Untitled

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1058, 10 September 1879, Page 2

We know that it is nothing short of impertinence—some people would call it sedition—to offer an adverse opinion about a man occupying Mr. John Studholme's position. But we belong to that majority which holds that a rich man is only worthy of rcHpect on account of his virtues. Not that Mr. Studholme is not respectable. He is, we believe, a very respectable gentleman, with plenty of that which most of us luck just now—a king, in fact, in a small way, surrounded by a large number of courtiers. With the full knowledge that we stand a chance of incurring displeasure in high places, and of getting more kicks than half-pence, we approach the painful duty of referring to Mr. Studholme as a politician. Those who cannot read denunciations of "great" men have our heart-felt commiseration, but whilst wo sympathise with these worshippers of wealth, we sympathise much more with the Colony. Mr. Studholme is not the stylo of man that should be permitted to enter ourParliamcnt. "Blood is thicker than water," and his leaning is bound to be on the side of his own class, the interests of which arc not tho3c of the bulk of colonists. His ideas, therefore, are wrong. The only consolation we have is that if he succeeds in his contest with Dr. Dcane he will not bo able to express his views in such a manner as to carry influence in the House. But, his vote will count as one—sonic people would give hint and all other men of his class more than one vote —and that fact of itself should make the electors of the Gladstone district resolve to frustrate his intentions. Mr. Studholme is one of the clas3 that have used every endeavor to gain special advantages for themselves and under whose rule the colonists would drift into r. condition of subserviency to a few. We need not state that Mr. Studholme is a thorough-going supporter of those men who wore guilty of gridironing the Canterbury waste lands, ono of the numerous attempts that has been made to cheat the people out of a privilege that should have been enjoyed equally by all

classes. Mr. Studholme professes to be I a Liberal. In this he has imitated many a cleverer man of his own clique. This is an acknowledgment either that Liberalism is good for the country or good as a ladder by which to attain power. But, having once attained that power, such men invariably spurn the ladder, and act according to their own instincts. From what we can learn, Dr. Deane is an honest man—a man worthy of the confidence of the electors of Gladstone. "Whatever may be his qualifications for the position he seeks, they can scarcely be as poor 'as those of his opponent, whilst we are sure that he would be an earnest sapporter of those liberal measures which have met with universal approval. We hope that the electors of Gladstone will not miss this opportunity of registering their disapproval of government by those who seem to consider that they have a prescriptive right to rule the Colony, and that they will be able to hold their own against the outsiders that will, we suspect, be pressed into the service of their influential candidate to-morrow.