KUMARA DISTRICT ELECTION.

Kumara Times, Issue 1618, 3 December 1881, Page 2

KUMARA DISTRICT ELECTION.

MR. R. J. SEHHON TO THE ELECTORS AT HILLMAN’S TOWN.

One of the largest meetings ever held in Hillman’s Town gathered at the Empire Hotel on Thursday evening to hear Mr R. J. Seddon, who as one of the two candidates for the Kumara district for membership of the House of Representatives seeks re-election.

Mr David Beatty was called upon to take the chair. He said Mr Seddon had invited them here to-night to state his views ard intentions if returned by them to the next Parliament. They had recently had an opportunity of hearing him in explanation of his past actions in the House ; and he thought they would return him now with confidence. With these few words he would introduce Mr Seddon.—[Applause. ] Mr R. J. Seddon, addressing the chairman and gentlemen, said he was here again, and sought re-election as then- member to the House of Representatives. He claimed their sympathies, having served them and the best interests of the colony. When he went to the House he found himself bashful at first—[laughter] ; but he soon found he must throw "that on one side, for the man who would not li-dit for his cause was no good for the people he represents. If they were satisfied that his actions had been beneficial to them, he wished now to claim their hearty support. Not to go back was to lose confidence. He did not say he had been perfection ; but he had endeavoured to do the best for their interests and the colony of New Zealand. If he were elected he would say candidly, lie would support Sir George Grey and the policy he enunciated. He believed now as during that gentleman’s Administration that honor was preferable to wealth. For thirty-live long years he (Sir G. Grey) had acted as an administrator, and yet there were those who would pit him against the Hon. John Hall. If returned at the present time, he would support Sir George Grey.—[Hear, hear.] The Hall Government was beneficial only to the squatters; Sir George Grey’s administration benefitted the masses—and he was wishful to do the same.—[Applause.] We had now an election going on, and it was for the people to say whether thd people are satisfied. He trusted his opponent would say before the election whether he would support the present Ministry or not, so that the lines might be well defined; for or against. Here you have two candidates—gentlemen— where is the third ?—[Laughter;] But he would be fair and charitable towards the third : he presumed that Mr Barfl had come to the conclusion that he had no chance of being elected, and declined to spend money on a losing race. [Laughter.] Having dispensed with the matter of triangular candidature, it is the question whether you will support tlio present Government or return Richard John Seddon. He (Mr Seddon) had very good cause for supposing that if the present Ministry were retained in office, vevy little would bo done for this district. He had read the Premier’s speech, which had been very carefully reported in the Christchurch Press, and failed to find one word about the mining interests of this colony. He must sity he could not, even if he had been a supporter of the Government, have gone back to support the present Ministry.—[Applause.] When the Premier made this mistake, 3-011 would naturally suppose the Minister of Mines, who held one of the most important portfolios, would have made some mention of the 20,000 men engaged in mining operations in the colony. But when 3-011 find the same callous hub Terence manifested in regird to our mining interests, what can you expect ! The Minister of Mines should have become as one of ourselves. IJ it hissympathies are not wirh ns; and he (Mr Seddon) bedeved that this gentleman knew not the difference between a headrace and a tail-race.—[Laughter.] He had badgered them. They might remember that he (Mr Seddon) had telegraphed urging the Minister of Mines to proceed with the head-race and upper Ivapitea dam, and the Minister replied that he should be on the Coast presently, and then he would deal with the subject. Gentlemen, Parliament has decided that that work shall

