THE ELECTIONS.

Globe, Volume IV, Issue 467, 13 December 1875, Page 3

THE ELECTIONS.

MR E. J. WAKEFIELD AT THE ODDFELLOWS' HALL. On Saturday evening Mr E. Jerningham Wakefield, one of the candidates for the representation of Christcburch in the House of Representatives, addressed a meeting of the citizens in the Oddfellows' Hall, which aras crowded. A person in the body of the hall moved that Mr Mitchell take the chair. Mr Wakefield said, before they appointed a chairman he wished to say a few words. He had invited them to meet him, and had departed from the usual custom of announcing the chairman's name. He had originally called the meeting for yesterday evening at the Godley statue, and he had done so for this reason amongst others, that those who did not attend punctually at the time appointed when they came upon the grass did not disturb those who had been punctual, which was not the case with meetings held in that hall, as they could not. come in without making a noise. The weather was, however, so unpropitious that it would have been absurd to have held a public meeting at the Godley statue yesterday, and therefore he cairn and took this hall, \yb'«h he had done at the cost of £5 ss, including advtrtisoment*, a sum he c«nM ill afford considering he had children. H<; then took steps to procure the usual convenience of a chairman, who, if he were impartial and unbiassed, would keep orde r , having the respect of the meeting. When he addressed the electors in 1871 for six nights at the Godley statue, he was wiihout a chairman, and appealed to the electors to keep order, arid they did so. [The speaker then explained at sonic length the steps he bad taken to procure a chairman, but without success.] Mr J. W. Tread well, on the motion of Mr Cooper, was voted to the chair. The chairman then formally opened the meeting, and pointed out that at a former meeting a vote of confidence had been given to a gentleman who had severely blamed the Government, and a few days after a ' similar vote was passed to a member of that Government. He desired to bespeak for the candidate a fair healing. Mr Wakefield, who was received with applause, said he had been for five years the representative of Christchurch iu the General Assembly, and on no occasion during that time had he been called upon to give an account of his services. He would first speak on a painful subject which was personal to himself. He had resided at Wellington, because he found that it would be to the interest of his constituents to watch the progress of affairs as well during the recess as when Parliament was sitting. How had he acquired the knowledge that he had, to expose that which some could not expose through ignorance, and others would not expose because they wished to make a profit through concealment. [Cheers. J There was a splendid library for reference at Wellington, but hero, although there was a public library, a College library, and a Provincial Council library, it was difficult to gft books from them. During the time he had been their representative he had had correspondence with the City Council and with individuals, and in almost every case he had been able to comply with their wishes, except on one occasion, when he was precluded by illness from doing so Now he came to a case in which he received a vote of censure from a portion of his conwas communicated to him by Mr Thompson, of Coates and Co, who was chairman of a meeting held in the Foresters' Hall. No charge had been made against him, and no opportunity was given him of appearing to rebut an accusation made at a time when they wished to disfranchise the city of Christchurch ; at a time when the most important question ever mooted was under discussion in the Assembly, and he was nightly at his post. A resolution was passed at that meeting calling on him to resign, when he did not know what was the charge against him. [Hear, hear] Mr Wakefield here read the report of the meet ing from the Press, and s id that he had had dealt out to him Jedburgh justice, by being hung first and tried afterwards. (Cheers and laughter.| At that meeting

! Mr E. C.J. Stevens, when the question of hiß (Mr Wakefield's) resignation was discussed, wished the electors to wait, and then asked them to pledge themselves not to vote foi Mr Wakefield at the next election, which he (Mr Wakefield) thought was slightly inconsistent. [Cheers and laughter.] There was a report in one paper to the effect that he (Mr Wakefield) had been disgustingly drunk during the week, and the Speaker had directed the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove him from the House. That was only one of the series of lies circulated by means of the telegraph wires. No such thing took place ; it could not have been done except by the order of the House, and there was no record \n\Hansa>d of it, which would have been the case had any such proceedings have taken place. The truth was that he was taking such severe medicine that even the chemists were afraid to supply him. He was taking cholorodyne and gradually diminishing the quantity of alcohol he was taking until he was able to discontinue it altogether. No wonder then that he was in such a state that his presence might be disagreeable to some hon members. He did not, however, desert his post, but remained, ready to prevent a count out, to speak if required to do so, or to vote should a division be called for, and thus he was enabled to help to defeat the policy of the Opposition, which was to weary out the Government and their supporters, so as to prevent the Abolition Bill becoming law. The truth was he was compelled to be in his place, and they might fancy that whilst undergoing an experiment on his constitution and taking severe medicines that he was not altogether a pleasant companion, and being a poor man, and the Speaker having limited the advance on the