THE ELECTIONS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1671, 24 September 1887, Page 2

THE ELECTIONS.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, — It haß become pretty generally known that I have decided to uupport Mr Kolleatoa In the forthcoming election, and many of my friends are disappointed thereat, I may, perhaps, ba permitted to state briefly my reasons for bo doing. For Mr Buxton personally, I have the greatest respect ; bat v/heii he aunoanced himself as a Ministerialist, I felt very much disappointed. The clear issue now before the oonntry Ib whether v the tariff and other financial proposals of the Government ar6 satisfactory." Are we to have increased taxation or are we to retrench ? If the latter, as I most decidedly think, then the Stout-Vogol* combination are not to be trusted to carry it o;t I regard Sir J. Yogel as the great faith healer of New Zealand. Ills Gospel is " only believe and you shall be saved, 1 ' " have confidence m yourselves " — and m me — and things will come out all righ^ And if we are fools enough to believe him, as we have been m the past, and are disappointed, then he tarns upon ns with cruel mockery, and says, "Well, you ought to be thankful that I gave you a little hope, I was over sai guiae, but I tickjed your fancies and gave you a certain amount of pleasure, and you ought to be grateful," 'Tis better to have loved and lost Than never to have loved at all.

The "Lyttelton Timea " lately In speaking of Sir J Vogel'a record says, " Lot the past speak," I think it would have been wiser advice to Bay, " Let the dead past bnry its dead " ; but let us follow the advice. "Lst the past Bpeak." Whore are the 7$ millions which we were to borrow "without adding appreciably to our annual burdens V Where are the State loans t> farmers? Where are the non-political Railway Boards? Where are tha " leaps and bouoda " of prosperity ? Echo answers " whore ? ' Bit I may be told that the Government are prepared to go m for vigorous retrenchmmt. 5Te3, I was there when Sir ■ J. Yo^el said I*, and it almost took my breath away ; for I had m my pocket a Government piper giving a report of the debjte on the FioancUl Statement on Ist June, 1886, when Sir J. Yogel said " rather than be compelled to retrench any more hla Government would leave office" And on Mr Montgomery 'a motion to reduce the estimates by £75,000, Sic Ri Stout t aid,." wlthuufc an all round reduction of 10 per- cent In the Civil Service it would be utterly impossible to re* trench." And Sir J. V>gel has denounced the cry for retrenchment as " a humbug aud a sham" What confidence can we have m tha sincerity of each men. tl aak the working men, "Areyoupre- . pared to pay out of your small earnings an enhanced price for everything you and • your families require?" I ask the farmers, "Ace you prepared to have your homesteads taxed up to the hilt, and bardens of taxui n laid upon you previous to be borne, by a lot of needy political adventurers who will not touch those a hardens with one of their little fiagers 2" In the name of common sense and pradenoe I say "No ;" m the nama of our public crodit T say " No ;" m the name of our New Zealand that is to be 1 Bay "jNo." I And I hope that on Monday next the electors will join me m a most emphatic * > "No "by Banking out tha names of the Ministerial candidates. — I am, et«\, Gehbgb W LBADLBg.