be done. Is it that you are to go down on your marrow bones to ask that which has been granted ? If he (the Hon. Mr Rolleston) does not do that which is promised, it will be a nail in his coffin at the present election. From this cause he (Mr Seddon) meant to oppose the Government. [Applause ; and a voice : “ I want to know the price of blocks.”] —Well, gentlemen (Mr Seddon replied), I am very sorry to know that you have been dictated to as to the price of blocks. I regret to learn that blocks for the sludge-channel have been cut at a price which will scarcely produce bread for a family. But I am not to be blamed. Resuming his discourse, Mr Seddon said he was elected as a Liberal. He differed with the present Governnietit. He had endeavoured to get the law of property qualification of £25, whereby a person could have several votes, altered. The intention of the present Government was to cut down the price of labor, and when they had a ministry so disposed, how could he give them his support ?—[Applause.] In referring to the land question, Mr Seddon said that the present Ministry look upon the miners as the destroyers of land; The rich squatter, the Hon. W. Robinson, for instance, had only paid 7s 6d an acre for the pick of the land in this island. Now the price is £2, and uniform throughout the colony. We have a Waste Lands Board in Hokitika, but it is no use passing liberal land laws while nominated bodies have to deal with them. If wo had an elective Land Board we should get on better. He would sooner not be in Parliament than have the. rising .generation say, in years to come, that Dick-.Seddon had been the means of allowing their birthright to be taken from them. ; ,.If the lands were allowed to fall into the'hands of a few, misery and want must in the course of a few years follow. The curse of Great Britain the evils many of us have had to flee from—had to sever the fond ties of homo and kindred—that has caused us to be strangers in a strange land—has been through bad land laws, and a heartless aristocracy. God forbid our children and those who follow should ever live to become slaves in this fair land of New Zealand. Liberal land laws, taxation of large estates so as to force settlement, were the only true safeguards, and would for the present and for all time elevate the masses and prevent abuses. [Prolonged aplanse.] —The electors of-the colony are in this contest to decide between intellect and brain as against wealth and trickery, as I told them in Kumara. Do not misunderstand me. The leases of Canterbury and Otago will fall in next year, and an effort will be made to, renew those leases ; 43 votes of 91 would give to Otago and Canterbury an actual majorityin these districts. He had no.doubt in aiyhig thaS his opponent would g'o With the present Ministry. The contest now was between the present Government and the Opposition,—[Hear, hear.] The masses of the colony are against them. It has been said this district has suffered. During the' time that he had been a member the las l t two years} we had received for this district, from the Teremakau to Jackson’s Bay, £73,800. Give a man credit for what he does, and he will do all the more for you.—[Applause.] It had been said to him the other night by a settler at the Kokatahi, “ Yes, but the money was all being spent ni Kumara and he replied that if he kept the goldfields prosperous, it was for their benefit. The rising generation were being educated, and if they were to become useful artizaus, we must have our own manufactories. We shall shortly have an invasion of 96,000 children in the next ten years, and what have we got for them to do ?—and a similar number to follow? [Laughter.] When he (Mr Seddon) looked round to-day from the hustings, he would have liked to have seen the smoke-stacks of manufactories here and there. He was the same Dick Seddon, with a trade in his fingers, as before he went to Parliament.— [Applause.] By your representation in Parliament you are judged, and he would be j udged accordingly. With regard to Native matters, the Native Minister (the Hon. Mr Bryce) proposed to do eight months ago that which had just been accomplished. You know, Mr Seddon said, what happened. Mr Bryce resigned ; the Native Department was so corrupt that he could not manage it. He himself trod on the toes of the Colonial Treasurer on that occasion. You know what has happened—To Whiti, Tohu, and Hiroki (.the murderer) were arrested ; please God, he hoped they would hang Hiroki.— [Laughter. ] Give credit where credit is due. He should always give credit to John Bryce whatever Government ho belonged to.— [Hear, hear, and applause.] With regard to the incidence of taxation, he would like to see it very much changed. Do not return any man to Parliament who will not pledge himself to remove' the gold duty. You as miners now pay £3 in excess of any other persons in the colony. He would be satisfied to be out in the cold if during next Parliament this tax were rescinded. He had just concluded a two years’ Parliamentary service : and he had had ten years’ experience in local politics ; and he had done justice to the district. As you know by the old proverb “ The constant dropping of \\atei maketh a hole m the stone,” so he had constantly agitated to make the best impression relative to the requirements of this district. The Minister of Mines paid him the compliment of saying that Mr Seddon was thoroughly in earnest in the matter of the Gold Duty Bill. Gentlemen, you know that inlluences will be at work on the day of election. He had been told that his “strongln •Id was at Dillmans Town, but he would find it someday a rotten stick.” He had got to learn that yet.—[Applause.] They had had his experience for the last ten years. He took credit Mr the construction of the sludge-channel ; it was really bringing

