Correspondence

Feilding Star, Volume XII, Issue 50, 14 October 1890, Page 2

Correspondence

EANGITIKEI ELECTION. MB MACARTHUR IK BEPLY TO MR JACOB. TO TBK RDITOK OP THE STAR. Sib,— Mr Jacob congratulates himself on his own cleverness in "drawing" tot lor . Mr Arkwritfht's benefit on the subsidy 1 question by bis letter the other day, and then proceeds to coofat» himself by nr<* ferring to- my voluntary utterance! about the snbsidies in my speech at Marton, and my letter to the Advocate in jreply t& Mr AxkwrighV* criticisms. After these two statements of my views, added to thoseI delivered in the House, it appear* to me that so far as •* drawing " yam i* concerned Mr Jacob's letter came rather kite is the day. If my views have been further elucidated I am very glad, as the clearer they are made and the more they are ventifctesV the better. Mr Arkwright is quite welcome* to any benefit be can get out of them. As to Mr Jacob's so* called chaff " upsetting my equilibrium," I ana teo> eld ft public man to let a pellet from a pay-gun of his calibre penetrate a skin whieb i* getting tough with sixteen years of public life and public criticism. When I said my proposals would) Be? unpalatable I was thinking specially of the influence ob local bodies, of such men? as Mr Jacob— men of narrow views— wl© look in their local polities to the immediate present* and take no thought fox th* future, . As for thY unuraireis qoestton*, onet would think that in these days the principle of insurance was understood byr everybody. I did not answer Mr Jacob* remarks oa that head because I would 1 not insult tbe intelligence of your readev* by doing so. However, since Mr Jacob does not understand let me explain to him. that the object of insurance is to spread's* loss falling on a small community: or on an individual ever a large surface, and so> make that damage which would be enuhv ingto the one unimportant to too many. Now dayoo see r Mr Jacob f Only sucb a proportion of the subsidies would $* devoted to this insurance fon£ as experience showed would cover the loss on» bridges over a series of years. If ■ district were? unlucky enough to have, a large 1 bridge damaged, tbe insurance Jaß& would repair the losev There would b» no* large accumulation for tn* benefit ot posterity, as Mr Jacob fears, for whenever it wa» found that tb* yearly contribution, to the find was excessive a lasgjpurp«epor~ tion could be devoted to the openingup of roads of access. If this is unsound finance, then everybody wh* insures his; heaec-or has life— a class which comprise* a targe proportion of the civilised wqribV — is putting this, unsound finance into praotice, and profiting by ft.— l am, &o.» D. H. Macabtoob.