THE SUPERINTENDENCY ELECTION. (From the Evening Star.) NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES.

Waikato Times, Volume IV, Issue 226, 21 October 1873, Page 2

THE SUPERINTENDENCY ELECTION. (From the Evening Star.) NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES.

The nomination of candidates for the office of Superintendent took place on Friday, the 17th instant. A hustings had been erected on the Barrack Hill, facing the new street being constructed by the Auckland Improvement Commissioners. The returning officer, Colonel Balneavis, had convened the meeting for 12 o'clock, at the Mechanics' Institute, and at that hour the hall was crowded. The Returning Officer opened the proceedings by reading the writ. He then suggested that the meeting should nd- | journ to the open air in order to afford more room. This proposal was at once acted upon, and the crowd proceeded to the huttings. On the arrival of the party from the Mechanics' Institute, and when order had been restored, Colonel Balneavis, the Returning Officer, came to the front and intimated that it was the proper time for any elector to propose a candidate for the office of Superintendent of the Auckland province. Mr George JPhillip Priestly proposed Mr Hugh fl. Lusk !as a fit and proper person. (Groans, hisses, and cheers). ; In doing so he said that if Mr Lusk discharged the duties of the Superintendenoy in the same manner ns he had the duties connected with the management of the consolidated and other gold mining companies they would have no fault to find. (Laughter, and groans). Mr William Eustace Martin seconded the nomination of Mr Lusk, with the remark that he was quite sure his candidate would have all the electors' sweet voices. (Cheers and laughter). This nomination and seconding by the opponents of the candidates, were, it appears an electioneering ruse, Mr Mr Joseph May being in waiting to propose Mr Lusk, and Mr Carpenter, from the Thames, being prepared to second the nomination. Mr Ireland then came forward and proposed Mr Joseph M. Dargaville. The proposal was met with loud cheers mingled with a few hisses. He said the electors had heard Mr Dargaville express his views, and therefore he should not detain them. He had no doubt at all that Mr Dargaville would be returned at the head of the poll. Mr Butt seconded the nomination of Mr Dargaville. He gave as his reason that he wished the country to advance, and Mr Dargaville was the man to cause it to advance, and when the country advanced they all advanced with it. He did not wish to disparage the other candidates, but he could not help saying that if they pinned their faith to what had been already done the oould only point to a magnificent province killed by mismanagement. (Hear, hear, and a voice: "We'll have Williamson in to put it right.") The man who brought in the .Reform Bill in England had been abused 5 and so were all men who brought about good reforms. He believed in reform. It was the only mode of advancing the country. <(A Voice — What about Hikutaia ?) They had quite enough of the mismanagement which brought about the opening of Hikutaia. He would not detain them longer. Mr Butt conoluded with the words " I beg to second Mr Dargaville — and boy's he'll win." Mr Alexander Black proposed Mr John Williamson. (Cheers.) They had met to make an important selection. The gentleman whom he proposed had been in office before. When he had taken office before the chest had generally been very low, and it was generally very full when he went out. (Hear, hear.) Mr Allen O'Neill seconded Mr John Wiliiimson. 'He said that owing to thp burthened ondition of the country the powers of the Superintendent were confined; still he was capable of doing much good or harm. It was a good sign that all the old settlers spoke well of John Williamson, 11 man who had been before them ns long ns their colonial institutions had been in existence. (A Voice: Didn't you second Mr Gillies's nomination last time ?) Great laughter followed this question. He would answer that presently. Mr Williamson had supported the policy of self-reliance, and had been the author of jeveral measures for the public pood. He begged to second his nomination for the office of Superintendent. The Returning Officer then invited the candidates to address tho electors. Mr Lusk commenced his speech by referring to the disreputable dodge that had been practiced upon him that day — the miserable attempt that had been made to gain an advantage by shutting the mouths of those wh© had intended to have nominated and seconded him on t'iat occasion. Suoli attempts from whatever source they came would recoil upon the heads of those contemptible persons who wore willing to lend themselves to dodges of tlmt description. (Cheers.) He would take no further notice of ouch conduct of the persons who had been guilty of it. He atood tliere for the purpose of stating to tho electors his views with regard to the present position and future prospects of this province if they should think it right to elect him as their Superintendent—the oflice for which he was that day a candidate. There wens persons who had re.isons of their own for raising a senseless cry— ho might shy n howl— against him ; but 1 c would show those persona t.iint they u ere speaking oil subjects which they did not midi-refund ; that they were led by

