The Evening Star FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1873.

Evening Star, Issue 3236, 4 July 1873, Page 2

The Evening Star FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1873.

The Taieri must be proud of its representative, Mr Shand, for the style in which he conducted his attack on the Executive yesterday. So completely did he measure the strength of his arguments that not a word was said by his own side in support of them, nor did the Opposition members deem it necessary even to record their votes in favor of his propositions. To judge by the course the Executive took on Mr Shand’s “ want of confidence” motion, the conclusion may be arrived at that they were shut up. Not a word of defence was uttered by them, nor did their supporters offer an excuse for their delinquencies. Mr Shand himself seemed so exhausted with his efforts, as not to be able to utter the necessary word « Aye” when the question was put from the Chair, and consequently the overpowering force of the noisy “ Noes compelled the Speaker to declare that they had it. The brilliant prospect of the leadership of the House was, therefore, rudely swept from before the imagination of the man the Taieri delights to honor ; and Mr Tolmie still retains the position from which Mr Shand so valorously tried to eject him. We are not quite sure in fact but that, as the wind tends to strengthen the hold the roots of a tree take upon the ground, so Mr Tolmie sits a little more firmly on his shaky throne than he did before Mr Shand grappled with him. We listened for some time with astonishment to the long list of delinquencies committed by Mr Tolmie during the last six months. We could hardly believe that he had so many political and social sins to answer for. They were not like Jonah’s, a trying to cut away from duty : they were positive, not negative, in their character; and, therefore, it is a wonder that the Executive have not long since found it necessary to throw him overboard, lest the whole Province should take a dive under water. The whole story told by Mr Shand was “ so very like a whale,” that they need not have hesitated to give Mr Tolmie the coup , with the most perfect satisfaction that he would have been swallowed and cast up again in a place better fitted for the display of his talents. The crowning sin was, however, that Mr Shand had considerable trouble in being declared the purchaser of some two thousand acres of land in Southland, owing to the peculiar ’character of the Southland Land Regulations; with which Mr Shand in some way or other, not very clear to us, connected Mr Tolmie. We admit this to be unpardonable, Mr Shand and a squatter were applicants for contiguous blocks, which the Executive thought it wise to reserve from sale. The squatter paid a lawyer who knew the regulations, to help him, and got the land. Mr Shand did not employ a lawyer, and was refused; but on application being again made, and it having become manifest that there was no power to reserve it, he was allowed to purchase. Hinc Him lacrymm-—t\\e squatter got the first turn, and Mr Tolmie is a squatter —therefore, Mr Shand declared war against him. Mr Shand stood at the head of the poll for the Taieri, and must, therefore, be supposed to be a fair representative of the intelligence of the constituency. As all his friends forsook him and fled, his constituents must be mightily de.lighted at his prowess when they learu he fought the battle single-handed.