Thank you for correcting the text in this article. Your corrections improve Papers Past searches for everyone. See the latest corrections.

This article contains searchable text which was automatically generated and may contain errors. Join the community and correct any errors you spot to help us improve Papers Past.

Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image

THE MINISTERIAL RECEPTION AT NAPIER.

As previously notified by telegraph, a very hearty reception was accorded to Sir George Grey and Mr. Sheehan at Napier on Friday, December 14.

After the presentation of an address by Mr. Justin McSweeny, the secretary of the Reception Committee, of a very complimentary character. Sir George Grey spoke at soine length. We take the following report of hia speech from the Hawke's Bay Herald of the loth last. ;—“ It is said that there is sometimes a blessedness in being crowned with length of days. Now that is peculiarly my case on this occasion. It is now just about two months past twenty-three years—that is, twenty-three years and two months, since I first came to Napier.' There was then but one European living in this country—a Mr. Alexander, —and I came with the hope of persuading the natives of this place to sell their land for the occupation of the European people. I believed it was a magnificent country, and I thought that if it was thrown open to settlement, if it could be occupied by a British population, with all their knowledge and with all their skill, it would turn out to be one of the finest .countries in the world. (Cheers). Gentlemen, I came down from the Wairarapa Plains across the country, and I arrived in this place a worn-out wanderer, the greater part of the journey having necessarily been performed on foot, and that in most terrible weather. I had then a very , long journey before me, overland from here to Auckland, with no companion with me. but the late Bishop ot New Zealand—Bishop Selwyn—whom you have all heard of. (Hear, and cheers). Well, I was received here in a most friendly manner by the natives. They agreed to sell a very large district of country to me, and the difficulty was then to find the funds. The colony was so poor at that time, so different from its present position, that even to find a few,thousand pounds seemed an almost impossible- task, and I had the very great pleasure of largely contributing to the purchase of this place from my own ; privatemeans—to acquire it for the public good, with the firm belief that thousands of families would occupy the soil, and that a great town would arise on the place where ,we at present stand. Well, now; to-day what do I see ? ; The very dreams I formed lying upon those hills are now realised.' ’ I see a prosperous town around me. , I see a numerous population evidently well;to-do in every respect, and l the weary wanderer have come here, not a loriely man, and been received by thousands this day Who haiie acoomphnied mo into town.’ (Cheers); J I only ask you' whether, under such cireum‘stances, there is not, in truth, a blessedness in being crowned with length of days, for it is only that blessing which could have enabled mu to see the welcome sight which has this' day giadened me;' (Loud cheers); ■ Well, now; tv pass over ! that, let ? mc ;i addfess you in ‘another capacity; Truly 'speaking I cannot address you as your - representative • for this place, but in some sort, from the position into which I have been forced, I am now a representative of the entire people mf New Zealand. (Cheers). Wherever I go I owe a solemn duty to: the people;to‘ tell; them,-what are the measures which I, believe will he for their welfare. It is my .duty "to address'them as free men w)iora I desire to assist mo in that which they ; consider to be good; and to go with mo ho further than their consciences and their reason tell them they ought to accompany me. . Jvhave -.no wish to; impose' upon the people of this' country anything distasteful to ■them or-.which they believe to'be contrary to their interest, and my object and desire and that of my! colleagues, with whom I am proud to bo associated; is 10 let 'the people all know what we believe are objects which will lead to the future welfare of themselves and their

