MR. SEDDON, THE UNEMPLOYED, AND THE RAILWAY.

Kumara Times, Issue 2939, 1 April 1886, Page 2

MR. SEDDON, THE UNEMPLOYED, AND THE RAILWAY.

[to the editor.] Sir—Your readers will admit that 'tis easy to sign «Decency before Honours." To act decently, or to achieve honours is another question. Whoever the writer of Tuesday evening's effusion may be, in the first place he had not the decency to attach his name, but, like many another chickenhearted white, hides behind a nom de plume. In the second place honours to bim are like sour grapes and the fox in " ffables." There are persous of course whose early training has been sadly neglected, and whose after life is of such a varied character that the finer feelings o e t so blunted and effaced, that decency, if gauged by their standard, would 'unquestionably lead to that haveu of rest presided over by a governor, with the attendant questionable honour of filling a page or two in a certain class of literature, headed " Police News" or " His Natural Lite.," by Marcus Clarke. The use of such endearing drawing-room terms as the Queen's Hotel, Hokitika, presided over by Mr Oleary, "gang," "drunk," « vagrant," " rim into choky," & 0 ., unquestionably stamps my invisible opponent as being thoroughly well up in the subject. He hopes the men who have already been in the clutches of the X brigade may amend. To that I say—Amen! go and do thou likewise ! But for my pai t, with men like German Charlie I dont feel so hopeful as he. The prisoner who steals the gaoler's watch would have very little crnpunction in robbing a tail-race, and would consider u the decout thing to do, eveu at the risk of acquiring the "honour" of again being a guest of Mr Cleary's. But, sir, a thief is far less dangerous than a liar; the former, i{ caught, the law punishes; but there is no statute law under which the perverter of facts becomes punishable. Had D. B. H. confined himself to facts, or to advancing arguments, I should not have imposed upon myself the questionable honour of noticing his letter. But when deliberate misstatements are made, then the only remedy left is to expose the writer and leave him to be punished by the just scorn of an outraged public. To commence with, he says why not send another half dozen batches of the unemployed from Christchurch, and that, with the exception of Mr Seddon, the whole of the community «f Westlaud will welcome them. I leply there are very grave reasons why the unemployed should not be sent. If D. B. H. had gone to a new rush and marked off a claim, the area allowed being 100 ft. x 100 ft. per man, but owing to the ground being over-rushed he was told to re-mark, that half the claim was to be given to the new arrivals, perhaps ho wou'ul have the Generosity to say, "Take the lot, and Til starve." There has been on the Const an overplus of labour for months. Men who liHve made the Coast \vh .t it is : tlnvfe men have hce-i actually refused work, although u> do it at the same pi ice a< tint given to the unemployed. Not omj tlu;, but if th Q

work was done by public tender in the ordinary way, it would cost far less, and everyone would have a fair chance. If the unemployed are able to do a fairday's work, they would prefer working for a con tract 01 to working for a taskmaster. As "regards the people of Westland welcoming the inauguuition and completion of the Grey railway, I say No. I have contested th'ee elections since it was started, and since it was stopped, and if I alone stopped it the public by a large majority approved of my actions by returning me at the head of the poll. Strange to say during the elections I was not asked a single question upon this now burning question. Stranger still, Mr Blake, my opponent, held the same views T did, and now hold; so did, I infer, D. B. H., for he was one of my opponent's strongest supporters. If the railway was completed along the beach to-morrow, it would not benefit Westland one jot. It wont help to produce more gold from Kumara ; it wont cheapen provisions or clothing to the people of Kumara or Westland. It will injure the towD of Hokitika, and slightly benefit the town of Greymouth. It will not do what railways are intended to do, viz., open up communication in the interior of the couutry, settle people upon the lands, cause local industries to spring into existence and give employment for the present and future generations. Sir, the deviation proposed by myself, Mr Blake, and other far-seeing true-hearted West, Coasters, was the line that should have been adopted. A junction with the East and West Coast Railway would have been effected at the Tereroakau; then Hokitika would have been a terminus as well m! Greymouth. The distance between Brunuerton and Hokitika would be only six miles longer than by going via Greymouth. D. B. H. again speaks without the book when he says there was a survey and estimate, and that it exceeded the original estimate by ,£200,000. There never was a survey—consequently no estimate. Had there been a survey and estimate, then the line along; the beach would never have been constructed. D. B. H. and his no-want-to-work friends would not. have troubled either myself or the Government. Fancy the march of civilization kept back for ten years by the nou-construc-of the Grey-Hokitika Railway! D.8.H., by that admission you a»'e self-branded as being semi-civilised. Go to Hokitika ! Go to Greymouth ! Go to the Beach I Go to the Taipo! Go and get civilized ere you agaui wantonly insult the whole, of the people of Westland! It never for a moment struck me that Government had sent the unemployed here to construct the railway arid to civilize the people of Westlaud. What a joke ! especially when, ere a week landed, one-fourth of the D. B. H. civilizing mediums are deprived of liberty and taught that in Westland they must behave themselves before folks. On the decent fellows amongst the unemployed I have cast no slur. As to suffeiing starvation on' the other side, it is all bunkum. People that are starving dout refuse work at 4s per day. One of the unemployed refused work at Greymouth at Ss per day; I had it from his own lips; whilst another accepted work at that figure; and for so doing lie was accused of having deserted the brigade • and, as a deserter, received a good thrashing. D. B. H. will say Quite right! it was not decent or honourable for bim to accept work at a shilling an hour. But in this alone the proof exists that the price, of labour is interfered with. When the railway is completed, or perhaps before it is completed, say Parliament refuse to sanction the action of the Government what is to become of the half dozen batches-of unemployed, 300 men, with no work and no money? They cannot work; to beg they are ashamed. TJ. B. H. says they may possibly open up black sand leads. Everything is possible. Black sand may be found in any tail-race. D. B. 11. wouhl'nt cate to have the black sand, and find the yellow-tinged metal devoted to the benevolent purpose of feeding the unemployed. On a new rush, wheie these same men would get mixed as claimhoiders with experienced gold miners, their advent would not lie noticed. As matters stand they know not how to prospect; they cannot grub roots, much less sink a slmft or wash a prospect. D. B. 11. knows that full well. The alternative, he also knows) ; wages, five shillings per day, will be accepted by the majority, that is, the decent fellows; the others will l[y.: ; somehow. Now as the decent fellows, that is the majority, always vote for me, so in this case. Therefore there will be no urgency in the matter. D. B. H., the semi-civilised, can in the ' future as i-i the p.si throw bin vote away and do the dec :ii by eating the

leek and taking kind y to being governed by the majority-. The text of all true Liberals is that majorities must, rule. Perhaps the spending of a few pounds by Government lias created D. B. H's love for the umeuiployed.— Yours, B. J. Seddon. p.S.—I shall not answer any more shots from behind the hedge. If however, D. B. H. throws off the mask and by accident he should prove a decent person crowned with misplaced honors, then, either on the platform or on the stage, or anywhere else, I will with pleasure break a lance.