the leremakau river to the head of the Larrikins. He had helped to bring in the Okuku water-race, which was a check on the Government race ; on this fact, he might claim a share of support. lie would advocate the bringing-in of the Arabnra jiver, a distance of seven mile?, into the Rawliaka, with a branch race -to German Gully; then there would be a second Hillman’s Town between Kumara and Stafford Town. What do we- require herb How ? He found the other day in walking along the banks of the Teremakau, that the tailings from the various races were throwing the river on to the other aide. This required attention ; the Teremakau River must be kept on this side, so as to scour away tailings ; and) if elected, he was gditig in for the remedy of that at one of the most necessary works in the district.—[Hear, hear.] He trusted he should see his position in Dillman’s Town as it had always been, at the head of the poll.—[Applause.] He believed he should see it again.—[Hear, hear.] He thanked them heartily for the attention they had given him.—[Loud and long-continued appiaiisd. j In answer to questions, Mr Seddon he would niost decidedly, if returned, be in favour of aii increased water-supply and tenders being called for supplying timber for Government works at Kumara. If the Minister of Mines know the number of families that would be and were languishing at the present time for want of a sufficient supply of water to work with, the dam and reservoir would have been done long ago.—He was prepared again to follow Sir George Grey.—[Applause.]—There has been a private survey between the Arahnra and Kawhaka. The land is owned, he believed, partly by . private individuals and partly by the Government.—He would be in favor of buying the land from any man who had shown a little foresight.—He would be in favor, as he had always been, of granting snms for prospecting parties.—He would nut challenge any foreigner whose name was on the Roll, evert though proved to be the means of ousting himself.—He was not satisfied with the manner in which the of the Warden’s Court were carried on. Frequent adjournments were costly and vexatious ; and, if returned, he would, notwithstanding that it might be a delicate matter to him as an advocate, devise means to have this altered.—He was in favor of the secular system of education, 1 but did not wish to irritate those who from | conscientuous motives differed with hiui |on the subject. No man should when in | Parliament be prejudiced, but deal with i every question on its merits after giving i the same fair and earnest consideration. ( Mr W. Morris begged to propose Mr Seddon as a fit and proper person to represent them in the General Assembly. He (Mr Morris) was not going to be personal in his remarks on Mr Seddon’s opponent although he might be; but he was not—[Cries of “Out with it!”] Well, if you wish it, you shall have i % Mr Morris then narrated fully the circumstances connected with Mr Blake’s refusal to sign a cheque for the balance of expenses of the Water-Supply Committee, which Committee had been appointed by public meeting to urge on the Govern- 1 nient an increased water-supply for the goldfields; The appeal was made' to the Prospecting Association, and twelve of fourteen of the committee voted the money in payment of this balance, Mr Blake and Mr D. Williams being the only two diSf sentients. Two of the comihittee signed the cheque, but when he tn'dk if to Mi; Blake, that gentlemen positively refused to sign it, and the money had to be collected from amongst the miners. As regards the increase of the price of timber ivlien Mr Blake obtained a monopoly that was a matter of histo'ry—which had proved very unprofitable to miners. He would conclude by saying that he did not think they could get a better miners’ representative in New Zealand than Mr Seddon.—[Loud applause.]. Mr G. Mansfield seconded the motion; ■ He had read Hansard carefully, noting particularly Mr Seddon’s actions in the last Parliament, and he had come to the conclusion that as a man representing miners Mr Seddon was the best they could have.—[Hear, hear, and applause.] The Chairman then put the motion to the meeting, which was carried unanimously.

Mr Seddon, in returning thanks to tho electors for the vote just given, might remind them that their opinion was exactly the same as that of Mr Blake’s who had publicly stated on more than one occasion that “ lie considered Mr Seddon the best man to represent the district.’’—[Hear, hear.] Mr Seddon then proposed a vote of thanks to the Chairman, and with that the proceedings closed. Three cheers for Mr Secldou!” were also called for and given.

MR. EDWIN BLAKE TO THE ELECTORS AT GOLDSBORO UGH.

Mr Edwin Blake addressed one of the largest meetings ever held at Goldsborough last evening, Mr J. M f Whirter in the' chair. Amongst other things he said with regard to the gold duty that it was a tax which should and ought to be abolished, but he thought a matter which concerned the miners in this district more than that was an efficient water-supply. He, if elected,- was not going for the Hon.John Hall or Sir George Grey, but for those who would do the greatest amount of good to the district he represented ;■ and of those good things, the principal one was a' greater supply of water. He also ridiculed the idea of sitting on a rail ; but at the present time could not see who was the Liberal whose lead he could consistently follow.

Mr J. L avery proposed and Mr Fadisk seconded a vote of confidence,- which w&s carried by acclamation.