Provinciar Council. After some little delay caused by the diffidence of the respective proposers to nominate their candidates, Mr Thomas -O'Toole stepped forward and proposed Mr James Henry Graham as a fit and proper person to represent the Buller District in the Nelson Provincial Council. Mr Frederick Smith seconded the nomination. Mr Richard Rowlands proposed Mr John Crate. Mr Dobson seconded the proposition. The Commissioner asked what was Mr Crate's qualification. Mr Crate replied—freeholder, and that his name was on the roll. On the rolls being examined Mr Crate's name could not be found.

Tho Commissioner asked whether he was certain that his name was on the roll ?

Mr Crate replied in the affirmative, as he he hid seen it himself in Nelson. The Commissioner said that as he could not find his name on tho roll he could not receive his name.

Mr Adam Porter proposed Mr Thomas Goodwin as a fit and proper person. Mr Edmund Roach seconded the nomination.

Mr Neil proposed Mr John "Vassie Smith. Mi- Henry Wright seconded the propo sition.

The Commissioner then asked if any of the candidates wished to address the electors ?

Mr Graham then stepped forward and said that he had become before them to seek their votes for four reasons. He had not intended to have stood before them as a candidate that day if he had not been solicited to do so by a numerously-signed requisition, consisting of the principal merchants and business men of the place, and also by the miners, packers, and boatmen ; and they having considered that he was a fit a proper person to fill it his duty to come forward ; and besides, he considered he was the only qualified man among the candidates, as he was a working man and understood the wants of the working men. He had come forward and called public meetings, and addressed the inhabitants, and did not hang back till the last moment. He had entered upon the contest and he meant to go on with it, especially as he had answered all the questions that had been put to him, and the meetings had endorsed his sentiments, and he would tell those merchants who had signed the requisition that when he came back among them from Nelson there would not be one who would blush to say that he had signed ifcr James Graham. (Cheers.) He was aware that the district had been we'll canvassed, and if he liadnot come forward would either of the candidates have thought it worth their while to have visited the miners of either Addison's or the Caledonian. There were four candidates in the field, and the race was supposed to lay between " Superintender," ridden by " Packer," and " Uno in Trio," mounted by "Broadcloth." But he would tell them that Packer would win the race. (Laughter and cheers.;) They all knew that Broadcloth had been in training before lie thought fit to declare himself, but he came forward directly he was requested like an Englishman. He said he would stand, and there he was that day, and he had not shrinked or endeavoured to back out of it. (Cheers.) He was well aware that he could not deliver himself so well as he might do if he was a little better educated, but ho spoke to them with the honesty of an Englishman, and he believed with common sense He was the first in the field, and when he had spoken the others worked upon his ideas, but had they advanced anything new. They would soon know how the matter stood, for Monday would settle the matter by seeing him at the head of the poll. People talked about sending a merchant to Nelson. There were plenty of merchants there already, and what they wanted was a working man,—one who knew the wants of the district and could tell them what was required. (Cheers.) Facts were stubborn things ; and when he produced facts before those gentlemen they would be bound to listen to him, and they would too. (Cheers.) He had been a miner and would tell them about mining boards, railroads and tracks. He could tell them where they were necessary. Mr Smith had spoke about mining

boards doing away with such gentlemen as the Commissioner and such like, but it was nothing of the kind. Mining boards are different altogether from that. When he landed among them in the Buller eight months ago a gentleman from Nelson asked him if he thought the Duller would go a-head. '• Certainly," lie replied, "an Englishman never goes back." (Cheers.) They went from the Grey to Canoe Creek, from Canoe Creek to the Fifteen-mile, from there to Fox's, from there to Charleston, and then they came right on to the Buller—no going back—from the Buller on to the Caledonian, and he wound up by telling the gentleman that they would find them amongst them in Nelson before they expected them; and he was going there. (Loud cheers.) 'lt was for them to say would they send him there, lie felt much obliged *o them for the support they had given to him, and be thought they had not made a burlesque of the business; and he would tell them they that would not be ashamed of having Graham. (Cheers.) If not elected he would come among them and work the same as he had alivavs done.

