THE Manawatu Times. SATURDAY, SEPT, 13, 1879. MAORI REPRESENTATION.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 74, 13 September 1879, Page 2

THE Manawatu Times.

SATURDAY, SEPT, 13, 1879. MAORI REPRESENTATION.

M Words are things,|and a drop of ink falling like -, dew upon a^tbbught, proilucos ttai t which makes tnoiMnds, perh'tips millions thmk." ;

One of the first measures which will f ; engajge .the attention of Parliament is the matter of representation and <'W Ve^istriliutio^m ' In ■dealin^wi+fh^the^^ ' ber of the Government to whose, care the propoaed Bill may be coin;-; "mitfrqd slfojild Ti~eigh .well every Js£e<ft o < fi^the t matter before the drafting of the Act. We presume^ that the only, or at=least the{ pri^ci-'---pal, i&asd'n i iQT&hhespv < Qs&4es- eKahge is to correct as far as .possible the [ Levila..Qf .^sliiigs^slation, to place the, matter of representation upon a fair) apd^eq.uitable basis, and to give each one a voice m the .councils of the' '/§o ujjtfjry ['ij^pjdi^jgf jt^i i .'<jjli c wei ght of ■ the stake held. Ttn dealing ;with the J efipsfctpojntHsthat of sweeping awa'y~ existing evils. — the first step should J -J>& Jikp .total remodelling of the jfeo^^ialrep^Kea&ni^i^^C^^ , as con-,! . stituted at present, is simply holding,? out a premium for bribery and co-r T i "I^trotripn ■■■^l^^rF^"f- r -ufl ; prindipl4d : : persons. ■■[- The Natives have four bft; no /V^Mi^^j^^^' ; ;eJj^bTe to vot|^. ; but beside tbe .privilege' of electing, f r^ T of ', jth.ei r <? o wn t Tace,.) thßy^cwie i aVd^all-hav4van-'e\juat^4W er at tlie,^ ,^^ fleeting or de-" f eating the various candidates. 'Hfoiwithstanding~alr this^ it has been repea,te<jlls: . r s^,idf-^and, wej will - f re6l^ ' artrniVf 'wifeh J good " rea;^o^- too— th;at n . are.,;- bjt | no; ; mean s ad^qufifcely : £Qpxhsffip.£ es: ? . y pTb w ja 'fhtaP^'^hy; b.ecaiuie m., niue'ty-nine ,casQ^- out ; ofa ■h.nndrg.d. jt'he. vb|e;s»'gJTeh By JMCaoris^ fnp 7 matt;er,wh.p .may be th^e gainer, are the'result of ""secret wire^tliing and log- rolling^;^ ;The- population of Colony at the talnng of the last Census was 414,412, and the Maoris : boin^uted :i t^e :^siGof)l the ;basiSiOivaVi<3page. is vb^ejflg;,?siruQ]£ ifo;apportion afecerfeain, numb.eir^of .representatives- to's that 414,412, tlie^ same conrse.should.be pursued witlv regard tp , the 45,000, and ; th en umber of Maori ' in<?reased. 'By' th|s means ;Kai^v.eswau]d secure ; repreßentatiyes whpge interests would; be identical withY those, of ■, their c.onstituericies;-; their- power;- m the •Beftafe'r f w.puld ; 'be largiely Jbsv& legiti-^ mately -incj^eased ;>. the doW vypuld be; shuif"'ia;l3esignfng^' persPhs ; trading, upon -their ignorance for sinister motives^ : while -aV the sarae ; ttme ;the glaring 1 wrong .»t.rpfosent- e.xisting ■against Europeans wpul^beV swept awayi ; : \T6 point out the ' monstrpifs ' evil of the present' arrangement; w,e ; ihayeip n ly tp^s rtnnpse. asjß; bif a Pakeha-Maori^^ wholiadsQcnretl sufficient influence over a tribe to lead them by^tjie) 'npse.; r They would not have t^he most. ghostly conception of the-el'i^iferliiyM J any particular can- ! did'ateV.^their inspiration would be I idrayvn thipugaj^hei.r. W.nite; friend ; -they^ould! Jiave^tp^use^his jeyes *md trusLh^tpngite its make the selection, and as; a consequence through the •absurdity £> of the f pres'e'rit i^ct, one man would virtually have a hundred or mbreyptes, and could foist a member upon thecohsttituency \yho mi«/ht ? probably^ disfranchise -fourififths of ' the' elebtbra^'-^Hiimari-Ti'fiii'rfrß^is weak,: and generally^ <vhen men possess a power they exhibit little delicacy :in: letting- the.wprld^^npw. andvf<eel it, and an unscrupulous porspn with a following of -a hundred or two at his beck^^andyjeally^would.'be'- most ||kely torbarterhis influence to: the candid fite^ best abl e " to ' bribe him. This ij of supposition. "'Suchocci/rrences have ta-rpn place m the"past, and no doubt will s^ a^M]^sh|he is.entirflly i M% a§jft e i^y if f\e "Mw-wKeprejßntation ■■ B . l W!V«*):4^v : .9'l'- : -: n J? / aRS; jncj-^p the number of bona flde Maori representatives ; but for eveT put'V stop to' ithe^faVcetof ßanting the franchise to men who cannot vise it judiciously, who become the .tool of every ppiitical trickster, and a stepping-stone to th c Ho use of Representati ves for tliQse fe^ye rq Q^he^^ualiftoajtion

than their power to bribe or cajole. We trust then that a* the matter of representation is to be dealt with, a clean, sweep, will be made at the root, and the anomaly of the Maori having a voice m the selection of men who misrepresent them, be expunged for ever from the Statute Book.