child ren —to have their aid and assistance in all that we .do, and. from tlie very .moment that we fail to work for ends winch they feel to be good, to retire from office and to let other men come forward and do that which the public demand at their hands. Well, now, holding these objects in view, let me first of all point out that which it is the common duty of us all to : aim at. ■ I say this, that it is our common and our hounden duty .to aim at this: that every man and every youth in this country should . be instructed in political knowledge. (Hear and cheers).' I feel that next to your religious duty, the, next .duty which follows that and forms part really, of' your religious duty, is to consider your duty to your fellowmen and that which you ought to do for the public welfare and for the common good. (Cheers.) I Well, now, I toll yon further, that in no other way can yon do that —in no other way can you secure and retain the advantages which you ought to. possess than by getting power into your own bands.. First of all do your utmost to instruct yourselves, as I say, in political knowledge, that is, in understanding what is for the common good, arid then, securely grasp at that power which you ought to have, the power of influencing the future destinies of this country. (Cheers). Now, that power you have never yet had, and I will tx-y and explain' this point to you. None of you have had a proper franchise. I fixed the franchise myself some twenty years ago, and then it was as liberal a franchise as I could have obtained for- you. It had to be fixed by the British Parliament, and. that Parliament was not then so liberal in sentiment as it is now, so that I could not have obtained a more liberal franchise than I got ; but that franchise was wasted in the case of Napier in this particular way. .You are aware, that you had a Provincial Council in which small con- : stitueneies'elected members to represent them. According to the plan which I devised, in all the larger provinces, in addition to the Provincial' Council, there was the Superintendent who was elected by the whole province, con- : sequently the Superintendent did not belong : to. any particular : party, and it was in his power to keep in check the different parties in the Provincial Council., In the case of the smaller provinces, that plan was departed from. . The Superintendent _ was ,elected by the majority of the Provincial Council —that is, by the dominant party in the Provincial Council, so that in truth those small provinces were always governed by one party. The views of one particular party were forced upon the province, and they had the power of doing exactly |what they, liked. (Hear.) Well, now, the provinces are done away with, and the question -is, .what ought wo to do now ? - What we ought to do now, is this ; To secure that every man of ane who has resided for twelve months in a particular: electoral district shall have a vote. That is the first thing. (Cheers.) There is very little trouble iu making an electoral roll under such circumstances. I say that a good, man with a family has as great a stake in the country as the largest landed proprietor in it. It is as important to him that he should be fairly taxed, that his children should be properly educated, and that there should be fair and equal laud laws, as it is to the very richest man in the laud. (Loud cheers.) ■ Therefore, I say that we must first of all secure a fair and equal franchise for the entire population of New Zealand. (Renewed cheers.) Well, having done that, what is next to be done ? I tell you the next thing you ought to insist upon is—when you get the free and unrestricted power of choosing your own representatives—the taking care that the electoral districts are fair in size—that is, that there are no pocket boroughs. It is right that the whole population of New Zealand should be fairly and fully • represented, so as to have a potential voice in Parliament in the management of their own affairs. That has never yet been done. There have always been small constituencies with double and treble the number of members thfey ought to have. These small constituencies have always been more or less in the hands of some particular party, so that in truth there has been no freedom hitherto of legislation or of taxation. That must not happen in the future. (Cheers.) Let us now look at the question of taxation. This may seem to some of you to be a very trivial matter, and to some of you the question of the representation may seem a very trifling matter ; but I say that auy man who has the least sentiment of self-respect will not have money taken out of his pocket without his own consent. He, will not . see taken from his wife and from his children that which would add greatly to their comfort, unless he is a willing man, and shall say, ‘ I consent to pay these suras for the public good.’ (Cheers.) Well, now, hitherto there has been no fair taxation in New Zealand.- Just' consider for one moment that the question of taxation has hitherto been entirely. mixed up with the administration of lands; ' that is, those who acquired enormous properties acquired a most potential voice in the management of tire country by the pocket boroughs that I spoke of, and by the means they had of securing the election of particular members. What has been the result of that ? You have: seen men possessing large properties which, at the time they acquired them, were, comparatively speaking, of little value, and the ; whole population has been heavily taxed to make railroads and to carry out the great public works which gave an enormous value to those properties, and created at once one portion of the community possessing enormous wealth. How were those railroads constructed ?—how were those public works constructed? By the taxation of the whole population. Not in proportion to the benefits they derived from the State; but yon may say it was 1 a capitation tax; that is, it fell upon every man, upon every woman and every child in the country in equal proportion. Tho poor man, with a large family of say seven or eight children, -and-his wife, contributed more to,the taxation of the count-y than the wealthy man with one or two children. (Hear, hear.) Well, under what right in the world was that done? Under what right iu the world was the population at large taxed in order to give such enormous value to those properties? Isay nothing could have been more unjust than that. (Cheers.), Let those who benefit so largely from the institutions of the country pay in fair proportion to the advantages ' they have received, —let the man whose property is made enormously valuable by the labor of others, and by the taxation of others, contribute fairly to the necessities of the country, and, upon the other hand, let those who do not derive such advantages be relieved from the present rate, of taxation which grinds them down. (Loud cheers.) You may have a difficulty iu comprehending this matter. You find -that you receive so : much wages, so .much money, and you find that it does not go so far as it ought to go. Of course as long as upon every article yourself and family consume you are compelled to pay. certain sums to the revenue of the .country, you ■ cannot be in possession of those funds to expend for the use of your family which it is your undoubted right to have. ' I. say, after looking after the' franchise arid the‘fair distribution of The; representation, the'next thing you have to consider ' is' an equal’ system of- taxation—-a system under which the whole population shall contribute to the revenue in proportion to the advantages they derive. ‘ '-Well, then, there is one - other point we must all look to, namely, the, desirability of fair and equal land laws throughout the. country;—laws under which every man’may hope t6' acquire a liom'e'for his' wife' and for his children a home which ho may leave to those whomi ,116 loves, I 'and from whom death must separate him ■ at last. 5 ’ (Cheers!) 'Well, that’ important end can, duly be obtained by fair find jijst land laws. In reference to that point,’' I would say, especially in oiir dealings with the ■ native ’population fob the lands, we’ must, take ’ care that Justice, is done, td them, arid that justice is done, to the whole European population! In illustration’- of wh'at 1 1 mean I will say say this; 'BUppnSiug an Extensive Native 'Depart-' : meat is established, and there are distributed native’officers throughout tho' country—native officers hero and native officers there—and thatdepartment is paid for by the taxation of the entire population of New Zealand ; then I say the entire population of New Zealand have a right to derive the full benefit which that department can bestow upon thorn. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) For example, if a depart-

