UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 39, 26 March 1879, Page 2

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE

" A duel's amang ye takin' notee," -~> An' faith he'll prent 'em."

Ifjever there was an in3tance^"th£kettle s oalling the pot black," it was upon. that memorable day upon which Dr. Rockstrow uttered his famous saying, "Inconsistency . thy name is Gower." Whether it is ;thatj the worthy Esculapius is envious of .the notoriety thu3 bestowed upon hi£ brother Councillor it is hard, to say, but cortainly r - Bmee then he has striven hard to claim the ■ title for himself, and m his endeavors to wrest from the owner the questionable honor lie has put-Heroded Herod. The latest phase was when Dr.. Rookstrow stated ia the presence of three most reliable witr nessses that if Councillor Linton .did. not, briiigon a resolution at the Opuiity Council repudiating the action of the Carnarvon Ambassadors, he would do so himself, as he considered the conduct of Messrs. Gower and Sanson both presumptuous and ; impertinent. Councillor Linton did move .the resolution and Councillor Halcoinbe seconded it, when up jumps the junior member for Awahou, and m the ornate language for which he is noted, poured forth, a torrent of frothy invective, seeking putt* licly to defend the men upon whom he had heaped condemnation and -vituperation, "What proof," said this accusing angel, " what proof has • Councillor . Linton , that either Mr. Sanson or Mr. opwer were at Wellington ?" " Not much, '' certainly^" said : the gentleman interrogated;' "Not much, I must allow. Only tlie word of a certain Dr. Rookstrow, to whom I am also indebted for an explanation as to how the minutes of the inter fie w came intathe hands of the Press." And so it was ! The man, who at Palmerston; had boasted that he was a plain man ; that hie did not believean hole-and-corner work, and he was not afraid to speak his mind, had the impudent hardihood to rise m the Counoil,as the champion of the men he had traduced. 'Another little phase of Mr. Rockstrow'a consistency. It is well known that the goal of his ambition—a seat in' the. County Council— was reached by clinging on to the "tail < of thehorse upon which Mr. London rode to victery, and like all his kind having one© reached the summit of his hopes he had nohesitation m snapping, at the friendly aid that placed him there. His colleague irat insulted; his constituency resented the insult, and he was asked -to present a petition giving expression to that opinion. Did he do so.'? No !he shuffled out if it m a most contemptible manner, 'the insult not penetrating through his opaque sense of honor. But bid© a wee. There iras to be & grand meeting at Foxton over the Railway question; the resolutions were drawn.u p, and the movers and seconders allotted therefor. The honorable medico was asked to take part m the proceedings, but. flatly refused. And why ? Because his dear colleague had been- overlooked. Here Jtaa consistency with a vengeance. Inside 'the Council Chamber he. ignores the man with whom he stood upon the same platform, appeared m the' same election notices, and whose name was along side his 'own upon the placards. Outside the Council, m a totally public matter, upon which each one had a right to think, and speak, and, act as citizens and settlers, he remembered ne had a colleague, and that recollection brought such a flood of indignation afc the discourtesy paid to, his friend, that he studiously held aloof.from the- meeting. Such is. the. man. who stigmatises the action of his brother as inconsistent; such is. the man who would take credit to himself for honor, truth, and principle Whoa*'" Tea"! of today is the "No",of to-mpitrpw; and whose promises seem only to Be made, ao- that they may be broken., In comparison with Jbhn Frederick Rockstrow the weathercock is a fixture ; he can rival the chameloon m the variety of the guises under w,hjchhe appears; while as a political fraud''h© ! irf without doubt fbc&e princept, snd»ririthottt • peer.