honorarium to £7O . instead of £BO as before, he was unable to procure those personal comforts which a poor man could only procure for cash. It was true that under the circumstances the Bellamy's committee and the library committee had tried and condemned him unheard, but at the expiration of a month they both condoned the matter. Sir John Richardson, as the chairman of one, like a gentleman, wrote the letters of condemnation and condonation with his own hand ; Mr G. B. Parker, who was chairman of the other, employed a clerk to do that work. It was true about the committees, but the story about his being removed fiora the house by the Sergeant-at-Arms was false. He would now show them how he had been employed in the House three days before the meeting in the Foresters' Hall reported in the Press. He, at two o'clock in the morning, voted in the majority of 52 for the abolition of the provinces, and also on several subsequent occasions, thus proving that he was always at his post. On the 19th of September the fact of the vote cf censure in the Foresters' Hall was alluded to in the House. That was just before the compromise respecting the Abolition Bill was effected. Mr Murray, the member for Bruce, was speaking, and he (Mr Wakefield) came into the House whilst Mr Murray was speaking, and informing the House that the people of Christchurch had called on one of their members to resign because of his wish to abolish the provinces. He (Mr Wakefield) replied to that he would read his reply from Hansard, which was to the effect that the condemnation was not for his couduct respecting the Abolition Bill, but a censure on his personal conduct. Such was the effect of that speech on the Houses that the leader of the Opposition, Sir G. Grey, came and took him by the hand and said, ' Wakefield, that, is the most manly speech made, in the House." He did not intend to weary them by a long speech that evening, but he would Ho his ulmost to <ief>at the intention of the Government in rushing on the elections during the holidays, in order to return to the House men who would vote for the legalisation of the greatest of hind jobbery that had ever been perpetrated, the promoter of whicli was Mr Mporhouse, Would they return Mr Moorhouse, who had done that, or would they return one who had the knowledge, th • power, and the will to expose such a system of jobbery as had been perpetrated ? He had the highest respect for Mr Andrews, he was a man°of the strictest integrity and honor, and he had perhaps a greater degree of intelligence than most of that cl:?ss to which he belonged, but from his want of education and want of knowledge Mr Andrews was nt'erly unfitted for the post to whi'-b he aspired, and he would be found incapable of resisting the wiles which wili be used to lure him from his integrity, in order to sanction a job such as the purchase of the Muri-motu Swamp. He (Mr Wakefield) had been trained by his father—whose picture he (Mr Wakefield) had presented to the nation of New Zealand, although, being a poor man, he could ill nfford to do so- in principles which he had endeavored to carry out ever since, and if they should think fit to condemn him—although he had shown a disposition to retrace a false step—he would submit without a murmur, and would endeavor to develope the large resources of the province ; but if they elected him, he would do his best to serve them, and to denounce and expose all land jobbery, no matter by whom perpetrated. L c,neers -1 He proposed that evening to speak of what he had done respecting the Abolition Bill, and although he would briefly refer to the proceedings respecting the Muri-motu Swamp, yet he would not enter upon them fully, inasmuch as Mr Moorhouse was not present, and he (Mr Wakefield) intended to bring a charge against that gentleman, who had | been guilty of conduct which would disqualify him from a seat in the House should the electors be foolish enough to elect him He (Mr Wakefield) had not addressed the House on the second reading of the Abolition Bill, because, according to arrangement made by the " whips," ho had been requested not to do so, he had only spoken briefly when the Bill was in committee; but on the third reading he had entered upon the question fully, and he would now read to them from Hansard what he had said on that occasion. [Mr Wakefield here read the greater portion of a long speech from Hansard.'] The leader of the Opposition (Sir George Grey) knew perfectly well that he (Mr Wakefield) was to speak on that occasion, and Sir George was not present, but at the conclusion of the speech he entered the House and said nothing, thus silently acquiescing in the claim which he (Mr Wakefield) put forward, asserting that his father, Edward Gibbon Wakefield, was the author of provincial institutions. He believed—and he believed the Opposition also—that they would never see the provinces restored again, and as such he was satisfied with the comoromise that had been effected. They would see from that speech that he had not shifted his ground, saying that he was a pre>yincialist one day and an abolitionist the 06it, He did not agree with Mr Stafford/a

