The Minister of Lands.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, 30 May 1891, Page 2

The Minister of Lands.

« : From the Otago Daily Times we take the abridged report of the remarks made by Mr J. Spence the late Commissioner of Cro-tf-n Lands for Southland to those who hfp. presented an address to him, t>uhis " leaving the Civil Service : — My remarks will not be political in any way. I have learned to value the character and friendship of men having all shades of political opinion, and my remarks will have little or no reference to the Government as a whole, but simply to the Minister oj Lands, who, I have good reason to believe, is doing things which the rest of the Cabinet do not approve of. The Civil Service of the colony is now under a reign of terror. Officers are discharged and kicked about from pillar to post, as if government were simply a big game of football. The object to be gained is only known to the man or men now holding the reins of power. The whole process is so idiotoc that one begins to wonder whether our rulers have recently made their esscape from a lunatic asylum. Were a private person to act on the same principles, hie would soon be in the bankruptcy Court receiving the attentions of my good friend Mr Eout. Tne Government's chief adviser, at present was tittle- tatlle, and at her ' advice the lives of civil servants were made miserable, and their homes spoilt and rendered desolate. . . . I will first deal with the.recent local changes in the Lands department, and thereafter with the system of administration as a whole. For some

years back the present Minister of Lands (Mr McKenzie), in his capacity as an Opposition .member, has been firing away at the Government of the time in reference to the " maladministration " of the foreste in Southland. As Mr MoEenzie* did not represent a Southland ; jconitituency, and seldom honoured the South with his presence, his knowledge of the Southland forest must either have been got by intuition, or/a dear friend of his living in the south must often have reminded him that as long as he, the said dear friend, was outside the pale of the Government service, so long and no longer would maladministration continue. It was therefore to be expected, on Mr McKenzies advent to power, his dear friend being still out in the oold. that the " mal-administration " would suddenly rise to a climax, and necessiate Mr McKenzie's immediate presence in Southland. He accord ingly came down with the publicly expressed object of (< sifting the matter to the bottom." . -> .^ . Mr McKenzie seemed well^ejii^^l with my explanations, and expressed himself as glad to have j}et me. Throughout the conversation however, Mr McKenzie was always bringing in the claims of his friend. He was evidently desirious of having him appointed here, and of sending the present officer further north, hia excuse being that the present officer had no family. As the present j^fficer has a family of at least fi^P it looks as if his friend had unwittingly misinformed him Judge of my surprise when, after his return to Wellington, down came a mandate that I must remove to Westland that the present ranger must remove to Canterbury, that Mr Eoyds and Mr Townshend must be discharged, and that Mr Nelson must prepare to remove. This is the bane but behold the all-powerful antidote : His friend must be appointed at a high salary as the only means of saving the forests and averting the destruction of the oountry.. .; As I challenge investigation in regard to all and any of my public acts, and as the Minister himself could not find a single fault with what I had done, my solemn conviction is that both commissioner and ranger were to be removed to make way for one whom Mr M'Kenzie' evidently f regards as the one only man who is fit for a place in the civil- service. I cannot make out why he did not appoint him as commissioner, but possibly he holds this honour for him in reserve. .• . . . I regard the discharge of Mr Royds i'as an act of pure unadulterated madness and brutality. Mr M'Kenzie's sheer ignorance of what he is doing lies at the bottom of the whole business. His telegram in reference to the supposed petition got up in favour of Mr Mussen [the ranger who is being removed from Southland] shows all the cruel tyranny of the Eastern despot ; and some of his recent memorandums to the land office, asking the officers to make a declaration that they have not perpetrated a swindle are an insult to the moral character of the service. He might as well ask the officers to declare that they have not been guilty of theft, or perjury, or murder.

THREE CENTURIES have rolled; by since Bacon said " Coffee comfortetb the brain and heart, and helpeth digestion' Use Crease's A. 1. Coffee. Sold only in lib and 21b tins. THERE IS ONE THING every housewife should know, and that is that Hebcules Baking Powder is the"'J9gfc> "Why ? It is the cheapest because t fleetest for making breads, pastry, cakes, puddings, scones, cfec. Beautifu ly light and wholesome, in 6d and Is tins. From all grocers. A most cumbrous way of getting what is apparently needful ! The Palmerston | Times says that a petition to the Justice Department was being cirou ated and signed in the R.M. Court the other day, requesting that a stove or fireplace be placed in the ( Courthouse.