TO THE EDITOR OF THE PRESS.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11499, 4 February 1903, Page 8

TO THE EDITOR OF THE PRESS.

Sir.—Mr AljK-re cannot fail to make a good case in his own belialf, but, nevertheless, he would have done better to have owned at the first that he wrote hastily from second-hand information, instead of trying to«ho'.d his position by bluff. Colonel Gordon's writ ing ■Mγ Alpers finds "refreshing after the anonymous attacks on his personal truthfulness and English fairplay." Yet the arionnmous attacks are supported by Colonel Gordon, who uses even stronger language titan I did in showing Tip Jlr Alpers's ir.aecuralies.- Colonel Gordon was in a position to know what he is talking about; he is a. man known arid respected in tbj New Zealand forces for his manly jjeijjrc-us nature. That a man of his character should use the language he did, shows how deeply Mr Aipeis has in the va>'.:s. When Mr Alpers speaks of attacks

his wail about his pereonil truthfulness, if >lr-Alp*n< had to!u lie at first the source* of his information, as hi ixovv docs. I would •hare written to the effect tliat. Mr Alpeis wrote hastily on inaccurate information. Aβ the Boer women and children have been treated with generous consideration by the authorities, so were the Maoris treated by tire authorities here, but as t!u> Home authorities have been falsely accused w> have the New Zealand authorities and soldiers been falselr accused by Mr Alpers. One instuEce need.only ba mentioned —that is. when Mil , Alpers speaks, of the burning, and pillaging. His statement that conveys the impression that Parihaka was put to the jack is either true or untrue. I. as a unit of iti'ae force that inv<ssted Parihaka, say that it is grossly untrue-, and there are several gendemen whose names I can supply, and who reside in Cimrtchurch, who, like Colonel Gordon, will support what I K.iy. Ik-ing one of these 'iuat have been libelled intentionally, carelessly, or o:btrwis«, I can be pardoned for attacking the truth of .ur Aipere's statement, even if he i> or;.!y repeating what others have written. On trie nighl of November sth, 1881. there Miis not tents for all the :iie». and many had to lie all night out on the fern. Owing to the fooi supply not, being in working order, marry were hungry. Had Mr Alpers been tne of these men {as I was), and had sten iili© Maoris well fed arid warmly, if dirtily, housed, he would have been the first to have- questioned the truth -of the 500 loaves, and burning and pillaging, and judging from liis etyle his condemnation would have been mora severe than that of —Yams, e'-c., ZEALANDIA. TO THE EDITOR OF "HE PHES3. Sir, —I don"t know whether we are expected to accept the flashy vulgarity which Mr Alpera mistakes for cleverness as evidence of his contentment and satisfaction with the present aspect of the controversy about Parihaka. and so on, but for my own pait I am heartily sorry for him. Let me explain. 1 taks it that in any disagreement between, let us say, Mr St'ddon and Mr Duncan, the foimer would bs perfectly justified in quoting Sir J. M'Kcnzie, Sir J. G. Ward, or any other cf Mr Duncan's quondam idlies. But Mr Seddon would hardly strengthen l> i 3 case by quoting members of the Opposition or Left Wing. The easy answer would be, "Of course." Now, who are Mr Alpers's authorities? * *• * •' * Fancy Mi Alpers, of j>ll living men, quoting the authority of such as Saunderts, Montgomery. W. Hutchison, and Reeveß. I fane/ I can see Mr Reevee's fane as he notes Mr Aipers claiming his protection. That is why I am sorry for Mr Alpers; sorry fo , him jf he realises liis position; still more sorry for him if lie does not. He must be very hard pushed, too. when he quotes Saundens and Macandrew in the same breath, for he has read the thirtyninth cluipter in the first volume of Saunders's history of New Zealand. Verily Mr Alpers finds himseif in queer company v-hen he is driven to consort with "Auld Wullie Hutchieon," to prate about the eloquence of Hon. W. Montgomery. Ad'•eisity proverbially produces strange bedtcilows, but the spectacle of Mr Alpers in bed with Messrs Reeves, Saunders, Montgcinery, HutchUon, and Macandrew must sorely move the stoniest lieart. Having regard to Mr Alpea's' fondness for hackneyed quotations, I feel inclined to ring in something about the "jiistum et tenacem propositi virum," but I must resist the impulse. It may be permitted to me, however, to ask Mr Aipers to lay his hand on his heart and tell us whether he would have written as he has if Mr Bryce hod been in Mr Seddon's place. His assurance on this head appears to be wanted; in all other respects his assurance leaves little to be desired.—Yours, etc., OPEN TO CONVICTION. P.S. —But not an Opportunist. [We have deemed it diisirabie to omit a sentence in this .letter, as being too personal.—Ed. "The Prees."]