Mb. T. Goodwin commenced by hogging to be permitted to keep on his hat, as they would perceive he had got his hair cut rather in fighting style. lie might say, as Mr Graham had said it before him, that he was not much accustomed to public speaking, which any body might have seen who heard him the other night, when he was quite conscious ho did not, shine much. The fact was that ho was then extremely frightened of being hissed ai that first meeting. He felt more confidence now, and hoped he should make a somewhat more brilliant figure on this occasion. He had but very few words to trouble them with, and these would be principally with reference to the remarks made by other candidates at their meetings. Mr Smith had evidently coached himself on mining matters ; but he would ask him whence his experience of Mining Boards was derived from ? Instead of Mining Boards being intended to supersede the Wardens on gold fields; they were really only to take away the discretionary power of Wardens, and limit their action. What would really be desirable in this district was a Court of Mines—a very different thing. Men acquainted with the wants of the district would act as assessors, and if their arbitration were objected to, the Court, coming round two or three times a year, miners could appeal to it against the Warden's decision, or get a decision from it without going to the Warden at all. He knew he had not been very successful on Monday night, but he had since been up to Addison's Flat and the Caledonian Lead and held a meeting, where he could assure them he got on swimmingly, and there were no cabbages thrown; and if the men from Addison's came down, as he expected they -would, he was certain of getting twenty votes to one of any other candidate. But many of them were too poor to come down, and the diggers were thereby virtually disfranchised. He had, however, seen Mr Ivynnersley, and ascertained one thing, which was that their claims would bo protected till Tuesday, by which a man coming down to Westport to vote, would save £l he would otherwise have to pay for the labor of a wages man. Now to come to the great question of traeks. There was one point in connection with this subject that, had it not been touched upon by any previous speaker. It was a position which he considered far more important than the mere cutting of tracks here and there at random throughout the country. It was the maintenance of stores by Government for the supply of miners, so as to encourage prospecting. He did not at all mean that Government was to furnish those supplies gratuitously, but to establish them in such places as would be convenient for prospectors, without their having to hump'them themselves through this frightful country, or to be able to get them only at famine prices. They must be convinced, as he was, that the success of this community must, for a long time to come, if not always, depend mainly on mining, and the best way of developing their essential industry was to encourage prospecting. (Cheers.) With regard to the knotty point of the Coal Reserve, on which so much had been said, his plan would be to get a fair valuation on it, and then put it up for sale to the highest bidder. Mr Smith had been much lauded by speakers on all sides —apparently on the principle that every body greases the fat sow. But there was one thing Mr Smith had said, which appeared to him (Mr Goodwin) simply absurd. He had said that he would not encourage prospecting by offering premiums for new discoveries. He (the speaker) was altogether in favor of that course, and would urge its adoption wtth all his power. He disagreed with those who wanted all the money spent on wharves and town improvements. He would say, first get the money spent for mining purposes, and this would be productive of good to all. They might have to wait, but the ultimate advantage would be infinitely greater and more certain. Besides he was surprised that one means of getting this mueh-talked-of wharf cheaply and properly made had been so completely looked over, There was such a person as a MarineSurveyor paid by the General Government, and we were quite as much entitled to his services as Taranaki or Wellington. . A memorial should be got up to Mr Balfour to come down and examine the place, and say whether a wharf could be constructed, and how. He (Mr Goodwin) was quite in favor of the notion of getting as much money as possible. He was quite opposed to the Bailway, and would like Mr Crate, or anybody else to show how it could ever pay. Was opposed even to the spending of the £SOOO/ for the survey, but it was too late to regret that. He had been opposed to the idea that had been started, of nominating Mr M'Lean on the ground that he was a churchman, whereas he conceived a representative should be a cosmopolitan. He would now leave the matte* of his election or rejection in their hands till Monday morning, when he hoped they would place him at the head of the poll. Cheers.) Me J. V. Smith then came forward and said that ho had come before them in answer to a numerously-signed requisition to seek their snifrages as a member of the Provincial ■ Council. They had heard that Mr Goodwin had said that he knew nothing about mining i boards and their actions, and that he had confounded the working of the mining boards : with the court of mines. Now ho did nothing or the sort. The duties of the Mining i Boards were to frame bye-laws and assist the warden to judge, not to do away with wardens. I It was impossible that one set of regulations f could meet the views of all classes, seeing

