Answers to Correspondents.

Auckland Examiner, Volume 2, Issue 53, 17 December 1857, Page 2

Answers to Correspondents.

A Subscriber — need not fear that Captain Daldy icill be “choked oj/'” by insolent jobbers. All who expose abuses are abused. It is their destiny. If thinskinned they should retire and leave the work of routing out, or showing up, humbugs to people less sensitive. The abettors of our profligate Provincial Government cannot be pleased by those who oppose profligacy. Their complaint against Captain Daldy’s Petition is simply absurd. TCe subjoin a copy of it that our readers may judge for themselves whether the language employed is so very strong and very objectionable as Jobbers would have us believe. “ The Petition of the undersigned to the Honorable Provincial Council, Shewetij That your Petitioner believes evidence can be produced proving that great public injustice has been done, and that public money has been illegally and wastefulh/ expended in the works at present being carried out at (jueenrslreel Wharf, which works have never been sanctioned by your Honorable Council, by ivhom only public money can be legally and constitutionally expended on such undertakings. " That your Petitioner has placed a portion of this evidence before his Honor the Superintendent asking enquiry but has received no intimation that public inquiry ivould be made, “ Your Petitioner, therefore,prays that previous to your giving your sanction to this expenditure you will cause an open and public enquiry to be made into the utility of the works undertaken, the (Jon* tracts made, and how they are being carried' 1 . out. Your Petitioner prays that your Honorable Council will restrain any further expenditure on this account until such enquiry has been made. “ And yoiir Petitioner will ever pray, &c. S William C. Daldy.”

M. A. — -The position of Mr. Busby is a dis- I agreeable one. So far as many Rump Provincial Councillors are concerned he might as well talk an unknown tongue. Argumentis to them what mathematics was to * the London learned pig. That in teresting animal knew many things and could do many things. For instance, he knew every cardin thepack,and couldproduce the card demanded or even thought of. Folks say he was assisted in these, and other no less surprisingly sagacious, operations by his owner who showed, that though a nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse, a nod wets sometimes better than a wink and a wink often better than a nod to his openeyed Toby. An elaborate process oj reasoning saidpig Toby,with allhislearning, never could be made to understand. '1 he scant encouragement given to Mr. Busby by Rump Provincial Councillors makes us doubt that they will ever understand either the principles of Government to which he so frequently appeals or the arguments he deduces therefrom. But let him take courage. Rump) Provincial Councillors no more represent the wit, wealth, and wisdom of this Province than ive represent that celestialized brother of the sun and moon who now rules at Pekin. Not in but out of our Little Parliament will the course of Mr. Busby be applauded. We flatter none. Our instinct revolts at toadyism. But then our instinct also revolts at injustice, and not to support Mr. Busby in his contest with, ignorant self-seekers —not to express admiration for the high moral courage he has this session displayed—wouldamount to positive, ungrateful, and utterly disgraceful abandonment of the political principles we profess. We much regret that he has to fight the battle of principles single handed. lie needs help. He has tofight up hill. He speaks much wholesome

truth. Unfortunately, the truth he speaks is not always well spoken. Without tact no man, however able, can impress, much less win over, any number of our Provincial Councillors. Long speeches they detest. A lively style best pleases. Councillor Kelly Lids fair to be more popular than any other orator amongst them: At 1 present Councillor Merriman is the Hump Corypheus ; but if he look not sharp the short and. spicey speeches of Kelly will take all shine out of him. Bedggopd is nobody, lie demonstrates that in Politics, as in Algebra, there may be quantities less than none. His Provincial Council exhibitions are pitiable. Lay of Islands people really stipuld call upon him to resign. All the good hedoes consists in hunting up his expenses” and making himself Provincial Council butt. A Jew days since he threatened us with sepai ation from the Bay of Islands unless some jive thousand pounds were squandered on Barracks there. Not only did he attempt to frighten hon. members by the separation idea, but assured them that he had come up from the Bay on purpose to hook his share of surplus public revenue, He did not mean exactly what he said. He seldom does. His parts of speech are jumbled out and up so oddly that he often says one thing while meaning another. His malapropos employment of words never was equalled