the nose by those who ought and probably did know better, to cry out against their own friends, and to mpport their worst enemies (cheer*.) The question which they were cilled upon to decide was oi the utmost importance to this province. .Not less important now than it hod been twenty years ago, when he roinembored being present at the first nomination in this province, i It was important that they ■hould elect a man to represpnfc them who not only talked loudly but who would act well — who not only could refer to the past but was willing to refer to the future, and to what he had already done lor them, and who knew something of the affairs of the country. (What about the Poll Tax ?) Ho wai not in the least nfraid to refer to that, and would do so presently. This was a most important election. Upon what they were now about to do would depend not only the future of Provincial Governments, but - also the future of this part of Now Zealand long after Provincial Governments had passed away. He was not afraid to say that Provincial Governments would . pass away before very long, and not because they had not done good work, but because the time would shortly come when there would be no means for supporting Provincial -Govcrnmen's. So long as they could expect to receive windfalls — for the coU'eM to be replenished from the goldfields, from its land revenue — so long they might look forward for a long life for provincial institutions. There was, however, no room for such hope. The consolidated revenue was swallowed up, and the goldfields revenue would be expended upon the goldfields themselves, and there was no chance of a larger revenue arising from the land that might be purchased or that belonged to the province. Therefore it would not be long until provincial institutions would come to an end. It became them at such a juncture to elect — not the man who talked about keeping those institutions alive by cutting down a man's salary, but the man who was prepared to meet the difficulty in the face, and not keep provincial institutions lingering a sort of lingering death. He knew that provincial institutions were cherished things with mmiy | of them, and they had been cherished institutions with himself for many years ; but the time had come when they must face the fact, and that so soon as their usefulness was gone they must cease to exist. If elected he would endeavor to provide some other machinery for meeting the wants of the country districts when provincial institutions were done away with. They had their Harbour Board and Municipal Corporation- to administer the affairs of the city, and it was for the country districts that they required to make provision. The future Superintendent would hare other work to do. He must be prepared with a policy for education, and in respect to the goldfields, he must be prepared to meet the difficulties which were springing up around us. He was not afraid to face the difficulty with reference to the " obnoxious education' tax." He believed there was a candidate who was against all taxation. He (Mr Lusk) was in favour of education, and if it was necessary to have taxation to promote education then he was in favour of taxation. He was prepared to stand or fall by the Education Act; and if on itbat account the electors rejected him he should be proud of his defeat. He did not require to defend himself against the charge of knowing nothing about provincial matter*. Notwithstanding what had been said that day by one of the speakers about mismanagement, he could only say that during the last three or four years the management of provincial affairs had been as economic and as beneficial to the public as any previous administration of them had been. He could say that what bad been done had been fairly and honestly done. He did not wish to make lavish promises, or to impose upon the credulity of the people, or cast slander broadcast as he feared bad been done during this election. To do so would be but miserable policy,' as the man who had no self-respect had no right to ask. the electors for-sup-port. He believed he could serve the people well, and he thought the people were of the same opinion. With respect to the Eaueation Act he had already taken the responsibility of that measure. He should have preferred to have seen it differently arranged with regard to taxation, but he would rather have the present system of taxation than no taxation at all. He had introduced a measure which other men were not game enough to bring in. He undertook the task in order that the children of the people might be educated, and he would do so again to-morrow if he was in the same position. (Cheers and groans.) If elected he would submit to the Council a proposal for alteiing the incidence of the taxation. Before the Education Act was passed they had their schoolhouses shut up all over the province, and children left uneducated. (A Voice : "No, no.") Oh, you are talking about the town ; I am speaking of the country. The schools in the country were shut up. He hoped that whatever the result of that