The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 2, Issue 137, 9 November 1877, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9.

The political situation o£ the colony, although remarkably curious and interesting, is, nevertheless, exceedingly embarrassing from the peculiar combination of circumstances involved therein, which render it exceedingly difficult to understand, and still more difficult to unravel the tangled web of complication that envelopes it, In the fierce struggle for office which has now been going on for some time, both parties claim to be actuated solely by motives of the purest patriotism ; " the good of the country, ■* and the good of the country only," is the battle cry of each of the contending hosts. Let us try and see whether consistency of conduct on the part of each, indicates that noble abnegation oif. self, which ought ever to mark the actions of those who are really influenced by that patriotic motive " the good of the coun- '■ try." ' We pass over that struggle which terminated in the deposition of the Atkinson administration from the Treasury benches, ancl the advent of Sir George Grey and his colleagues to power, and come to the period of the political conflict now more immediately under notice. There was true nobility of spirit displayed in the resolution of the Opposi+ion caucus, when it was determined not to unduly embarrass the present Ministry, but to give them time to mature their plans, and to wait until after the financial statement had been made, before any direct attack was began upon their position. There was something in this which indicated a desire on the part of the Opposition to give the Ministry a fair trial, to allow them that fair play *so dear to every Englishman's heart. Men, who, conscious of their ability to overpower those to whom they are opposed, yet, nevertheless, are thus willing to give them fairplay, do seem to be actuated by motives of pure patriotism, and to have the good of the country at heart. But, was the attack, which—without waiting for. the financial statement —was directly afterwards made upon the ministerial position by Major Atkinson, conceived in the same spirit of fairplay ; did it indicate a sacrifice of self on his part, and on that of his friends, a sacrifice which would show that they were willing to give up all self-aggrandisement for the " good of the country *," or did it not rather seem to point out that the lust for place and power had o'ermastered the spirit of self-negation, the love of fairplay of which the resolution passed at the Opposition caucus indicated the existence ? These are questions which we leave the public to answer. Reversing the picture. In England it is the practice of Ministers of the Crown ever to defend the Sovereign's honor, to suffer no breath of suspicion to tarnish the purity of motives which influenced the actions of the Head of the State ; in New Zealand the Ministers of the Crown can look calmly on and hear the representative of the Sovereign accused of partisanship, without uttering one word in his defence, and, when a motion is proposed, we do not say unnecessarily, that His Excellency had, we believe, inadvertently, invaded the privileges of the House, two of the Ministers, Mr. Fisher and Mr. Larnach, are found voting for it, whilst the names of Sir George Grey, Mr. Macandrew, and Mr. Sheehan are conspicuous only for their absence from the division lists. Again, when the Governor, in reply to the resolution of the House, stated that he had referred the matter to his responsible advisers for their advice thereon, Ministers sought and obtained the adjournment of the House in order that they might consider their position. Did .this show an abnegation of self so that the real business of the country might be proceeded with, or did it not rather seem as if Ministers wished, by complicating matters, and by taking advantage of an unfortunate, but unwitting error on the part of His Excellency, to escape the effect of the vote of " No Confidence" pending over them ?, These are questions which, like the former, we leave the public to consider and reply to.

Meanwhile, the whole business of the country is at an utter standstill. And so it will continue to be in spite of the. result of the division on the •■ No Con- " fidence " motion. His Excellency would confer an immense boon on 'the community if he were at once to cut the Gordian Knot, and announce to the House that it is his intention to dissolve Parliament at the expiration of the present Session. Such an announcement would he hailed with satisfaction by the whole country ; and if honorable members are indeed actuated by that anxious desire to promote the " good of the " country," which they profess, both sides would unite in passing the necessary measures, in voting the needful supplies, and then they would go and meet their constituents face to face like men.