Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1873. "WARM SUPPORT."

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1430, 17 September 1872, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jura re in verba magistri. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1873. "WARM SUPPORT."

We took leave yesterday to doubt the correctness of our morning contemporary's description of the Wanganui. Chronicle—"a warm supporter of the Jate Government." The following leading article from the Chronicle of the 31st August, on M> Ormond's public works statement, is unquestionably "warm"—more so, we imagine, i ban even the Herald would desire. In fact, we are compelled to damage the symmetry of the article by striking out sentences couched in language too {strong for our columns : It is really astonishing the lengths some people an ill go, in order to reach a given object. This has never been move clearly demonstrated than in the late Public Works statement by Mr Ormond, who when speaking of the road between Wanganui and Patea actually had the effrontery to tell the House that that road was in a satisfactory state, and had three large bridges on it. , . . The road is just barely passable, and in many places is positively dangerous. Not long since a dray stuck on a portion of it, and had to be abandoned for nearly a week until the mud got a little churned up, and not so sticky. As for the three large bridges, theV are like " castles in

the air," nob visible to such prosaic mortals as Mr Bryce, who rose up in Ins place in the and smote the dapper little " Jack of all trades " hip and thigh. It is a pity while Mr Bryce was about it he did not tell the House that the only three rivers of any size, viz., the Patea, Whenuakura, and Waitotara are innocent of bridges. . . . Mr Onnond knew all this of his own knowledge, as not long ago he actually travelled overland from New Plymouth to Wanganui, whilst his congenial lieutentant. Mr Halcombe, narrowly escaped death by drowning in the Patea river a few months before, because there was not a bridge over it. The Whenuakura, a most dangerous but very narrow river, could be bridged for a very moderate sum; say the amount paid in a year to two amateur immigration agents, but there is nothing done as yet except the plans of some bridges suitable for the river in question. It is evident the merits of these plans are so nicely matched that Mr Ormond has not been able in six months to decide on which of them is the best; in the meantime the river remains unbridged, and Mr Ormond makes his annual (mis) statement on the Public Works. The Waitotara is much in same taking as the Whenua kura, plans having been prepared for a suitable bridge months ago; perhaps Mr Ormond has not had time to inspect them yet, and is much too big a man to allow a professional subordinate to decide on such a vital question without his chiefs Assistance. If the rest of Mr Oimond's late statement on the state of Public Works is as accurate as that portion of it we have alluded to, it must have required a good nerve on the honorable gentleman's part to stand up and read it. Whichever way the present struggle end.-, the country will have gained by it, as abuses and misstatements have been unbLishingly exposed by the Opposition and the Press, and the exposure is sure to have one good effect, that is the putting an end to a system which first ot all makes a hash of all the business undertaken under it, and then tries to avert the overburdened taxpayers by highly-colored . . . reports. —This article shows how much reliance can be placed on the Herald's estimate of the politics of its contemporaries. The Chronicle is the oldest established and leading paper in Wanganui. We again quote from the Return :—Wanganui Chronicle, .£56 12s 6d; Wanganui Herald, .£240 16s.