election, such a state of things would never occur again. They would have childi en to educate when provincial institutions had passed away, and it would be more satisfactory to him, having introduced a good system of education, than holding office as Superintendent for twenty years. He spoke warmly of the system of secular education, which he had embodied in his bill. They had to thank him for securing a system which would impart the greatest amount of knowledge, and would make the schools available for every section of the community. There were one or two other questions much before the public at the present time. He had been asked his opinion regarding the Licensing system. (A Voice: "Are you a Good Templar?") He was not a Good Templar now, but be did not know what be might be. He had always in the past, and would in the future, support the Permissive Bill ; he would, by every means in bis power, strive to secure for the people of a district the right to forbid the sale of intoxicating drinks in that district. la announcing this he was not bidding for votes. Every one who knew him was aware that this was an old principle of his, which he had acted upon for years whenever an opportunity presented itself. He could, therefore, come befere them with a good face. He thought he had now said as much as their patience would permit them to listen to. If they elected him as Superintendent, (Cries of "B ut we won't" and "ah, ah,") they electee one who was well known to them. He did not come before them with mere promises, nor with insinuation against his neighbors, but if they returned him they would elect one who had been concerned in the government of the province for years, and he thought at a time when it had been governed not without ability ; they also elected one who had (been instrumental in introducing the present Education Act, who had supported a permissive liquor law. This was what they knew ; not mere gas, but what they could find chapter and verse for, and he rested his claims to their confidence upon these acts, Several persons desired to ask the candidate some questions. An Elector, holding up a board with a paper pinned on: Who sent this ? Mr Lusk, looking at the paper : Ob, this is a summons against Mr Charles Oakford for the Education Bate. Well, all I can say is, that I am very sorry that Charles Oakford required summoning. Another Elector : Would you be in favor of refusing to grant bush licenses without a requisition from a largo body of settlers ? Mr Lusk said that since he had taen so much through the country, and had seen the great evil of badly conducted bush-houses, he was impressed with the great necessity for refusing to grant such licenses without a large majority of settlers petitioned in their favor. Another Elector : You have stated that you wcnld endeavour to change the present form of taxation under the Education Act. What form would you propose to substitute? Mr Lusk said he was in favor of a tax on the basis of property, (Cheers.) Another Elector: Why did you only summon thirty persons for the Education Bate at the Thames, and those all Mr Dargaville's supporters? The Candidate paid he never summoned any one for that rate. A Voice : '* Your father did." The Superintendent did, and he was quite right. If they were aU supporters of Mr Dargaville't it must have been because MrDargaville advised them not to pay it. (Cheers, groans, and laughter.) Mr J. M. Dargaville then came forward. Briefly his policy was as follows : — Up to the present time provincial affairs had been mismanaged, and our representatives in the General Assembly and the Provincial Council had not done their duty by the province. Our position now was a jest and a bye-word amongst the other provinces of the colony. They had magnificent lands and large resources in coal, gold, iron, nnd petroleum which should have enabled them to take a leading position amongst the provinces; but instead of holding that position they were lagging behind, and the province was a bye-word in the land. Its condition was such that it could not bo worse. (A Voice : Don't you think you'd better clear out ?) Would they consent to let things remain as they were ? When means had to bo provided for a special purpose, as in the case of education, a most obnoxious tax had been resorted to. That they had been compelled to resort to this form of taxation proved that they had been misgoverned. When the province had hundreds of thousands of pounds of revenue then should have been the time for providing for education. Then, instead of spending the money in that way the Government had found more pleasant ways of spending it in jobs, appointments, and contracts for the benefit of their friends. He repeated that if it had not been for maladministration on the part of the Government of those days they would not now be driven into a corner. He would briefly state what his political opinions were. He was to be followed by Mr Williamson, and with regard to that gentleman he had nothing to iay against him except what was equally true of his proposer and seconder — he was past his prime. (Oh ! oh ! — Hear, hear — cheers, and great interruptions.) As to his honesty of purpose he believed no one could deny it. He (Mr Williamson) was an honest man, and if he had been as young as himself be (the speaker) thought it was probable the electors would not have listened to him in opposition. Activity aud watchfulness were needrd to see that the province was not sacrificed to a few individuals who for a long time had monopolized the administration of affairs. He (the speaker) could nay thnt he was I hen, had been yesterday, and would be to-morrow, independent of the Wyndham street oliqm— -(.N.ime, name.) It was they who had brought this province into its present 6tate. " They had tho management for

