The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1877.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 269, 13 November 1877, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1877.

A political meeting does 'not always hold out many attractions except to those who are immediately and personally interested, but that which is called for to-morrow evening promises to be an exception to the general rule. Voluntarily, and not as a consequence of having been worked up into a state of excitement, a number of the citizens have requested the Mayor to convene the elections for the purpose of quietly and dispassionately taking into consideration the present political situation. Seeing that the Assembly is so divided by purely personal considerations as to be utterly unmanageable, that section of the community wbich is represented in the House by the Nelson members have determined to consult together with a view to seeing whether they can suggest any means of removing the obstacle that is now blocking the way and impeding the course of legislation. At first sight it certainly appears that the remedy from which the greatest amount of good may be expected is an immediate appeal to the country, and that the present struggle will terminate in this way we haye little doubt, bufc at the same time it is a fair question to ask whether the public are not expecting too much from a dissolution, which at present seems to be regarded by many as an infallible cure for the ills from which the body politic is now suffering Among those who are not so hopeful as the majority that an appeal to the country will be immediately followed by a season of peace and quietness and good government we would class ourselves, the principal reason for our doubts as to its efficacy being thafc ifc ia not likely to bring forward any new leaders, and after all it is a leader that the country stands m need of above everything else. There is no reason to anticipate an improvement in the rank and file, in fact if we may draw our deductions from the past we may look for degeneracy rather than improvement, for there can be no question whatever (that for some years past each new Parliament has exhibited symptoms of deterioration as compared with its predecessor. Then again, we have no question of measures, but simplj one of men. If the electors of Nelson were to be called upon to-morrow to elect two representatives, on what grounds would their support of, or opposition to, the candidates be based? Would it be enough for them that one side believed in Sir George Grey, ani that the other did not? The result of an election taking place throughout the country upon such a question as this could scarcely be expected to be satisfactory, and yet at preseut none other has been shadowed forth by Sir George Grey. It is for these reasons that we are disinclined to hope for any very great melioration of the existing state of affairs from an appeal to the couutry. At present, however, this certainly does appear to be the only way out of the difficulty, and we can only hope that we are not taking too gloomy a view of the result. The action lately taken by our City representatives will probably be discussed to-morrow evening but it would be unfair to them to arrive at any decision upon ifc until they have had an opportunity of explaining their motives. Thafc they have made a mistake there can be no doubt whatever, indeed they have admitted this by their vote on the second no confidence motion but ifc is not given to mortals to be wise afc all times, and before condemning the two gentlemen who bave in many respects showu themselves useful and hard workiug representatives, having at heart the interests of their constituents, the electors will, we have no doubt, admit their claim to a fair hearing.