new Provinces Bill, but he thought that his second experiment, the Timaru and Gladstone Board of Works Bill, was a complete success. He (Mr Wakefield) now saw that those who protested that they would die on the floor of the House rather than yield to what they termed an invasion of the people'sjrights, were all coming round. Sir George Grey had said that he would conform to the wishes of the majority of the people should they wish the provinces abolished, and had changed his front, now calling out for separation instead of clamoring for provincialism. Mr Macandrnw was coming round, and Mr Rolleston, although he had indulged in a mild wail over provincial institutions, yet had said that if the majority were in favor of abolition he would offer no factious opposition to centralisation. Mr Wakefield then went on to declare that he was utterly opposed to separation, which was a wild scheme to place under different management people whose interests were in common. He wanted the people of the South to speak out to the people of the North, and say, we will help you against land jobbers and the land ring, with Tom Russell and others, by not sending Moorhouse, their agent, to Parliament, but by sending a man who was capable by his powers of observation and knowledge of the facts of helping them to defeat the machinations of the land ring of the north. [Cheers.] He (Mr Wakefield) was in favour of the chairmen of shire councils and members thereof being elected, and not nominated—although Mr Sbevens was not—for he did not think they were in the position that they were in England to find men fit to be nominated as deputy lieutenants. He was in favour of the election of the members of shire councils, but he was not prepared to say that circumstances might not arise which would render it desirable to nominate the chairman. He did not wish to set class against clasp, but this he must do, he must protect the oppressed. They were all more or less under the control of that god whose temples were to be found in all their cities—like the Temple of Mammon in Cathedral square—where, by order of the presiding genius, a row of spikes had been put up in order to prevent poor Lazarus from sitting to eat his lunch. [Laughter and cheers.] He (Mr Wakelield) had been told that those spikes had been put to prevent the congregation of loafers and larrikins who used to sit and smoke there, and nvike use of language not fit to be heard by passers by ; but he hal replied, if that were the case, why could not those loafers have been punished, and not a chevanx do frize of spikes put up in order to prevent the poor workmen at Cathedral square sitting to eat their diuners, whilst the manager, with the friends of Tom Russell, Moorhouse, Morin, and Co, could talk comfortably in front. That power united with the Government was an enormous one, and they would find that the financiers and jackals of that temple of Mammon had a power over them which they would find most difficult to shake off. It was they who had raised the cry against the runs being put up to auction ; it was they who had incited men like Mr Stevens to raise a howl about the tax on mortgages. It was the land ring of the Government and the Bank who wished to impoverish the North Island by monopolising its lands, and he trusted that the constituency of Christchurch would not aid them in their endea vors by setting an example to New Zealand, and sending a man favorable to their interests to represent them in the General Assembly He (Mr Wakefield"* meant to expose I he plots of this ring, and whether the electors of Christchurch elected hira or not., he would do bin duty to the country in this respect. | Cheers] Although the abolition of the provinces was an important question, yet there was one more important—viz, the qligation of what was to be done with the public lauds. He was not. disposed to say thatii. would be disastrous to put the runs up to auction, or that it, would be disastrous to divide them into small portions, and he was perfectly prepared to consider the whole of these questions with the inclination to do that which was the best calculated to promote the public interests. [Hear, hear.] He was willing to do this, because he was confident that the elements of prosperity would remain whether the runs were put up to auction in 1880, or were cut up into smaller portions, or were let at an increased rental. With reference to the proposition for assessing the value of the lands, ho begged to say that the power of the monopolists of the land in New Zealand was such that it would enable them to offer to the assessors of the value of the lands such a bribe as would cause them to exclaim, like Lord Clive, when all the treasures of India were at his feet, " It is a wonder 1 did not take more." He (Mr Wakefield) had no confidence in private assessments ; assessments to be fair must be made in public by a Board, the chief element of which must be elective. He would advocate the appointment of a Royal Commission, mostly of an elective character, to go into the whole question of the public lands in the most public and opeu manner, in order to see how the la.ids could be best disposed upon an intelligible and equitable basis, in order that they might consider how best to meet their liabilities by realising their assets. | Cheers. | If they thought that he had made out a claim for their consideration, and would send him to the General Assembly, he would do his best to obtain the appointmeut of a royal commission on the terms he had stated. He would now proceed to bring a charge against Mr Moorhouse, and he did so because, seeing that reporLeis were present, publicity would be given to what he said, and that gentleman would have an opportunity of replying to the same when he addressed the electors. In the last session of Parliament there was appointed a disqualification of members of Parliament committee, and he would read extracts from the report of that committee respecting the Muri-motu block. Mr Wakefield here read copious extracts from the report of the Select Committee, and said that Mr Morin, of Auckland; Mr Johu Studholme, and Mr James Russell, brother to the lion of the Bank of New Zealand, were the company of land purchasers, and of whom Mr Moorhouse was the avowed agent. Mr Moorhouse, as the agent of Morin and Co, had tried to secure the oyster for them and himself, banding the shells to the natives and the public. Aided by Mr Moorhouse that land ring had managed to secure about two hundred thousand acres of land which was capable without improvement of carrying a sheep to an acre. They had obtained a lease of it for from fourteen to twenty-one years at a low rental, the land to be exclusively used by them, and they had taken possession by turning sheep and cattle upon it. Let them ask Mr Moorhouse to come and read the report and proceedings of that committee, and explain his share in the transactions, [Hear, ht.tr, and cheers. | Mi

