WORKING-MEN CANDIDATES.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XVI, Issue 130, 2 June 1881, Page 2

WORKING-MEN CANDIDATES.

TO THE EdITOB OF THE -"EVENING MAIL." Sm,— There will hot be found tnany who would deny that a parliament truly representative U & parliament so constituted that the desires > selfish oil Unselfish, of every unit of society have due efftct upon its deliberations. 1,, for one, am always inclined, to look favorably upon a candidate coming from the workiug-classes, for all men must admit tbat no outsider, or at least very few outsiders can be so fully alive to the wants of the working-classes as one of themselves. If, therefore, parliament Were merely a deputation set tip by the people to advise on their grievances hut without power to act in legislation, it would be greatly to the advantage of the Working-classes that they should in general elect working-men. But it is most important to bear in mind that parliament, as it is, is Also charged with the duty of applying the remedies. Hence, though hoping that working-men fit for that position may in time come forward, I cannot conceal from myself, and it would be most unwise for any working-man to conceal from, himself, the factthat a sympathy with the wants of the working-man, though quite essential, is not the only requisite in the ideal member of a popular governing assembly. Eor all work-ing-men from their position a3 such know this^that in every trade, labor, or profession success depends almost wholly upon skill and technical, knowledge, which can only be acquired by cbtistant pi'actifce and long experience. Now of all. the works, of ali the labors, which a man can take upon himself, that which requires incomparably the broadest sympathies and the most universal knowledge is this work of which I am speaking, the work of governing his fellow-creatures, of arbitrating between rival clainis, and of meting out an eqjial justice to all men and to all classes and interests. Politics, Sir, is the science of the sciences, for there is no knowledge of which it can be said that ifc is nofc needed in the conduct of the affairs of a civilised society. Hence I should requre of a working-man candidate asking my vote, and it is essential to the welfare of the work-ing-classes that they should require frnm him, that he should be a man not only of exceptional ability, but one who has used that ability for the acquirement of a sound knowledge of the elements of political economy and of the leading facts upon which the prosperity of a nation depends. To put it shortly he must have served some sort of apprenticeship in the art he undertakes to practise. This is not impossible with the short hours and good wages prevailing here, and I firmly believe that in time such men will be forthcoming. I have spoken of the ideal statesman as the man whose sympathies are so broad that he understands the wants of all, and whose knowledge is so wide that he Bees in each case the appropriate remedy. It is not likely, Sir, that we shall ever come across this ideal in flesh and blood, we must' choose the man who comes nearest to it. Has Mr Levestam, in his speech on Monday, shown that he possesses to. a sufficient practical degree either of these qualifications? In my opinion, most emphatically he has not The spirit of his speech was hostile and. unjust to all classes but his own. Working-men are not, as a rule, filled with a feeling of animosity towards the rich, as rich. But Mr Levestam's speech was from one end to the , other conceived in this spirit. To take a marked case of this, let us consider what he said on the Property Tax. To the simpleminded " Property-Tax " means a tax upon property, a tax specially imposed upon rich comfortable or well-to-do men, in a word, upon men who have acquired property. But in the eye of Mr Levestam it is " expressly intended to protect the rich man." The example which he gave was effectually dealt with by "Consistency" in your issue of Tuesday. It may be that the incidence of the Property Tax might well be modified ,- but is his the right spirit in which to go to work ? Would it not have been just, as well as more generous, to have admitted broadly that the Property Tax whatever its minor defects, is an earnest of the willingness of "rich men" to bear their fair share of the j burden. 'So much for the broadness of Mr Levestam's sympathies. ' ! Now as to Mr Levestam's knowledge of political economy, as to his practical know- j ledge of buainess, I may say that his speech I was teeming with blunders. I will notice one more monstrous tban all the rest. He aaid that '.'ns so much land wm lying unproductive jt would be better far to give, it away." I can fancy, Sir, the greedy gleam ia the eye of the landshark hearing this proposition ; and I may say by the way, that I agree with Mr Levestam that that monster is not altogether of so mythical or doubtful * character as the sea serpent. Let us suppose all the available land split up into blocks; each; pot too large for one man to farm, and given away to as many men. What guarantee have we tbat most of them will not the next day sell to these very land-sharks for 2s 6d or Ss or 10s or at all events at something an acre, that wbieh the day before they bad got for the asking . Is every man obtaining land for .nothing to be bound on oath hot to deal so-with it ? If he is given it on the condition of farming and improving it, are his accounts to be studied, and is his farm to be inspected by Government officials, who ar. to decide whether be is farming tip to a sufficient standard, or whether he is to be turned off, and his land " given away " to some one else ? To do this effeotually we should need a special inspecting service as numerous as all tbe rest of the Civil Service put together. Now if Mr Levestam bad really studied the question, he would have known tbat this scheme has been tried both in Auckland and Otago, and bas failed to secure its object. The only way to secure a good part of the land to small far' mers is lo sell it to them in small blocks at j the market 'price ,if necessary on deferred payments, a scheme which haa been advocated by Mr Bright, than whom no man was ever more sincere in hie desire for the wel-> fare ef the people. Mr Levestam's survey of the men of all parties at present eminent in Parliament was remarkable. It amounted to a proof, apparently to his own satisfaction, that they are all knaves of the worst kind. Are working men prepared to believe tbis ? Jf they iire, db they expect Mr Leveßtam to go up to the Bouse and e^ert any useful influence

