The Ashburton Guardian. Magna Est Veritas Et Prevalebit. SATURDAY, JULY 19, 1884. An Unholy Alliance.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1308, 19 July 1884, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna Est Veritas Et Prevalebit. SATURDAY, JULY 19, 1884. An Unholy Alliance.

There are one or two incidents in connection with the present electoral campaign in this county which will not be readily forgotten by the inhabitants of this part of the colony. Not the least noticeable of these is the strange, we might almost say unholy, alliance that has been proved to exist between Messrs Wason and Ivess. At the last general election these two gentlemen were opponents for the same seat, and the policies they advocated were as far asunder as the poles. No contest was fought with more intense acrimony than was that between the two candidates for Wakanui during the election of iBBi, for Mr Ivess if not the man to spoil an uncivil thing by saying it civilly, when he has an end to serve. That mighty engine the Mail was employed to crush one who was then termed the nominee of the squatters, and as people are afflicted with very short memories in times of excitement such as we are now passing through, the electors will easily pardon us for quoting the following extract from the issue of our local contemporary of Dec. 6th, 1881 : A pertinent question for the electors of Wakanui to ask is, what position did Mr Wason occupy during the three years he sat for Coleridge in the House of Representatives? Well, in the first place, he was allied to the squatters, and he was always found voting on the side which favored his own class, that was only natural. He would have been unfaithful to his trust had he not endeavored to further the interests of those who virtually sent him to Parliament. Those interests were identical with his own, but they were not the interests of the mass of colonists. . . No member’s vote was more safe on the Conservative side. . . In Parliament, Mr Wason was always regarded as belonging to the extreme Tory section of the House. . . Let an Impounding Bill, a Fencing Bill, or any measure involving a clash of interests between the small settler and the squatter, come before the House of Representatives, and you will see on which side Mr WASON will cast his vote.

. .. People who are acquainted with die proceedings of Parliament during the period Mr Wason sat in the House will smile when they learn that he has turned a friend of the -mall settler. They will say that it is purely an election trick.” So far for the Mail's opinion of Mr Wason in 1881, and it must be admitted that the latter was quite as forcible in his language when dealing with his then opponent, as we find in a report published by our contemporary on the same day as the- extract given above, the subjoined account of what took place at a meeting:

Mr Wason objected to certain newspaper criticism which contained false statements. He referred to a statement in the Ashburton Mail that he was a nominee of the squatters and the land monopolists. He w s not the nominee of anybody —never had, nor ever would he. 'I he report of the meeting at Rakaia in the Mail contains false statements. ' It was a downright, wicked, and lie that he had been cheered a’ Kemp’s by his supporters after the disorderly meeting on Saturday. We have given both the accusation and the denial, and our readers can take them for what they are worth, but the fact that two men who were so utterly opposed Jess than three years ago should now be found in hand and glove companionship is so curious that it seems worth while to hazard an explanation of it. Hatred is a stronger passion than love, and it is a common enmity that has caused Mr Wason and Mr Ivess to so closely ally themselves that we actually find the former nominating the latter as a “ fit and proper person ” to represent the Wakanui constituency. It is well known that during the last Parliament Mr Ivess lost no opportunity of throwing discredit upon the late member for Ashburton, and although the same feeling on the part of Mr Wason was evoked at a later date it is evidently no whit less intense. Perhaps the growth of this recently-formed friendship can best be described in a dramatic shape. In the first act we find Mr Wason, taking pity on the ignorance of the people of Ashburton, coming down to the Town Hall and lecturing on general politics. Whether his large Parliamentary experience justified him in taking the role of Mentor we leave an open question, but before the evening was over the cat was let out of the bag. In reply to a question, Mr Wason declared his intention to contest the Ashburton seat at the next general election, thus setting the mind of the then member for Wakanui at rest with the assurance that at the next contest he would not be called upon to meet one whom he had every reason to consider his strongest antagonist. The plot of the drarpa, or shall we call it a farce, so far was a little too obvious, and the situation at the end of the first act had evidently been premeditated, but still the next movement was watched for with some interest. W e need not recapitulate .the Vogel episode, except to point out that the Mail kept studiously silent about the afjtair, and probably we shall not be far wrong in surmising that Mr Ivess was not disposed to place implicit trust in Mr Wason’s promise, and at any rate would not open his mouth until after the nomination for Ashburton, had taken place. This was the situation on Monday last, when the news leaked out that there was not after all going to be a walk-over for Wakanui. Ihen did the Mail pour forth the vials of his wrath upon the head of Mr Waiker, who was denounced as the nominee of the squatting interest, whose return would be a danger to the State. In fact, mutatis mutandis , precisely the same accusations were brought against Mr Walker as had been levelled at his present opponent, when the latter was fighting Mr Ivess for the Wakanui seat three years ago. What, faith, we would ask, can be placed in the honesty of such support as this —a support that is evidently governed by personal motives? The “ last scene of all that ends this strange eventful history ” took place on Tuesday when Mr Wason nominated Mr Iyess for the Wakanui seat. It would be a delicate psychological problem to decide which of these tyyo candidates in their inmost hearts felt the most contempt for the other when they, metaphorically, embraced at the Saleyards on Tuesday last -the man who accused his opponent in iBBi of being a mere tool of the squatters, or that other who denounced the accusation as a malicious lie. We leave our readers to work out the solution as they will, but we feel pretty sure that they will come to the conclusion that there is a good deal of humbug going about at election times in New Zea>> ! land,

