ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1293, 29 May 1880, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

THE ELECTION.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE OAMARU MAIL.

- Sib, —A writer named " Gardez" has been puffing the Liberalism of Mr. John Reid. He says, " One of our present candidates understands our wants," and that is the gentleman above referred to. By " our wants" the writer means the special wants of the section of the community to which he belongs, and he gives as a reason for this assertion that Mr. Reid is the proprietor, of a block of 20,000 acres of the best agricultural land in the Waitaki County. - Further, that Mr. Reid is endeavoring to establish the tenant system on his property. I for one fail to see any reason in this statement. I can see one thing, and that is the introduction of the Old World system of landlord and tenant, and, in its train, all its attendant evils. There is nothing of the " Titus Salt, of Saltaire" about Mr. Reid's system of settlement, and the man who is obliged " to feel his way" before proclaiming himself one thing or the other in a political contest like the present is not one who should expect the confidence of either party. If Mr. Reid is a Liberal, let him prove it by his works, if his creed is a true one, he will require .no champion. One thing we know, Mr. Reid is a monopolist, and "Birds of a feather flock together. He has the sympathy and support of the sheep farmers of Waitaki, " Gardez" included. —I am, &c., Sub Rosa.

MR. REID AT TEANERAKI. TO THE EDITOR OF THE OAMARU MAIL,

Sir, —Mr. Reid addressed a crowded meeting of electors and others in the schoolhouse last evening, among whom were a large number of Elderslie retainers and employes, and an efficient body of clacquers, who performed their work with zeal and ardour, whenever the butter was being laid on a little more thickly than usual. Mr. E. S. Lees having taken the chair (for he was not voted to it), Mr. Reid proceeded with his address. He spoke well, and, for the most part, in a spirit of fairness, and common sense, but defended-the property tax in its several features as preferable to a land and income tax ; and re-iterated what he said in Oamaru about the honorarium business. He also said that men who were unable to sit in Parliament independently of the honorarium would be placed in a degraded position; that they would be looked down upon,; not being able to keep up the style essential to an M.H.R. These are not exactly his words, but are to the same effect; and he also thought that, were the honorarium done away with place hunters would be debarred from the House. He also read a letter in re this honorarium question, which he purposed sending to the Oamaru Mail, but which he suspected "Jones" would not publish, one part of it referring purposely to the editor of that journal, he (Mr. Reid) dwelt emphatically upon, evidently thinking it grand. Mr. Reid stoutly deprecated all sentiments of toryiam attributed to him by those wno loved him not, or suspected in him by the over-suspicious, and aaid that the member about to be elected should be from the country, as the town was already represented by Mr, Shrimski. At the conclusion of his address Mr. Reid was loudly applauded/and a vote of confidence in him was proposed by Mr." Todd and seconded by Mr. Pryde, which, being unopposed by any amendment, was declared carried. Mr. Reid cordially thanked the meeting for its vote, and assured them that he had need of their help, and suggested the formation of a committee, anent which he remarked that his Oamaru committee did not work wellj while Mr. Jones had a very strong one, having so j many Oamaru working men. (Mr. Reid spoke absent mindedly.) A vote of thanks to the Chairman terminated the proceedings.—l am, etc., Anti-Glamour. TO THE EDITOR OF THE OAMARU MAIL. Sir, —In your issue of the 25th inst. there appears a letter signed " Elector," to. which I think a reply is necessary. " Elector" does me very great injustice by the inference which he draws from my answer to Sir. Sutherland's question respecting the honorariumMy reply e< that I would be willing to vote for its reduction to LIOO, and, if necessary, for its being done away with altogether," was merely intended to show that the honorarium did not in any way influence me in coming forward as a candidate for the representation of this district in Parliament.

I, do not object to the honorarium, when it is paid to men who are worthy and honest representatives. They are quite entitled to h£ve their expenses paid by the public while they are engaged in serving the interests of the public, in P&xiiamont elsewhere. But I still

maintain, .with all, due respect to tHa poorer candidate, that if two candidates are in the field, equally honest and. competent, the constituency will have a muoh better chance of being well served by the man of independent means than by him who depends on his honorarium for' a living. - For while human nature continues as it is, the former (all things being equal) will have more iufluence than the latter.

The only reason I have for supposing that a better class of members would be returned were the honorarium done away is that it would prove a bar to a class of needy, unscrupulous adventurers obtaining seats in Parliament, whose sole object would be to benefit themselves by means, honest or dishonest, and to whom the interests of their constituents and of ttoa Colony would be altogether a secondary consideration. Woe betide the county to whose councils such men gain tance. But I wish it to be clearly under- <" stood that I make a very wide distinction between such men and the class to whom " Elector" professes to belong, and on whose integrity I would be very sorry to throw the shadow of a doubt.. I must still, however, respectfully affirm that I think the representative of an important constituency ought not to be entirely dependent upon his honorarium for support. In the same issue of your paper is another letter signed "Vox Populi, written in something of the same strain, j and evidently by the same pen, in which I am accused of throwing a sop to the Hakateramea electors in the answer which I gave to Mr. Lane's question respecting the taking over of the district railways by the Government. The answer which I gave was perfectly straightforward and not intended as a sop to the Hakateramea electors. In fact such a thought never entered my mind. The answer given was the only one I could give, as this matter will have to be carefully discussed among other railway matters when the Commissioners meet in Wellington to draw up their report. The concluding remarks of " Vox Populi," viz., that those who vote for me will do so on the following items, viz , a tax upon beer,;;the abolition of the honorarium, cheap labor, class representation upon the basis of wealth, and the construction by Government of district railways through private lands are evidently written with a view to mislead the working man and further the interests of my opponents in this contest. It has been said that all is fair in love, war, and politics; but I think that all such attempts as those of " Vox Populi '* to distort the'truth and mislead the public are very unfair, and should meet with strong disapprobation from all honest men ; and I assert that no unprejudiced man who reads my address will draw such inferences from it as those put forth by "Vox Populi." As you are somewhat peculiarly circumstanced at present, being not only a candidate for a seat in Parliament, but editor and proprietor of a widely-circulated public journal, I think it would be only fair that during this contest you should refuse to insert in that journal all letters such as those of " Vox Populi" and " Elector," which contain charges against either of your opponents, unless the writer adds his name and address, the electors would then have an opportunity of knowing whether the opinions expressed really emanated from thei public, or whether their birthplace was the office of your journal.—l am, &c., John Reid, Elderslie, 27th May, 1880.