the lust fifteen years, and the province had been, sacrificed. There were prorincea in the south—Canterbury, Otago, for instance— where those gentlemen had rointerest, and the prosperity of thoie provinces wm an evidence of the baneful effects of their influence. The time had como for them to awnke and ronte themselves. They had now to decide whether tbey would hare aa Superintendent the man of their choice or the old identity. The chief resources of the province were its laad, gold, and ooal. The Wyndham street clique had absorbed th» chief of those - to the exclusion of working men. With re/erence-to gold,, they knew at the Thames and Coromaudel what- influence - had been exercised. They hack inr'all cases aimed only at their own advantage. The electors should put in a man . thoroughly independent of such influence!. Regarding rail* ways, they remember how a meeting was convened as a blind in the Mechanic*' Institute to adyocate the Waikato railway. He maintained that the land ia .this provinceshould be opened up for the benefit of the people at large, . and not of a tow capitalists- w)to had bought up large tract* of land. The policy of -the "Provincial Government in thepast had been against the interests of the province.' Sutlers - weie imported into this country,, and settled on the most barren tracts, and they had consequently written hpmtf advising their friends not to come to New Zealand as they could not make a living. He would go in for an entirely different policy. He believed in a scheme for the introduc- • tion into the colony of small working capitalist!, who would settle and form good farms on the best land. They had excellent lands in the north ; but under the forty-acre system, under which hundreds of settlers bad been, induced to take up land, no improvement had taken place. The failure of the Public Works must be attributed- to Mr T. B« Gillies, . their late Superintendent. He would support any Government which would do justice to Auckland. They had paid to the Government large revenues, for which they had received very little. This had been owing to the uniformorganisation in the south, to the divided state of the Auokland members, and to the work of Mr T. B. Gillies. Had he considered his duty more, and his own ambition less, . they — the electors — would have been better off. With regard to the education tax he looked upon it. as being most unjust. If he bad been in Mr Lusk's position he would rather have sacrificed his billet as Provincial Secretary than , have voted for the education tax in its present form. That gentleman at bis many meetings had not stated that he - would retire from his position rather than vote for the education tax. He had contradicted himself in some of his state- - ments. He (Mr Dargaville) had little further to say except that he would go in for retrenchment in the provincial de- - partments. They were spending more money than was required to be spent in keeping up those departments— more money in excess of requirement than was raised by the Education tax, or than ib was Kkely to produce. He had now friends looking out for billets. Although he had made many promises as to what he would do in the way of depriving menM of their billets, and thus reducing expenditure, he had never , made a promise that he would give a man a billet at the ■'■-' public expease. (Ohears.^ TJiat was more than the candidate who had preceded him- could say, for he knew that candidate had made Ipromises that he would give certain appointments to certain individuals. If that candidate fulfilled the promises he had made with reference to the billets he was going' to give his friends, the whole of the provincial revenue would be absorbed and not a shilling would be left.He (Mr D;)' would not make such appointments, but Would , go in strenuously, and* vigorously for reducing our preienb expenditure in order that the incidence of taxation might rest more lightly on the community than it had hitherto, done under Provincial administration, (cheers). Not only had promises been made by the- candidate who had preceded him, but the Provincial Executive had connected themselves with & most unjust and a most corrupt proceeding in reference - to the administration of public- works. The condition in , which this province found itself now. wm owing to maladministration, log-rolling and corruption in the past, and if.