except oy ine jmoow whoyigures m Measure for Measure. fVhen that most amusing of constables, is asked to give some account of himself and also of what he is doing, he says:—“lf it please your honor, I am the poor Duke's constable, and my name is Elbow ; I do lean upon justice, sir, and I do bring here before your good honor, two notorious benefactors. ” “ Benefactors ! Well, what benefactors are they? are they not malefactors?” “ If it please your honor, I know not well what they are ; but precious villains they are, that I am sure of; and void of all profanation in the world that good Christians ought to have.” Thus did Constable Elbow, who certainly as the Clown remarks was “ out at elbow,” elucidate his ideas. JTe have heard Councillor Bedggood three times address the body of which he is so worthy a member, and upon each occasion it occurred to us that he and Constable Elbow might jairly be pitied against each other. 'That he would an ‘‘ out an out” Bay of Islands’ constable is probable ; but the qualities which adorn a constable are not precisely the qualities for a legislator. We direct attention to his eccentricities because Mr. Busby deserves a better colleague than one ichose bowels unquestionably have the best of his brains. IjJCirBDUI/OUS —■ should put his queries to Mrs. Slipslop. We are unable to say what became of Torn Murphy or Tom Murphy’s notes. Suspicious people doubt that the missing notes ever were missed, But though the notes of poor Tom may be safe as safest bank it is certain that poor Tom himself has for some time been past finding out. What has become of him ? Our correspondent wants to know, and ice should like to be told. C. D.--Lady do you call her J why she’s only a woman. It was thus that .lackey, “ the hope of the family,” expressed his feelings when Mamma told him to go and kiss the lady. Jackey distinguished between women and ladies. So do we. There arc many women but few ladies. Mere bundles of affectation, pretention, and pride, are not ladies. The true lady makes no parade either of her wealth or her worth. She may be what vulgar people call ugly yet be sure that she is neither conceited, nor envious, nor boastful, nor given to backbiting. She never “ shows off;’ and though-anxious to excel

in all virtuous accomplishments is content to appear what she happens to be. Some time since a friend obliged us with the following quite choice anecdote : — .l person we iv ill call Pecksniff had several diningout gentlemen to dine with himself and daughters. After dinner conversation turned upon Columbus. One of the gentlemen was somehow moved to put to one of the daughters the rather inconsiderate, if not rude, question,—Do you know Columbus? She blushed and said, —“ No, Pa don’t visit.” .1 young lady would have said—The person you speak of is a stranger, or something of that sort, but Miss Pecksniff, being a'female snob, answered as every snob under similar circumstances would be sure to do. For the true lady or the true gentleman our admiration is profound ; but the pretender in petticoats disgusts us even more than the pretender in continuations A mob of pretenders male and female must surely have formed the congregation of that American Divine, who inone of his sermons, burst rapturously forth with — B7io were the last at the Cross ? Ladies. Who were the first at the Sepulchre ? Ladies. M.— St. John’s College is not a heap ruins. Orie of Rumour's thousand lying tongues hoaxed us ; chid we, in turn, did quite naturally hoax the public. We have been blamed for “ rushing into print” before having satisfied ourselves as to the truth or falsehood of so grace a rumour by going to supposed scene of destruction. But the mis-information reached us on Wednesday, ancl of all days in the week that is our busiest. To divide ourselves nicely between Office and Provincial Council we found difficult. In truth, however, the shadow of suspicion that neither the Library of St. Jchn's College nor St. John’s College was burnt did not cross our confiding spirit. lie believed the report because the gentleman on whose ’ authority it was published occupies a high position, has large means of obtaining information, and may fairly be presumed incapable of lending himself to falsehood.