Moorhouse after being rejected at Taranaki, and failing at Blenheim, and also findiDg that it would not do to try the Heathcota, had come to Christchurch hoping to get returned under the wing of Messrs Richardson and Stevens, and saying to the electors " You have only to return us three, and you will have three of the finest fellows in the world to represent you." [Cheers and laughter] He (Mr Wakefield) charged Mr Moorhouse with being a partaker in one of the mo3t digraceful robberies that had ever been perpetrated on the public without legal sanction, and now he asked the electors of Christchurch to return him to Parliament in order to obtain legul sanction. If Moorhouse was returned he would be lobbying the members, saying—" You aid me and I'll aid you : you scratch my back aod I'll scratch yours." [Laughter and cheers.J Let them ask Mr Moorhouse to explain at his meeting on Monday night his share in the compact between the Government and the Bank. He (Mr Wakefield) would be present, and if Mr Moorhouse dared to deny what he (Mr Wakefield) asserted he would prove it to Mr Moorhouse's face. He (Mr Wakefield) would dispute Mr Moorhouse's right to a seat in the House, and if Mr Moorhouse was returned he would petition against that return, whether he was elected with him (Mr Wakefield), or was chosen in his place. He would warn them against sending Mr Moorhouse to Parliament, because if they did so he would use his seat to get legal sanction to that bargain which the committee of the House of Representatives had told them was not legal. Let them take his (Mr Wakefield's) word for it, those who composed that ring had got hold of too rich a bone to quit it easily. [Hear, hear.] A working mas at the lower part of the hall here exclaimed, " You shut up." An altercation here ensued between the man and Mr Wakefield, during which the former went on to the platform, but after a short time retired. Mr Wakefield resumed his address, and said he trusted that they would pass no votes of thanks or of confidence in him, as he considered such votes to be contrary to the spirit of the ballot, and he wished to have no " flattering assurances" of support. He hoped they would put questions to him at a future meeting, and that they would a'tend his future meetings, when he would do his best to defeat the intentions of the Government and the Bank in hurrying on the elections, and of exposing the land rings, laud sharks, and jobbery that prevailed. (Cheers.) He trusted that they would by acclamation thank the chairman for his able and impartial conduct, (Cheers.) The meeting then dispersed. SIR CRACROFT WILSCN AT TAI TAPU. Sir Cracroft Wilson met the electors of Heathcote at the schoolroom on Thursday evening last. There was only a moderate attendance. On the motion of Sir Cracroft Wilson, Mr W. H. Peryman took the chair, who briefly introduced the speaker. Sir Cracroft Wilson, who, on rising, was well received, in a speech of over an hour, reiterated his views as reported previously in these columns. At the conclusion of his speech he said he should be happy to answer any questions which might be put to him. Fir Cracroft resumed his seat amid cheers. In answer to questions, he said he was in favour of local self government without legislative powers, to take the place of provincial institutions —personally, h--would have no objection to the Upper House being elective, but he thought it might cause a great inconvenience. If a dead leek should take place, «« had been the case in Victoria, it would throw the colony into a regular muddle. He would be in favor of any fe<siMe sehemc for the drain ' age of I ake Ellesiyore, hut .a present there was great diversify of opinion among the upfririeprs on the subject. He should not vote for a branch railway to Akaroa until the whole of the present Hues authorised had been completed. He should be against goinf; again into the Loudon money market for further loans for some considerable time, as he cons'deral i' would b" damaging to the finance of the colony. He was against altering the Canterbury land regulations, as ho considered that they had been 1 i.e. mainstay of the province. He was no: in favorof the seat of of Government being changed, as the necessary buildings would be v ■ v • xpeesivo, and he considered Wellington the most central and most convenient place for the members as a whole. He was in favour of the runs being assessed before 1880, and the present occupiers to have the first offer at the increased assessment ; if they did not take them, then put them up by auction, but on no account cut them up into 1000 or 2000 i acr< s, as it would damage the country. As for preemptive rights, he was iu favor that they should end in 1880. He was in favor of compulsory education and free, if the country could afford it ; but they all kuew that the money must come from somrwhere, so if the country could not aff'.rd to give it free he would advocate a small tax. [Cheers] After some other questions of a local nature had been asked, and answered by Sir Cracroft Wilson apparently to the satisfaction of the meeting, Mr Robert Forbes rose to piopose a hearty vote of thanks to Sir Cracroft Wilson for his address, aud the able manner in which he had answered the many questions that had been put to him. The motion was seconded by Mr VV*. Goodwin, and carried unanimouslj. Sir Cracroft thanked the nicetiu;.; for the resolution, and moved a vote of thanks to the chairman, which was carried with applause. The meeting then separated.