MR. REES’S ADDRESS AT NAPIER.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5479, 18 October 1878, Page 2

MR. REES’S ADDRESS AT NAPIER.

Napier, Thursday. After the termination of the performance last night, at 9.15, Mr. Rees addressed a large audience in the Theatre Royal. The building was crowded in every part. He warmly defended the Government, and particularly Sir George Grey, in respect of the Maori franchise, and argued at considerable length to show that the Opposition to the Maori franchise was fostered by persons who were inimical to settlements between natives and Europeans now existing; inimical also to the extension of the European franchise and to the land tax. To Drove the verity of his assertion respecting the land tax, he read a telegram he had received from Wellington, stating that on Tuesday night Sir Dillon Bell had said in the Legislative Council, speaking on the Maori franchise clause, that “in the voting for imposition of a land tax in the Lower House the four Maori members voted for it, and that without them the Bill would have been lost. It was then their (the Council’s) duty to take care that this does not occuragain.” Mr. Rees went on to say that this showed why the franchise to the Maori was struck out. He dwelt strongly upon the point that the Maori franchise was no new thing, that they had had it for years. He defended what was termed here “ repudiation,” and gave a history of some of the transactions of persons against whom those proceedings were being taken which were termed repudiation. Much of weat he said was received with great applause ; but the defence of the Maori franchise was not acceptable to the bulk of the auditors. After he concluded, Mr. Gornford, solicitor, spoke in refutation of some of Mr. Rees’s statements, and read a telegram from Sir F. Dillon Bell, as follows: —“It is not true that I said the dual vote was excised because native vote in the House carried the Land Tax Rill.’’ There was tremendous applause at this. Ssms wanted the name of the author of the telegram to Mr. Bees, but he refused to give it. There was no resolution put to the meeting.