THE "THE SPIRIT OF THE TIMES SHALL TEACH ME SPEED." KING JOHN, ACT TV. Wednesday, October 13, 1875.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume IV, Issue 323, 13 October 1875, Page 2

THE "THE SPIRIT OF THE TIMES SHALL TEACH ME SPEED." KING JOHN, ACT TV. Wednesday, October 13, 1875.

We fancy that in glancing over Mr Trollope’s valuable and interesting work on Australia and New Zealand wo came across a paragraph wherein he rather favorably contrasted the behaviour of our House of Representatives with the rowdyism extant in New South Wales, and wo thoroughly believe that the House has acquired a name second to none among Colonial Parliaments for calmness and dignity in its discussions. There have occasionally been hot words spoken in haste, in the heat of argument, repented for at leisure, and withdrawn on the first opportunity. There have been occasions when a ? minority of earnest men fought hard against an overwhelming majority, and on being beaten, succumbed at last with a good grace, acknowledging that the will of the country was represented by the majority which inflicted the defeat. There have been times when occasional insinuations have been thrown out, mostly personal and affecting men in the House who could at once get up and repel the slander. But never lias there apparently been such a session as the present, when apologies have been insisted on and have not been forthcoming, when a minority has thrown up the sponge and yet persisted in fighting, and when inuendoes have been thick as leaves in Yallombrosa. How does this come? What dire poison has been instilled into the veins of our legislators ? Has another Dr Ox made his appearance in Wellington and, by super-oxygening the atmosphere, caused our revered signors to play such tricks as Mr Verne tolls us his predecessor induced the somnolent Dutch burghers of Dorf-la-Schlaf to perform ? It may be so; and, but for the very dreary sameness of Sir George Grey’s speeches, which have but very few of the enlivening qualities of oxygen, we should say he was the man. Yet if not Dr Ox’s antetype, he still is very much to be blamed for the present tone of the House. He has adopted a clap-trap platform, basing it very much upon his social position and past rank : ho has told us of the poor man so ofb n 1 that we really begin to wonder if, by any possibility, _ it might not be that ho Hid take an interest in any part of him, save his vote or cheer ; he has set the example in the House of throwing broadcast hints, insinuations, and inuendoes, for which, were he not a privileged person, it is possible . he might have to answer; he has 5 cast insult after insult, but has never apologised, and he has spoken words which cannot but be considered as seditious. Yet, when the Press re-)

ported these, there were found men to rise and talk about Sir George Grey as if ho were conferring an honor upon the House by sitting i n There is another matter in which he has set a very bad example; he was the recognised leader of the Opposition, and still remains such. When the compromise -was effected, h e stated that tho’ he did not agree with his friends, he would act with them in not giving any more factious opposition ; tho result of which conciliatory speech has been that he has devoted all his powers to obstruct, by ail the factious opposition he could muster every stage of tho Abolition Bill in Committee even after tho compromise. He has stated in the House that ho regretted the weakness of which he had been guilty in giving way at all, and being thus by his own confession, * at variance with his own party, he should resign its leadership* and become a free lance, for even among tho dwellers in the Cave of Adullam there would be scant room for Sir George Grey. His last move, the “free breakfast table,” as he termed it in the home political slang of the day, was of course a failure, and was merely an appeal ad homtnem , a cry to tho working class, a specious attempt to make it believe that, by being relieved on one side, it will not suffer in equal ratio on tho other. If tho taxes do not come out of one pocket, they must come out of another* and if the duty is taken off tea, &e., its loss will surely ho supplemented by an increase on clothing and other necessaries. That a land or income tax will eventually come wo cannot doubt; and we would ho glad to see either of them, especially the land tax, which wo would welcome as a power in aid to prevent any catastrophe in future. Such taxes must come; but in the meanwhile it is very childish to attempt to reduce expenditure and moderate taxation as the House did some nights ago when in a fit of virtuous parsimony, it refused an increase to Chairmen of Committees and Clerks of Parliament, items of about £3OO a year (which will mofct likely slip through in Supplementary Estimates); or as Sir George Grey wishes, by cutting down the salary of the Governor and every one else. We do not see that ho mentioned the Honorarium. **