The temperance electors are specially requested by advertisement in another column to visit the Templar Hall to hear the report of the Union Temperance deputation re the Ashburton and Wakanui elections.

The following electoral committees will meet this evening :—Mr Walker’s at 7 o’clock; Mr Grigg’s at 7.30; and M.r Iveas’s at 8 o’clock. The anniversary temperance service in connection with St Stephen’s Church will be held-to-morrow at 630 p.m. We regret to hear that the Yen. Archdeacon Harris is in poor health just now, but he hopes to be able to preach at the above service.

Mr Iv<3ss, the lata member for Wakanui, met a section of the Wakanui electors at Chertsey last evening. There were about thirty-five individuals present, and Mr T, W. Wilkinson occupied the cnair, and bespoke a patient hearing for the candidate. His address was merely a stereotyped reproduction of his speech delivered at other places. After the address questions of more or less interest to the constituency were put to Mr Ivess hj Messrs Rule, Todd, McDonald, Wilkinson, Manghatn, Russell, and Newlyn, and elicited what appeared to be satisfactory answers from the candidate. A vote of confidence in Mr Ivess and of thanks to the chair closed the proceedings.

At the Police Court this morning a well-to-do farmer was charged with having been drunk in a railway carriage, anda assaulting a fellow passenger, who declined to provide the offender with pipe and tobacco. For the first offence the Mayor inflicted a fine of 20a and for the assault L 4, halt th' second penalty to be awarded to the victim of the assault. There was a very good attendance at the meeting of the Ashburton Debating iSocioty last evening, when the question for discussion was the reletive merits of candidates for Ashburton in the General Assembly. Mr Oaygill opened in favor of Mr Wason, and Mr Robertson for Mr Walker, and speeches were also made by Messrs Thomas, Fooks, Hogg, rown, Latnbie, and Shaw. The debate was, taken altogether, a spirited one, and at the conclusion a vote was taken, which resubed in an equal number being held up for each candidate, the Chairman giving his casting vote for Mr Wason. The Secretary, however, informs us that one of the hands held up for Mr Wason belonged to a non member of the Society, so that in ac cordance with the rales, Mr Walker’s supporters obtained the majority. Gur lo al correspondent writes:

After service on Sunday last, at Chertsey, the Rev. A. M. Beattie announced to the congregation that there was now a prospect of the Presbyterians—who are a numerous and influential body in the district—participating in a share of the services of a regular clergyman of their own sect. This is a consummation much to be desired ; and it is certain that if anevrnest and energetic pastor be appointed hy the Presbytery to labor, say from Rakaia as a centre, with Chertsey and the other embryo townships round about as outposts, he will meet with all adequate support. The Chertsey people interested should combine in committee, with the least possible delay, to ascertain what money support they can raise towards the scheme.

The question was raised at the Auckland City Council of declaring a public holiday on polling day, but the matter dropped. The Mayor said it ratepayers wished it he would declare a holiday. At a meeting of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, a letter from Mr Maxwell, General Manager of Railways was read in reply to enquiries previously made by the Chamber re charges on the New Zealand railways. The letter was oo unsatisfactory that it was decided to defer consideration, and in the meantime a committee was appointed as a deputation io wait upon the Minister for Public Works, and draw his attention to the very un satisfactory reply. In a case brought against the Roslyn Tram Company for injuries sustained by Mrs Lindsay through falling out of the car by reason of its starting before she was properly seated, judgment was given for £6 and costs. The Otago Harbor Board have still 49 of the unomployid engaged. There was a misconception regarding the system of dealing with country produce on the Otago railways. No privileges are withdrawn, the department only trying to avoid double handling. ■Sir George Maurice O’Rorke has been re-elected Chairman of the University College Council.

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