The Manawatu Standard. (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coasr. WEDNESDAY. AUGUST 12, 1885. CAUSE AND EFFECT.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 62, 12 August 1885, Page 2

Manawatu Standard. (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coasr. WEDNESDAY. AUGUST 12, 1885. CAUSE AND EFFECT.

We hear from several sources that some of those members of the Borough Council who have of late taken a prominent part m certain matters of which the public have expressed strong disapproval, are lamenting their loss of individual popularity, or to use a more expressive phrase, mana. We dp not see how it could be otherwise. The public will always resent any attempt to deal unfairly. Three 1 members of the Finance Committee m particular express themselves strongly oh the point that they feel they are m disfavour with the ratepayers, and they consider they do not deserve any withdrawal of confidence. We assure the members referred to that the course of action they have pursued has gained for j them a very unenviable manifestaj tion of popular dislike. In plain words, those who returned them will, when opportunity offers, put forth every effort to prevent them being reinstated m the positions they now occupy. In fact, were an election to take place to-morrow, so unmistakably hostile is the popular feeling, that not one of the three Crs referred to would have a chance tof being returned. The ratepayers ; feel that they have been deceived, and they will take precious good care that they will not be similarly deceived again, if they can help it. 'If we review our local municipal history for the last few months, it is easily seen why the general feeling is so strongly opposed to the three members of the Finance Committee whom public opinion condemns m such- unmistakeable terms. In the first place, and most important of all, is the matter of the Borough Loan. The public believe, and will believe to the end of the chapter, that but for the petty corping of certain malcontents m the Council, which obtained publicity, m the columns of their organ, the original and most satisfactory arrangements made to float the Loan, would not have been disturbed or upset. Cr ,I'aiik, it will be remembered, was opposed to the Mayor and Town Clerk going down to interview the head office of the Bank of Australasia m order to discuss matters, and facilitate operations m connection with the Loan, He thought that instead the Bank should be the interviewers. Could it be possible to conceive a more ridiculous proposition? Of course Cr Pahk's suggestion was laughed at even, by his own party and found no one to support it. Subsequently Cr Jamks King raised the question of rate of interest, with which every person m the community was entirely satisfied and sought to make out that an arrangement which the Bank considered was exceptionally favorable, m fact unprecedently so, was no great; advantage after all. Cr Abrahams raised many little objections, but they were all characteristic of, the originator, small and p^tty, and , accordingly carried no weight. It seemed as if the obstructionists m the Council were consi&med 'with envy and jealousy that . the Mayor should have been able to carry out with such admirable skill and tact, and such unquestionable success, the preliminary negotiations m connection with the Loan, and appeared completely at a loss to discover some flaw, or some disparaging feature that would detract from the credit unanimously accorded him by the whole community. Even Cr King so far forgot himself as to f ask had the Mayor committed himself to the proposal on behalf of the Council without first I having obtained its formal sanction to the :. arrangement. We believe the Mayor would have acted wisely had h^ done as Cr King, with a great \ lack >of good taste and proper feeling i seemed disposed to insinuate. Had the. Mayor on the spot closed with the offer — an offer of so favourable a nature as the Council is never ; li!rely to have made to ft again, and had it been there and then formally committed to writing, and concluded, the present deplorable hitch and delay* would not m all probability have taken place. The popular belief is, and will always be, that but for the tactics of the obstructionist element, and the very indiscreet articles that appeared m their organ, the unfortunate complications that have since occurred, and that will take much time and trouble to make right (if indeed they ever ari made right again) would not have arisen. Then, again, the public have not forgotten, or are likely to forget, the action of the same Councillors m the matter of the, amount legitimately due to Mr Fknton for moneys, advanced m connection with the poll for the Loan, This was an. account which all admitted should be paid, and wjjich the very Crs knew who opposfcd it, when the public meeting ifjaok place, would m duo course be presented for payment. The three m embers of the Finance Committee wl)O now lament the undisguised unpopularity which tljeir actions have called forth, although passing "other' accounts m direct contravention ot the law, raised ono objection after another to the just and equitable claim preferred by MrFiiN ton,

the amount »f which finally had to ( be raised by public subscription. Do the ratepayers approve of actions like these? or do they- 'forget' such incidents? Not likely. Certainly Cr. Park had some conversation with Mr FENTONon the matter, but he denies that he apologised or expressed regret for the attitude taken up by him on that occasion. Well, the public would have thought much better of him if he had done so. He, of all others as a member of the Fi- I nancial Committee to actually pass an account, to himself and yet assume the right to question the legality of a claim to which not a single ratepayer, would have taken exception. Is it any wonder that he feels he has lost prestige, and that the ratepayers do not feel towards him as before. Wherein Cr Pa uk has erred, m our opinion, is m not thinking and acting for himself; taking an independent stand, instead of associating himself with any party or clique m the municipal body Those who seek to stem the tide of unpopularity which now has set so strongly against him, more particularly m the Council, by pleading that he did not err intentionally, but was too easily led, are met by the rejoinder. " But wo * 4 do not want a man who is so easily " influenced, We want, . one who " has a mind of his own, and "can act independently m " the interests of the ratepayers." Many ratepayers affirm that they have been greatly disappointed m Cr Pa »k. They expected more self-reliance, more resolution, and more steadfastness, of purpose; but their expectations have not been lealised, and now those who once gave hih their strongest support have lost faith m him, and do not hesitate to express their altered opinions, and declare the reasons for their changed views. We have not space here to enumerate several other matters m which the obstructionist element m the Finance Committee have acted directly hostile to public opinion, and have incurred manifest disapproval by the course they have seen fit to adopt. For obvious reasons we have not made reference to the manner m which the Finance Committee have seen fit to treat ourselves, but we are satisfied that the public have long ago formed their own conclusions on the subject, and when opportunity offers will give practical expression to it. Some of the Crs who now feel that public opinion is strongly against them on all sides, will m course of time be called on to retire from their position as reprecentatives of the ratepayers. Possibly, some who are now at - the " zerith of un- " popularity," may think they can again cajole the ratepayers into according them a renewal of con fi T ; dence. Well, m such case they had better try the experiment and prove to their own satisfaction that public confidence once shaken is not readily restored. The ratepayers feel that j they have been disappointed m the I men m whom they trusted most implicitly ; that promises have not been fulfilled, that their reasonable expec- ! tations have not been realised, and that they must m future exercise greater caution and discrimination m the manner of men whom they' allow to administer municipal affairs. Strange to say the very Crs who thenowexperienceina painful degree withdrawal of public confidence and public favour, have had the full control of an organ m which to gi ye ' expression 1 . to theirt /views, m which their public actions was made to appear m trie most favourable light possible, any little incidents, m the proceedings of the meetings calculated to reflect upou them /conveniently eliminated, and their individual views represented as being most conducive to the public welfare. All this notwithstanding, and m spite of the efforts made to gain for them public esteem, they now have to ad r mit that much .as they crave for popularity, much as they value the good opinion of their fellow-towns-men, they feel that m acting as .they have done m the vain attempt to carry certain points, not only have they utterly failed to do so, but have also incurred almost universal popular displeasure into the bargain.