* they were willing that that sort of thing should continue let them elect Mr Lusk. as their Superintendent. (Mr Ormiston asked : What are you going in for?) It-might not be known to such men that there was in human, aatune a feeling such as this : a desire to merit the good opinion of one's fellow--citizens. He had never taken, any part in public affairs, and if tbero was now a more able, disinterested, and independent man to come to the front to solicit their suffrages for the Superintendency they would not have seen him there that day as a candidate for that position. He w*s going in to • alter the old state of things. He had seen their lands and their- recources lying dormant. It .had been a disgrace to • them. Let them vote for the man whom they believed would act independently, and for the best interest, of the community.. (Cheers.) He had been. asked what. about theEducation Tax. To provide foe education, wus the most important duty that could devolve upon. any legislature When the province had ample means in the past provision should have been made for education ; it should not have • been left until now, when the province, isi so poor. Let the capitalists and those who bad made money out of" the province in the past pay in proportion to their means ■ for education, and let the poor pay in proportion to theirmeans. The promotion of education was a national undertaking, and if they neglected to foster education the injurious - result would be felt by the property -holders, They .would, have more criminals, more loafers than they had atw present, whereas if' they fostered education they would? have more skilled artizani, more industry, and moreprosperity generally. Let; therefore, the rich* and the poor contribute in proportion to their means. He had been told that that was Mr Lusk's idea, but Mr Lirtk had quoted portions of his speeches which he bad delivered in the Mechanics' Institute -with reference to local ' selfgovernment and Municipal affairs. He challenged contratradiction. The, Provincial Executive had neglected important matters because- thej found that any alteration would probably lead to a- diminution in their revenue. Their object had been to increase their revenue at anycost to the community generally so long as they had a*. little more patronage to exercise. They) knew that the prosperity of the Thames goldfield had contributed very largely to the prosperity of Auckland, and the Superin- - tendent was to blame for not urging the> General Govern* - ment to complete the water supply for the Thames gold- - field, as the prosperity of the field would languish con- - siderably during the summer for lack of- sufficient water - for the machinery. The loss occasioned by the recennt fireswas estimated at £150,000, which would- have been sufficieni to provide an abundant supply of water for the(city for the next twenty or thirty years. He-had- in the.Muw- - cipal Council urged the necessity of a water supply, but he ■ had been opposed by such a class of people ( as Mr Alex. Black belonged to. They could not see thatfa plentiful supply of water would be a saving to the taxpayers. The question of jobbery no doubt entered into £hjjt,matter, . but the fault tested with the people themselves.. They allowed themselves to be influenced Joy those representing capital — he meant the N. Z. JBterald—wlio had ppoposea that a private company should undertake the work. . That private company meant the Wyndham street Company. The evil of such a system had been felt in Dunedin, and it , was about to be got rid of there. He world now proceed to answer the questions put! to him. 'He was Mkecty'lfivfe - yon promised to spend £800 in grog on the day of •leotaon. The supporters ef Mr Lusk have circulated that report. He had promised anything of the kind. It is on a par with many of the other false statements circulated in order ■ to make his friends feel that his professions were not alto- - gether true. The next question was important. If the Catholics — 1 presume that mean the Roman Catholics — objected, would you be willing that they should be eXempted from payment of the Education rate? He would v insist upon every member of the community contributing his proportion towards secular education* He was next asked the question— Had you anything to do directly or indirectly, with the dodge to do Mr Lusk out of his intended proposer and seconder t >-day — on your honor, as a man ? Well, on his beitor, as a man, ho knew that something of the kind was going to be done. He was - asked — Did you not promise to pay the Education rate out of the saving of salaries ? He did not, butt be promiked to save as large a sum out of the salaries of the provincial de- • partments. The education rate was likely to produce about £7,000, and he proposed to save about that amount from the • present cost of provincial departments. The Harbour Board would have, during the next two years,, to administer upwards - of £10,000, and yet the expenses of the Board were considerably under £1,600 a-year. Was it not reasonable that the Provincial Government, stripped of its fine feathers and official paraphernalia, could have administered its affairs at a cost of six or »even thousand a-year. He was asked — Are you in favour of the Permissive Bill ? He was in favour of. giving the majority, such as the bill provided, the privilege ■ of deciding whether or not they should have licensed bousesin their districts. He was asked — Provided