Palmerston Pranks

Feilding Star, Volume XIV, Issue 127, 15 April 1893, Page 4

Palmerston Pranks

— ♦- When the Palmereton people have public meetings they like "lots o'fun." The following extracts from the report of the Manawatu Times of a meeting held on Monday night are amusing. The Mayor had explained the o ject of a loan proposed to be raised. Mr Haydon had been obstructive. At this stage, Mr Person, who was sitting next to Mr Haydon, got up and said : Mr Mayor, is this gentleman allowed to sit here and interrupt this : meeting (turning to Mr Haydon). If you are a gentleman be a gentleman or go out of here. Mr Haydon : You want to square me off. Mr Person : You want to square me off, do you say ? Is that what you want. Do you want to square me off ? Mr Haydon : You are too broad in the shoulders. Mr Person : If you are going to sit there and interrupt the meeting, do as you please and I'll do as I please too, I'll bundle you out of this room very quick. Mr Haydon : You are quite capable of doing that. Mr Haydon afterwards apologised for his interruptions. Some other ratepayers then took a hand in the game and a warm passage of arms occurred between the Mayor and Mr Stanton, which ended in the latter stating that if the former said insulting things about him he would hit him on the nose. Mr Person protested against this, and said he would not stay to listen to such nonsense. < Mr Stanton here got up. Mayor : Will you sit down ? Mr Stanton : You put me down. Mayor : I sat down and never said a word while this man was abusing Mr Stanton : I did not insult you. Mayor : You did Sir. I gave you every opportunity to speak— Mr Stanton : I did not use insulting language. Mayor : You said I hoodwinked the public. Is not that attacking my honor nnd insulting? Mr Haydon : No. Mayor : Order Sir. It appears to me one or two have come here expressly to interrupt the meeting. MrMilverton : Nothing of the kind. Mayor : It appears to me they have come here for tho purpose of bandying words and stopping the progress of the meeting. Mr Milverton : I object to that word. There is no bandying^ Mayor : A courtesy was extended to these gentlemen, and they have simply come here, one or two of them, to abuse the meeting. Mr Milverton : I deny that. Mr Haydon said before his fellowmembers came in, the Mayor had allowed one of his supporters to get up and say he would bundle him (Mr Haydon) out. Mr Colville then got up to speak, and the Mayor called him to order. Mr Colville : I am not going to be stopped. Mayor : Sit down. Mr Colville: I won't sit down. Gome and knock me down. (Mr Colville said a few words and then eat down.) The Mayor then put the proposal to the meeting, and seven voted against the loan, and ten in favor of it. A vote of thanks to the Mayor terminated the meeting.