THE POLITICAL SITUATION.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume I, Issue 15, 30 October 1879, Page 3

THE POLITICAL SITUATION.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. Wellington, Oct. 28. After two days of frantic abuse of the four Auckland members, the House has suddenly subsided into a peaceful state of mind. Mr Macandrew allowed his NoConfidence motion to lapse, and actually expressed a desire to get on with business, which he and his party have lately been so determined to prevent. Mr Colbeck made his maiden speech yesterday, after great provocation, which was a very damaging one to his assailants. He pointed out clearly that whilst Sir George Grey could not command a majority of the House, none of the four other would-be leaders could command anything like as large a majority as Sir George Grey could, and therefore government by that party was impossible. There is every appearance of business being got on with now as Messrs Macandrew and Sheehan have been plainly told by several members of their party that they will support no more attempts to obstruct public business. Mr Allwright has effected a simple and most important improvement in the ventilation of the House which has for years been prevented by the blundering of some wiseacre whose folly had not been discovered until Mr Allwright pointed it out.

Wellington, Oct. 29. Sir George Grey could only get 25 of his most manageable followers to go into the lobby wit a him this afternoon in support of the Committee which he got Mr Hamlin to propose, to enquire into the correspondence, which he knew perfectly well had no existence. The paper held by Mr Swanson, it appears, is a private paper written by himself, and marked confidential ; but it has been seen by members, and its contents have been explained to the House by both Mr Swanson and Mr Reader Wood. It requests the Government to undertake that the principal measures shall be passed ; that the education system shall not bo interfered with by the Government ; acting on Mr Hall’s own known views, that Auckland shall have a Member on the Ministerial Benches, which is to be Mr Swanson himself, and that Auckland shall be treated on an equality with the rest of the colony, both in schools and public works. No one denies the provisions, or doubts for one moment that any Government would have consented to them, or that the Greyites would have promised far more. But as Mr Colbeck and his friends are men who can see more than an inch before them, they saw that the Greyites without Grey were nowhere, and that with him they could not command a majority of the House, hence those who wanted to obtain what they consider justice to their province had to support those who alone could give it to them.