you are elected, . will you be prepared to go in for the repeal of the present, \ obnoxious Education rate ? He would strenuously go in forthe repeal of the present Education Act. It would be one of the first acts he would perform as their Superintendent, which he confidently expected to be — (laughter) — to send down to the Council a Bill to provide for the repeal of that Act, and to provide other means for education. He would use his utmost endeavour ns Superintendent of the province and as a member of the General Assembly, which he hoped to be — (laughter) — to provido some scheme whereby the education of the children should be permanently provided for without resorting to such 'an obnoxious tax. He did not approve of the law that would oblige children to be taken out of their parent's houses nnd put to school. Education should be provided for the children of the poorest. He was again asked : Did you request Mr Gillies to lease you largo blocks of land in the Kaipara to cut the timber only, and was refused; hence you stand for Superintendent P This statement was oirculuted by Mr W. L. Bees, and was a . calumny and a falsehood of the lowest character. (Mr Webster gave n bis-tory of the transaction, and showed how he and Mr Webster, of Hokianga, had been outwitted by the natives from whom they both purchased the same logs.) Mr Onniston asked him — *' Do you consider bribery to be right in this election ?" That gentleman had not added the word " corruption j " perhaps it would come home to himself too much. It was not uccessarv for him to resort to bribery,

or to corrupt such persons as Mr Ormiston in order to ga«r thii election. Mr Ormiston asked him — " Did you give i ■übscription of two guinea* to assist a jockey club, Mid pn> raises to giro six guineas if elected Superintendent ? D'lrine his canvas lie has evnlnbuted not onH to jockey clubs, but to hospitals, schools, Mechanics' Institute, nnd other institutions of that kind, and so long as Providence prospered hi« he should continue to do so. (Cheers ) He had offered two guineas to a certain institution in the country anil, if elected, he promised to give- ten guineas. As a private citizen he did not (eel himself called upon to contribute ten guineas, but if he were Superintendent of tins province ho would contribute ten guineas. (Cheer* ) Mr A. Black wanted to know what Mr Dargaville had done that h« should be so proud of this work. He (Mr Dargaville) had called them the " old identities." Ho (the questionor) called Mr D. a new iniquity. (Laughter). Mr. DargavilLe, in reply, urged the fact of his having iv his employment 130 men. Although ho had only been a short tune in the colony, and Mr Black a vory long time, he had a great deal more interest in the province than Mr Black. Let them stick to the old identities if they liked, but if they elected him he would go in for advancing the interest of the province to tho best of his ability. Mr John Williamson was then called for, and enme to the fronL, where he wa3 well received He was glad the candidates themselves were brought face to face so that each might say what ho thought of the others openly and in their presence, instead of making defamatory speeches behind their backs, which they were not able to prove. He acquitted Mr Dargaville of any slander of him, because 1 c had said nothing but what he had intended a compliment But that gentleman had repeated an insult which he (the speaker) could not brook. Ho had said — not there but elsewhere—that he (Mr Williamson) was led by the nose by tho Wyndliam street poople. Tint ha regarded as a deep insult. He Mr Dargaville had also said he was too old. He would tell them a story. He knew an old lady who had some naughty daughters. When this old lady was told of the follies of these young ladies, she said "Oh, let them alone, they are young and foolish." (Laughter). Ho thought ho would be able to sliovr at the CHd of the election that Mr Dargaville was young and foolish. With regard to the other competitor ho would not bo too severe on him. (A voice— "Oh, give it to him.") But he had also said things behind his back which ho had not ventured in his presence. He had also accused him of being too old. Ho (the ipeaker) would undertake- to do as much in canvassing and other work as Mr Lusk. (Cheers and cries of " well done old 'un.") He had juat returned from a place where ho had heard a great deal and which was calculated to bring Auckland into a verj low state. He had always been tho defender of the province whero defenders were few, and those few divided. (Hear, hear). He had now heard a still more doleful dirge fro m the Colonial Secretary. He wa9 not now dealing with Mr Gillies, his successor in the Supenntendency, but lie was ready to »ay go in and do your best, and if the province is better off at tho end of your four years I will be the first to acknowledge it. Mr Lusk had taken up the affairs of tho province, <tnd ho only wished he had tried his 'prentice hand on some other work. He was unfit to take charge of even a branch of the legislature. He (Mr Lusk) had made proposals to him to retire in order that he, the parent of the education tax— (groans)— might take his place Mr Dargaville had