The Feilding Star. SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1884. Sir George Grey

Feilding Star, Volume V, Issue 55, 10 May 1884, Page 2

The Feilding Star. SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1884. Sir George Grey

In the speech made by Sir George Grey at Chiistchurchhe said nothing which he had not said before. He went over tbe old ground about the down-trodden people, and tbe hardships inflicted on the poor by the rich. The land system, as adopted by the Canterbury Association at the beginning of the settlement was as usual condemned as a means of putting largo estates into tho hands of a few holders, and so on. It is a remarkable fact that the land system of Canterbury — which was the only one in the whole Colony which gave a settler of moderate means the opportunity of purchasing forty acres or upwards, in any part of tbe province, without the intervention of middle men or otber bloodsuckers, even if the piece selected was in the choicest part of a sheep run held under lease — should invariably be the object of attack on the part of Communistic-Liberals. Tho cry of a monopoly of power held by large land owners is all " buncombe," and no one knows this half so well as Sir Geohge. In reply to a question, he is reported to have said that he would not follow Mr Montgomery although he bad resigned the leadership of the Opposition. He was able to walk alone and do what was right and just. He would not make terms with anyone. This may be interpreted to mean that Sir George will be a free lance during tbe next session, and, should the business of the Parliament fail to please him, he will use the very means ho accused the Government of, namely, the forms of Parliament, to obstruct and thwart any measure not in accordance with his views. It is almost a pity to notice the contemptuous tone he adopts when speaking of Mr Montgomery. His estimation of the political ability, or waut of it, m this gentleman may be a correct one, but we do think he should show a little more consideration for one who was formerly tbe reputed leader of the party to which Sir Geoege was, to say the least of it, temporarily attached. He could only attack the National Insurance Scheme by ridicule, and seeing that figures were never the forte of Sir George, even in his best days, when his want of knowledge and experience in the smallest matter of which calculation formed a part, brought the Colony to the verge of ruin, we must suppose that this was his only available means of attack and he did not scruple to use it unsparingly. As we said would be the case in our last issue, the speaker charmed his audience, but uttered not a word to show that he had any policy to offer to extricate the Colony from its present difficulties. When Major Atkinson addressed the same audience he was roughly handled, but he said he had a means which he would propose to the House to make up the revenue deficiency, but he abstained from taking his hearers into his confidence. Of the speeches made in Christchurch we admire Eolleston for his courage, Montgomery for his simple-minded honesty, Atkinson for

bis audacity, and Sir George Grey for his plausibility. But we do not admire tbe peculiar manner of tbe receptions accorded to each by the people of tbe City of tbe Plains. Bad taste and localism of the most determined character appear to have been tbe ruling qualities of tbe 2500, which seems to be the number of electors who attend public meetings there.