Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY, JUNE 13, 1898. Our Member.

Manawatu Herald, 13 June 1893, Page 2

Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY, JUNE 13, 1898. Our Member.

The address given by Mr J. G. Wilson to his Foxton constituents was marked by a tone of -utter disappointment. As we so very seldom hear the views of our Member those we did hear last Thursday offered a very marked contrast to the views he expressed at the last eleotion. If. he had not very plainly stated that he was not turning his coat his audience would not have been wrong in assuming that that was exactly what be was doing, and by his making such an assertion proved that he would not have been surprised if they had so misunderstood him. In speaking on the past Government measures he illustrated the old saw, that' I to their virtues he was very kind, ; and to :.thjeir, ( faults ; : a little blind." At any. u rate what he said about them was only good, and if he thoughj; badly; of-, them about , : aß}v thing he forgot, to .mention it. We may.be singular, hut we. .fail to. grasp what position Mr. Wilson intends to take up for the.future,,'as though, in one part :of;, 'his speech he.; declared him)3e,lf , in favour of /both ,a r strong Government and a strong Opposition, which seems hardly obtainable, arid is certainly not now in existence, he also said he was not very particdlar iwfiaP'GfoveriJaM;. Dfrgs Sin power. Mr Wilson has been a member so long* that his faith in politicians has been seriously shaken , as when hi^ first entered Parffarnenfc he enlisted "undei 1 the banned 'of the late Sir Harry Atkinson and placed himself, and his vote entirely 'at; his leader's service until he received this shock that distinguished, man introducing protection with the 1 assistKnde of the Opposition.^;' Mr Wilson asserted, on Thursday, that this was the reason he felt as he did, but he did not so express himself at the- last, election, as. he .had then very strong opinions about the Government and their methods of taxation,, so that he was very wrong then, or very : i C now, neither of which reasons are advisable to- urge, as a oandidate at the forthcoming election. •■ . . . Many. 'of .the Acts passed ', by the Government may be good, ii is of little us* enuring into an argument

/:•>)■ .■' '>■ .^^ /•■■.■,.■; "■•••■■■ "> ■ as to thab; just now, ,but the fact: remains that the Opposition has asserted that most them are the measures "thtfy en'cleavourod to introduce wheu their party was in power, and which wci'a much improved by their assistance when the J3^^J^etmj)finl..passed_themif this is really the view of tne Opposition then it haTdlybe^oW^'a member of it [6 Mof&'b that he has .ixo .care $m in poWsV. If there exists an earnest ilesi|-Q in, secure-: 7£o jrollare and adva4«an!t/blfj the tcbloiiy" it must necessavily be of much moment who th^meri a.ye a-t; tjie head ;ot ttfiutrs, us tlidy ; are ihs oiily ' who I can suncejjsfiilly ,iutt-.oduee the Acts to give effect- to tlieir ; views. We have no objection to an honourable acknowhtlgmcnfc of the good effected by opponents, but to an eftrnesb politican it would seem only right to place before ' feis : constituents the ■ weak .goihfcs^n- the'administi-ati'on he was opposed to." Mr Wilson showed, that as far as.he_knew. the Opposition had no policy and if they should have' they were not ; bound to disclose, it !i- which, appears an-'exi traordinary way 1 "of enlisting the sympathy "of the electbrs ' .'in. *the return of . Opposition candidates. If the other ,Membetß of l?arliamehfc who are not supporters of the ; present Government, have been addressing their constituents in the same strain, then we are not. surprised at the many Government , victories at the by-elections. Mr Wilson was pleased to observe that the Government uvged that the country wanted rest, it'niay, but it appears more clearly still that the Opposition members have been, taking their rest whether 'their constituents dosired it or .n0t,,,. We. may leavn what the prospects for the general election, nowso high, are like, and; if there is not more life and more pronounced opinions shown by the Opposition, side, . the .vote throughout the colony had best be registered in favour of the -Government, and make them^ as Mr Wilson, seems so 'to {■ desire, /a strong 'Government-. We however very much doubt if this is really^the "wish.of the electors and all may be changed when a ■ candidate with -more hopeful views and more pronounced. opinipQS seeks 1 their Support'; , ' .. ' ' ' ';' \ .