also come forward, and had prepared for him (Mr Williamson) certain beds of roses and tanks of violets He had beon wanted to stand aside and let "young friend" take his place, and impale himself on tho thorny bod of the Supenntendencv (loud cheers). It was very kind of him, but he (the speaker) did not wish to be so taken care of. Ho wished to keep Mr Dargaville if possible from that thorny bed. But Mr Lusk had said he was not so fit to ride about the country as him•elf. Now, he felt convinced, that in the time of the Waikato troubles no father would have refused to allow his son to go and defend the frontier line ; why did not Mr Lusk, if he •was such a good rider, go and Join the Otahuhu Cavalry 9 Why did he not, as his gallant relation had done, take command of a cavalry troop 9 (Cheers ) He would have made a very distinguished soldier he was quite sure. Mr Lusk only gave the province two years of existence, and he had gallantly undertaken to guide its affairs- not to their satisfaction but to the winding-up of the estate. He wished to be the province's official liquidator. (Laughter.) From that fate, if Mr Dargaville would allow him> he meant to aave him. The principles he held in 1866 he held now, and came forward with the same desire to forward the interest of the province. Those interests he was now able to further as they were m a much better position, and when the electors felt, as he was sure they would feel, the benefits of the change they would acknowledge he was riaht. He could not see there had been much neglect. Mr Dargaville had asserted there had been mis-management. The fact was there had been no opportunity till quite lately of Auckland getting proper attention. Circumstances hod altered, and were now more favorable for the development of the policy of 1870, a policy with which his- own closely agreed. It consisted in the opening the land for settlement, the overcoming of the native difficulty by keeping the natives employed, in giving the country settlements an intelligent contented population, who would live peaceably with the natives while they were among them, and in averting war. No opportunity had been afforded for carrying out that policy. He begced his friend's pardon (Mr Lusk) , he had had that opportunity. In 1870 provision was made for the introduction of immigrants, but the area of the land for the purpose was then very limited. He charged his hen friend with not having applied for the province money for purchasinz the land. They had a fine country at their disposal He had been through it, and knew of large tracts in a stale of wildness. If a proper system of immigration were adopted, for one resident or one cottage now existing, they would soon have ten. It was the business of the Superintendent to lay claim to a proper ahare of money for the purpose of land. X a native difficuly were to break out the Southern provinces would have to bear the brunt of tho expense, and thpy were now beginning to see that it would be better for them to assist Auckland in the proper settlement of the native difficulty. The state of the Northern and Southern provinces might bo illustrated by a story which he had heard. One old woman liad invited another to tea, and said she would provide the hot water if the other would bring the tea, the sugar, and milk It had been, by the mercy and forbearance of the House thnt in tunes past the province h»d obtained what it had. Mr Williamson referred to the question of mail service, and said that but for Mr Vogfll's efforts Auckland would not have secured a subsidy for the temporary connection with the Suez line by steamer from Auckland to Sydney. He referred to the importance of immigration in order to maintain Auckland's influence in the Assembly, the number of repreprcsentatives being fixed on the basis of population. He referred at length to the importance of immigration, and read a poetical invitation sent to the home people by the Canterbury Association, and said that the cheery prospects held out were equally applicable to Auckland. Mr Dargaville had been misinformed regarding his connection with tho Wyndham-rtrect clique. It was not true that he had sold the province for a mess of pottage. He then referred to the rise of tne New Zealand Company and tho good it had done the colony. The New Zealand, like many other companies, got tired of its operations, and they proposed to sell out the lands acquired from the Maoris to the Home Government. They said the New Zealand Government had got the advantage of them, and they would pay bo much of their land reveuue to buyjout the General Government interest acquired. The land was sold on the understanding that an allowance should be made for surveys and roads, and in the Assembly it was arranged that £45,000 should be allowed to Auckland. In 1856 a grand borrowing Bcheme was proposed to liquidate the New Zealand Company, giving the middle island people their lands, on condition that the £45,000 should b& paid to Auckland, which was done. In addition to thii a further sum was given to assist in emigration. He voted for this, and when he did go he was as independent of Wyndham street as Mr Dargaville now professed to be. He felt such a statement as that ho