The Oamaru Mail THURSDAY, JUNE 10, 1880.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1303, 10 June 1880, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail THURSDAY, JUNE 10, 1880.

Sir "William Fox has drawn from the Hon. Mr. Rolleston an expression of opinion that Judge Bathgate's connection with the New Zealand Mortgage and Investment Company at Home is not " compatible with his position as a District Judge," and that" the gentleman referred to would be notified of the fact." It seems that when Judge Bathgate went Home on private business he was allowed half-pay, but his full salary was made up by the Government paying the balance in consideration of his undertaking to promote emigration. So far no objection seems to have been taken to the arrangement made by the Government when accepting Mr. Bathgate's services as an emigration agent, and there 13 little doubt that he has done a very large amonnt of good for tie Colony. But his connection with a Mortgage and Investment Company—as well as that of Sir Julius "Vogel with the Agricultural Company appears to have given mortal offence to our pure politicians, to whom the fact that the Companies in question are calculated to benfit the Colony by increasing the number of landowners and settlers and promote the introduction of capital is a matter of no moment. It is so immoral, so very improper, and so degrading that colonial officials at Home should have anything to do with commercial transactions of any kind; and yet we know of many of those exceedingly proper colonial politicians who comment upon these matters who do not scruple to indulge freely in speculative enterprises, often at the expense' of ! the Colony. A member of the Ministry may appoint his brother to a very lucrative billet, not attended with any very arduous duties, and still lay flnim to the respect and confidence of the public. But then things are so very different in the Colony from what they are at Home ; there is so much more freedom in this Britain of the South, and this acconnts for the apparent discrepancies between the conduct and the professions of some of our pure politicians. Now that the Hon. Mr. Rolleston has expressed so strong an opinion upon the conduct of Judge Bathgate, Sir William Fox must be more than ever convinced that two at least of the members of his last Ministry—Sir Julius Yogel and Judge Bathgate—are very naughty men, and he must be more than ever thankful that Parliament once and for ever removed him from the n&ceasity of holding counsel with such men.