meut so employed and so distributed throughout the country, acquiring great influence over the native population, are allowed to use that influence, and pureha-,e native lands for themselves, or for the friends of the' Government, without, warning to the whole populor.ion at large, I say that a gross injustice is done to the entire people of New Zealand. Such lauds ought to be fairly open to the whole public, and the natives ought to get a failprice for them, and not be compelled to sell to some favored individuals. (Cheers.) Every man iu New Zealand ought to havca fair right of acquiring land open to sale under such cirotmstanoes ; and my friend, Mr. Sheehan, has announced that as the policy upon which he is determined to act. (Loud cheers). Iu having made that resolution, and having resolved to carry it out, I feel certain he will do as great a benefit to New Zealand as any other man has ever hitherto conferred upon it. (Three cheers were here given for Mr. Sheehan.) Tho day is late, and as there are others to -speak, I must not detain you longer. I have pointed'out to you you the leading questions which I think should occupy your minds—questions which I think you ought all to aid myself and my colleagues in eh i.eav.n-ing to carry out. You may rely up .n this, (hat if you give us that aid, we will avail ourselves of it and faithfully use every effort for your good in the direction T have indicated. I believe if this is done, witbiu a verv short period of time you will find that the prosperity of New Zealand wil be vastly increased-—that homes will be obtained for thousands of families who cannot now get them, and that many things which you desire to attain, and cannot at present get, will be placed within your reach. Xu the opeu air, and at this hour of the day, it is impossible for me to speak to you on many points which I should have wished to mention; but I can only say this, that upon the general questions which I have brought under your notice, if you chooso to take them up, you shall find in me a firm and fast friend. (Loud cheers). I will, further say, that in everv respect in which myself and my colleagues can promote your local interests, and do so properly, you will find that we will do our utmost for you. (Cheers.) My own desire will be that this place, which really with a good deal of difficulty I acquired for the European race, shall attain to that prosperity that I believed it would reach when I Succeeded iu gaining it for settlement by British subjects. (Cheers). If I can end my life in , carrying out the dreams which I formed upon those hills, looking down over these plains when they w-ere a wild waste —when there was but a mission station here under Mr. Colenso, one European resident in the town, and no other persons occupying it—if the dreams I then formed of this great and fertile country come to be realised, and if in greater old age I come back and witness the realisation of those di earns, I shall experience the happiness of seeing that which I have wished for years to have seen brought about. (Sir George Grey resumed his seat amid enthusiastic and prolonged cheers).” Mr. Sheehan followed, warmly thanking the people for the cordial reception given to the Premier and himself, and concluded by saying that he trusted after their term of office was over they would not be ashamed to come back to Napier, and that they would meet with as hearty a reception as that just accorded to them. (Cheers.)

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZTIM18780104.2.7

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5236, 4 January 1878, Page 3

Word count
Tapeke kupu
2,890

THE MINISTERIAL RECEPTION AT NAPIER. New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5236, 4 January 1878, Page 3

THE MINISTERIAL RECEPTION AT NAPIER. New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5236, 4 January 1878, Page 3

Help

Log in or create a Papers Past website account

Use your Papers Past website account to correct newspaper text.

By creating and using this account you agree to our terms of use.

Log in with RealMe®

If you’ve used a RealMe login somewhere else, you can use it here too. If you don’t already have a username and password, just click Log in and you can choose to create one.


Log in again to continue your work

Your session has expired.

Log in again with RealMe®


Alert