there were four different kinds of mining carried out here—the cement loads in Charleston, the wet sinking at Addison's Flat, und the deep leads at the Caledonian—and for each of which different bye-laws would be required. With regard to tracks, he had seen the one up to the Caledonian, and ho believed that one would have been finished there long since, had not a letter been received on the 80th September by the Commissioner stating that the Council would not proceed with any fresh works, but only to finish those in hand ; and had taken away the power that was formerly vested in the Commissioner to meet such cases. Mr Crate had made a statement the other evening to the effect that neither the Commissioner nor the Provincial Council had power to grant permission to any party to cut tracks and charge a toll for travelling over them, as that power was solely vested in the General Government, who rcsoiTcd it. to themselves. This statement of Mr Crate's was wrong, and if he had read the 13th clause of the Goldfields' Regulations, he would have found that the Commissioner had power to grant to any person cutting a track, and also to authorise that party to make a charge for any work constructed by private enterprise. lie had already explained his views on the various matters, and would not waste the time of the meeting by going into electioneering claptrap. If returned, ho would go into the Provincial Council honestly and independently, and anything he could do to forward the interests of the district, he <would •do it, and any matter entrusted to him would ■be attended to. (Loud Cheers.) The Commissioner asked Mr Crate if he was certain his name appeared on the electoral list of last year. Mr Ckate replied in the affirmative. He saw it only a few days before he left Nolson, when he was in company with Mr Brunner. There were only three names on the roll. The Commissioner, said he had only the •roll of the year before last in his possession as the officer in Nelson, whose duty it was, had neglected to furnish him with a copy of last year's roll. Under these circumstances if ■Mr Crate would promise that his name appeared on the roll he would allow him to be nominated

Mr Crate gave the required promise. Mr Cbatb, having then obtained the permission of the Returning Officer to address the electors, said that from what he had stated on other occasions they had all had the opportunity of knowing his views, but he could not allow the nominee of the newspapapers to have a walk over. Mr Graham had received a numerously signed requisition, but he (Mr Crate) did not at first think him a man perfectly qualified for the honour he sought for, hut he had seen in the course of the proceedings that ho had been enabled to overcome a vast amount of prejudice and had gained their confidence, although it must be admitted he was not much gifted with the use of his mother-tongue. Under these circumstances he (Mr Crate) should have been disposed to give way in his favor had not others, less qualified, been put forward, against whom lie felt bound to contest the point. Mr Goodwin was a gentleman by birth and education, but he thought there was about him too much of the an-ated-water But for Mr Smith, who was now put forth as the respectable man, why had he not come out boldly at the first and declared himself, instead of waiting till he was pushed into the field and coached up in everything by the newspapers ? Would they vote for Smith because they papers told them to do so ? The writer in the We.stport Times, in effect, said, to them —"You must vote like children for the man I tell you." That paper had been stirring its fingers in the dirty puddle, and before six months it would be for sale in •Ilokitika. They all saw the bungle Mr Smith 'had made his at meeting, and how he had been posted up to the skies in both papers. They had kept him in the back-ground till the last moment and then thought to rush him on. But he (the speaker) saw through the dirty trick and had defeated it. Mr Stkwakt wished to know what was the causus belli between Mr Crate and the West,port Times ? Mr Crate replied that, he was an old political man, and never failed to pay a debt when he had a chance. He must say that that journal had fairly reported his speeches. After some further observations which betrayed that he was smarting rather severely under the strictures that have been made upon his pretensions, he concluded by an expression of the utmost confidence in the choice of the eleetors.

A show of hands was then called for, when there appeared for Graham 42 .Crate 39 Goodwin .. ... 7 Smith 25

The Commissioner stated that if a poll was not demanded he should declare Mr Graham duly elected. A poll was then demanded by Mr J. "V. Smith.

Mr Graham rose to speak, when Mr KynNerslt interrupted him, and said he could not allow him to proceed, but on being reminded by Mr Graham that it was only a vote of thanks the Commissioner gave way. Mr Graham then proceeded to move a vote of thanks to the Commissioner, thanking him for the maimer in which he had conducted the election, and called for three cheers for him. Mr Crate seconded the motion, and proceeded to inveigh against the Westport Times for the part it had taken in the election; and stated thnt it had only taker, up Mr Smith's cause at the last moment; and after a quantity of useless rhodomontade, which only an useless Crate could utter, called for three groans for the Westport Times. The meeting then broke up.