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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1201, 21 February 1880, Page 2

Tjik G'hriatchurch Pres3 lias been reduced to the npcdasity of trimming in treating [ upon the question of ilia removal of Mr. j Coumiusiuuer C»»yera and his a all' from , Christcimreh to Pnncdin. The Minister I f«»r Public Work* is responsible for the ! change, and, of coureo, Jid, in tlue pstiniaitinn of the Press., as a member of theprer .sent Ministry, can do no wrong. Jiut, £h.„n, the Chriscchureh public have to be. con&iiterod by our contemporary when it i* palpabjc tk.U its interests are threatened. It would bo useless for it to endeavour to iU rtiidtrj into flic belief that the removal of the head quarters of Uia rn.il«i.y management fr<>n> »ii! not in any decree act injuriously to that place and beneficial to its goutlwu conv jiati t'lr, The question is not in vested in tho jn/atery <Jonl>fc with which politics are

enshronded in the popular mincl. The matter is as clear to the public as a:simple subtraction sum. But somebody must jtje blamed, and the Press does not stand on ceremony. This is the peg upon which ■it hangs an argument—the straw at which it clutches : Mr. Oliver told a deputation of the Christchurch Chamber- ofy'Commerce who. actuated by than the efficiency of the liaflWay-Bystem and the welfare of the apon that gentleman to endeavor to Secure a reversal of his decision,.'that'He- was "surprised to see in orie; ; here that a number of officers of the staff | were to be removed. Mr. Conyers, in conversation as to his removal, certainly mentioned some officers whom it would be necessary io remove, but nothing was decided upon." The Press has, perhaps, met wjth Ministers —especially during the late administration—who trimmed and' shuffled when they found that they onuld not pursue a straightforward course without unpleasantly encountering powerful men and powerful interests. But does Mr. Oliver ever trim?—never. Seeing that the Minister for Public Works professes to know something about railways, who can doubt that he ivas genuinely surprised when he found that Mr. Conyers'staff had followed him to Dunedin, The Minister for Public Works may ijot h;>cj any railway management; beyond tljat gajnpd by travelling in railway carriages'; biifc"lie once was a partner in a firm that coiir structed a railway which was afterwards sold at a delicious price to the Government. Perhaps, therefore; he knows of some sagacious plan whereby Mr. Conyers could leave his staff behind, or whereby that gentleman could be removed to Dunedin and yet'remain" in Christchurch. But what a wayward, disobedient servant the Commissioner must be. All the impressions that we have formed of his character are ruthlessly shaken. It ha 3 been pretty generally supposed that his besetting sin is a too great anxiety to please those in authority and the public, and we fell into this error, If Mr. Conyers, without instructions to do so, removed a number of officials from Christchurch, why, he is as great all autocrat.as Sir George Grey. But it is hard to believe that William Conyers is an autoorat. There is, however, the statement of the Minister of Public Works to prove it, and he would not tell a lie—he would not even mislead the Christchurch Chamber and the pul lie. There have been unscrupulous politicians w ho would not have thought twice about blaming an official for what they had done themselves, so as to avoid opprobrium and preserve their positions, but they were sent into oblivion when the Hall Government acr ceded to power. But how the Press abuses Mr. Cohyei'3. It says :—" If the political head of the department is thus quietly ignored by the Commissioner, it is surely time, in the interests of the public service, for Mr. Oliver to resolutely agsert his position." Certainly. Mr. Oliver is a simple-minded sort of fellow, who would allow any scheming official like Mr.. Conyers to get the better of him. We would recommend Mr. Oliver to keep his eyes open, or he will next be trampled upon. Such are the misfortunes of the ingenuous and unsuspecting.