__. «- ..rTH_».v._— _— _.._. ■ ■ '■ ■ " '— ■ One of tbe witnessess examined at the in* Vestigation into the circumstances attending the seizure of the steamer India, alias Ferret, in Hobsou's Bay, is reported to have stated that it was in contemplation, should circumBtances prove favorable, to ship a couple of guns at Sandridge, with the view of waylaying and plundering one of the mail steamers carrying specie from Australia to England. A recent Melbourne telegram says :— Miss Edith Caldwell, who brought an action against the Government for £5000 compensation for injuries aeceived in a railway collision at Geelong in last August, was awarded £1800 by the jury. The Government, before the case was brought, offered £800, which Miss Caldwell refused. The Pest is severe on a late newspaper proprietor in Wellington. It says :— Our readers will doubtless remember Mr Thomas Gardißer, the enterprising American journalist wbo purchased the Moribund Evening Argus, and couverted it into the since-defunct Evening Chronicle, who admitted into partnership certain Wellington journalists. and printers and then suddenly departed on his return to America, leaviDg his partners Borrowing for his loss, and still more at having to pay numerous little bills which he forgot to settle before be "left. Mr Gardiner, according to our San Erancisco mail news is now about to start a new journal in Arizona, at a place bearing the lugubrious and sepulchral name of " Tombstone." The new paper is to be called "Tbe Union." Mr Gardiner -Bhould take into partnership another old Wellington resident now in America, Mr George North, and then the " Union" would he a worthy one indeed. Apropos of the Lynch family, who are now on the New South Wales diggings townships, the Sydney Bulletin relates that whilst at Teinora tbe boys— with Harry Lynch at their head- conceived the Idea of digging for gold. Accordingly, one quiet morning tbey rose at daybreak, and, well armed with picks and shovels, marched about two miles from the town, and picking a quiet spot commenced a furious onslaught upon the inoffensive earth. Taking it by turns and " wiring" away like demons, they worked till about three o'clcck in the afternoon, but finding only a few specimens they relinquished tbe idea, and returned home " wiser, if not better, men."' It is needless to say that the bells were not well bandied that night, for, despite tbe plaudits of a crowded house, the blistering of the day's work rendered rapid manipulation an impossibility. A writer in a London paper says he was recently introduced for the first time to what is now known in the House as the Home Rule Drink, the very backbone, I understand, of obstruction ; for after a jorum of it one becomes imbued with staying- powder for any number of consecutive hours. This is the recipe— beat up weli two raw eggs, mix with a large glass of hot milk, and add a wine-glass of real Irish whisky. This beats Mr Gladstone's nostrum of sherry egg- flip into a cocked-hat, to quote the expressive language of the House, and ia guaranteed to tnake tbe most silent member eloquent." It has been pointed out with a good deal o_ force that if South Australia, • the chief wheat-growing colony of Australasia, can thrive and wax rich on an average crop of from 5 to 9 bushels per acre, New Zealand ought to be' superlatively prosperous with an average yield of nearly 30 bushels per acre, and many special advantages in regard to production, harvesting, carriage to port, and shipment thence. There is no doubt that the resources and capabilities of the colony are only just beginning to be understood. If the former are suitably developed, and the latter duly utilised, the prosperous future in store for New Zealand cannot be a matter of any uncertainty. The magnificent ice mountain in Niagara river, below the Falls, was the scene of an exciting accident and a narrow escape from drowning lately. It need scarcely be said that the mountain was formed by the spray of the falls and such accumuJation of sna w as has fallen upon it. An English tourist, stopping at the Niagara House, while seeing what was to be seen from the summit of this mountain, slipped and went suddenly down in the direction of the merciless river. In his frantic endeavours to save himself as he went down, he had the nails literally torn from his fingers, and he only stopped in his terrible career when he got within a few feet of the river. His escape was a narrow one. A curious marriage took place at BadL.nds, Dakota, recently, between Frank M. Shoppie and Henrietta Louisa James, the Rev Mr Stevens of Bismarck, officiating from that place by telegraph. Prank S. Moodie and Engineer Deutch were witnesses that the parties responded to tbe electric marriage ceremony at one end of the wiro, wbile the Picnaer Press correspondent and several others saw the clergyman perform his duty at the other. The questions Bnd answers were written, telegraphed, and responded to, and a blessing waß pronounced in the usual form. Anne Richardson, a domestic servant, is the latest victim of what English lawyers grimly call equity. She had saved £240, to which ber master, Sir George Balfour, added a free gift of £60, lodging the whole with trustees, who were to pay her the interest. After a time Anne wanted to go to New -Zealand, and naturally desired the possession of her capital. The trustees had no objec tion provided they obtained the leave of tbe Master of the Rolls. Eor tbat purpose a friendly suit was instituted, and the leave obtaibed, but the costs amounted to £2161 Thus merely to ask the formal assent of the Court of Chancery to a natural change of this kind — nobody opposing, and no extraneous interests being involved— swallowed up more than two-thirds of the sum in question. Lord Coleridge, on hearing of the facts, .aid, "It appears as if Chancery, to prevent anyone from being hurt, sometimes takes care that nobody should get any good." A Windward islands correspondent writeß ,t<_ the Sfc r . — lt has been a continual downpour of rain accompanied with strong winds this last 24 weeks. Native tax collecting is in a forward state; one week of fine weather and all taxes will be ready for shipment. We bave been greatly troubled with mosquitoes and flies. Most of tbe inhabitants of these islands have had to desert their houses and reside on small rocks or islands away from the mainland. This is the only time that I can recollect flies biting, and their bite being as venomous, and as bard, as the bite of the red ant. The. schooner Red Wing has had all one Bide knocked in. The owner, Mr George Gerrisb, of Oneata, had ber sunk for the purpose of destroying vermin ; whilst gunk a loka got up, and the vesisl suffered as above by her continual bumping on tbe bottom. -• A large ship's boat drifted to shore at Namuka last week, she was bottom up and greatly knocked about. Sbe is copper fastened, painted white, cutter rigged, and about 22 feet overall.