THE GLOBE. THURSDAY. MARCH 24, 1881. MR. BRYCE’S SPEECH.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2208, 24 March 1881, Page 2

THE GLOBE. THURSDAY. MARCH 24, 1881. MR. BRYCE’S SPEECH.

It is satisfactory to have from the month of Mr. Bryce himself a full explanation as to the reasons which induced him to resign his portfolio. Opposition journals have exhausted their inventive faculties in endeavoring to show that the reason adduced at the time could by no possibility be the real one, bat that some other dark and mysterious cause lay behind, which would come to light in due course of time. But these prognostications are utterly upset by the very lucid, straightforward, and manly speech reported in today’s columns. The only discrepancy between what really took place and what was commonly reported at the time of his resignstion, appears to be that Mr. Bryce did not propose to capture To Whiti off-hand, but to take Hiroki, and, if any resistance was offered by the prophet, then to seize him. This, certainly, strengthens Mr. Bryce’s case, but not necessarily to such an extent as to prove that he was in the right, and the majority of the Ministry in the wrong. The latter might well argue that whether it was Hiroki or Te Whiti that was to bo taken, the result would be the same, namely, a collision between the Constabulary and the Natives. The seizure of a murderer would certainly bo a stronger platform on which to work than the seizure of an individual against whom it would be difficult to bring any charge, except through the medium of a law very exceptional in its character. But if bloodshed wore to ensue in either case, the cause of the outbreak would be lost in the magnitude of the evil arrived at. From his own point of view it must be confessed that Mr. Bryce was perfectly logical ' in his course of action. But there was a risk in his proposed mode of procedure which did not commend itself to the larger number of his fellow - ministers. It would be perfectly easy to argue that ho was right, and again equally easy to argue that he was wrong. It was a pure matter of probability, and it was decided to leave as little as possible to chance. The report of the Commission may well be read in several different ways. Its spirit may be argued to bo so and so, according to individual leanings. Mr. Bryce took his view of the report, his confreres another. Events that have happened subsequent to Mr. Bryce’s resignation have certainly tended to show, that, whatever might have happened had he had his way, the Ministry were not far out in their calculations. Te Whiti has not increased in power. His tone has become more and more pacific, and everything tends to prove, that, should no unexpected obstacle occur, the Parihaka difficulty will in time solve itself. More particularly would this bo the case were Te Whiti to

move his camp further into the interior as there seems some 'probability of his* doing, since failure of crops and sickness have somewhat disgusted the Natives with their present abode. On one point we can heartily sympathise with Mr. Bryce. He states that he had a strong desire to associate his name with the settlement of the West Coast question, which had baffled successive previous Governments for years, and that it was a bitter moment for him when he had to turn away disappointed. Of one thing Mr. Bryce may, however, rest assured. The country have linked his name indissolubly with the settlement of tho difficulty. Ho grappled with tho almost desperate state of affairs that existed when he came into office with resolution and tact, and he has left behind his term of Ministry a reputation that is little likely to be merely ephemeral. THE MORMONS AT ORAKEI. Artemus Ward said of the Mormous that their religion was singular, but that their wives wore plural. But, however singular their religion may be, they who hold by it adhere, at all events, to one of the precepts of tho Apostle, namely, that they should ho instant in season and out of season. Tho Mormon elders who have been told off by their community to bring converts into tho Mormonistic fold are not backward in bringing their lights before the public. In Christchurch their mission has not found favor. Tho paradise painted by Joe Smith does not hold forth any attractions to our unregenerate fellow-citizens. Most of them have seemingly preferred bearing those matrimonial ills they have to flying to those they know not of. But the Mormon elders, nothing daunted, have tried fresh fields and pastures new, and the last heard of them was at Orakei, where they have taken the opportunity of the meeting of the Maori Parliament, to press their views on tho assembled Natives. This they may have done, indeed, for more reasons than one. No doubt all is fish that comes to their net, but, had they succeeded in this case, they would have gained the credit of introducing an entirely new strain of blood into the harems of Utah. Satiety is one of the main curses of the human race. Solomon, notwithstanding his army of wives, soon became most horribly bored. It was “ vanity of vanities” with him. Like the Athenian of old, ho sighed for a new sensation. The upper crust in Utah, although their homes may be peopled with fair denizens, may in like manner have become awearied of the dull round of everyday life. They may long for some description of matrimonial caviare and olives to stimulate a jaded palate. Tho elders have very possibly received private instructions to this effect. “ Bring ns something new in the way of wives,” they may have been told, “ and your reward shall be great. The duskier the importation the better. We are tired of symphonies in red and white, give us studies in sepia and indigo,” Hence the Mormon elders have approached the dark beauties of Orakei with their insidious palaverings and endeavored to win their fluttering hearts over to their cause. Had they succeeded, what a revolution would have taken place in many a household in Salt Lake City! New manners and new customs would have come in with a rush. Such delicacies as rotten maize and dried shark would have found their way on to the tables of the wealthy, and a thousand pretty little tricks would have been disseminated amongst the reigning beauties. The Mormon mission, however, has not eventuated and the upper ten of Mormonland will grieve in proportion. The only ones who may rejoice will, in all probability, be the Mormon wives themselves. Travellers say that they are not well educated, as a rule, and they may still bo under the impression that cannibalism is not extinct among tho New Zealand Natives. The advent into a harem of a cannibal, however charming in other respects, might he looked npon by the inmates as a dangerous precedent. Their lords and masters might bo credited with an intention of thinning off the elder wives by means of the younger ones. The principle might have ica advantages, for it would be, to a certain extent, self-sup-porting, and would serve to keep down domestic expenses. A large wife-pro-prietor might fix on a certain number of help-mates, and he would be in no danger of exceeding the limit. Possibly, holding such ideas, the present staff of wives may feel relieved that the attempt to proselytise at Orakei has fallen through.