should be led by the nose by any one as an insult from Mr Dargaville; It was for the electors to say who should be chosen, independent of any newspapers or persons, you have it in your power to say if he should be led or to lead him That Government was governed best by allowing the people to chose for themselves. His views were — open up the country for lettlement, bringing out your relatives and people to overspread the country, that it may become the Britain of the South. His friend had become the putative father of the Education law, but he (Mr Williamson) did not like any feature in that child's face. It wu not very pretty when born, ond the doctor put his thumb upon it, whilst my friend stood by and allowed the die. (igiirement of the bairn, instead of saying " I love the child, and will go out into the cold, cold country rather than allow the disfigurement of th« child by the doctor." As in many other matters Mr Lusk had misjudged the education questien. He did not understand that the people had not reached that stite whero they could bo coerced into anything. He hoped the time to come when they would not need to be coerced, but would yield to what they believed to bn a parental duty. He considered it to be the duty of the Gcnernl Government to attend to tho education of the people. When Mr Lusk said that nothing was done for education he said what was not trno and he knows it. There was not a block of land purchased from the natives out of which a portion was not set aside as an educational endowment. T hose endowments are now scattored out by the province, aii'l it w,is those that were increasing in valuo, and would prevent the tai coUeotor from coming to their door. It was n most oppressive- tax because everyone was entitled to the right of private judgment. Many felt that it was neccv s iry for a child to be educated in spiritual matters. A child might be brought into a court of justi -c and be asked to swear on a Bible, and that child from the charaetor of its u lucation might not understand tho ao it was about to perform, nor rven know th.it there was a God above him Ho I M li.MPfl that although they should hav> a proper amount of instruction in j-emhir education Hi^v a lould not neglect to nisi d into childrer a knowledge of up ri ml matters. Ho beliowl educ.it ion mijjht be provided for He had a scheme which would effect that ob|cct. He thought that with the assistance of tho bene\olenL the Pro* no al Cjuncil would

be ablo to pro Tide what other prorwoes already enjoyed — a good 3jBtem under which children would be educated not only m secular but in religious matters. The neglect of religious teaching in schools wns. he finnlv believed, the chief cause of the grow th of niiideJiLv. His opinion wa*, find he had stated so on his first election, that tha time would como when Provincial institutions must ceswe and tho colony become one united whole. But to talk ef County Go\ eminent now, when they had not sufficient population to attend to the duties- devolving upon local boards «a« nonsense If his friend Mr Dargavillo became u member of tho General Legislature he was convinced ho would feel with hun that it was j still necessary that Auckland should be manngt d bj a legislature composed of men liming Auckland interests at heart He thought tho principle of local boards might bo oxtended, I but the people could not dispense with provincial institutions. The city affairs were he believed Jin good hands, and the Harbour Board was likely to do a largo amount of good, but the province at largo still required a Council to look after its interests. His friend might be desirous of becoming the official liquidator of tho province, and to lay it low in tho earth, but ho took a more sanguine view of things, and if he were elected, (and the had good hope of being elected), he would do his best to raise the province out of the lethargy in ■which it seemed to have sunk. It rested with the sinew of the province by developing our valuable resources to cause its permanent advancement and prospeuty. JVlr Williamson concluded amid prolonged applause. The Returning Offcer then called for a show of hands with the following result : — Mr John Williamson 18!) Mr J. M. Dargaville US Mr H. H. Lusk ... 18 He declared the show to be in favor of Mr Williamson. Messrs Lu»k and Dargawille then demanded a poll, and the Returning Officer announced that the poll would tale place on tho 6th November. Ho said he wanted to mako »n explanation which he wished roportod. In his larse experience of elections he found that persons sometimes •voted in Auckland and New ton. The result was, that when he got the papers and found that an elector had voted twice, he took out both pape.«, so that instead of doing the candidate a service the elector lost lnii> his vote. He also road the clause rolatmg to personation, which, perhaps, a person might commit in the heat of the moment. Such an offender rendered himself liable to a fine with or without imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years. On the motion of Mr M ilhamson, seconded by Mr Dargaville, a vote of thanks was aceordad to the Returning Officer, for whom also three cheeri were given. The meeting then separated.