The Patea Mail. (Published Wednesdays and Saturdays.) WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1879.

Patea Mail, Volume V, Issue 458, 13 September 1879, Page 2

The Patea Mail. (Published Wednesdays and Saturdays.) WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1879.

Parliament is prorogued from September 17th to September ,24th. Some of the elections do not come off until the 15th instant, so that the delay is perhaps n'-cessary. We presume that should the Government have good reason to expect a majority in the new Parliament, there will be no further prorogation. We are bound to admit that things look favorable to the Ministerial party just now, although there are more than enough of elections remaining to turn the scale against them. Since our last issue Sir George has scored the greatest victory of the season. In Christchurch he was returned at the head of the poll, more votes being given to him than were ever recorded for one man beiore in that city. But his victory does not end here. He has brought in, under his wing, a sure vote in Mr Andrews, the working man’s member. Mr Stevens, a very worthy and honest gentleman, held the second place in the poll; bat Mr Richardson contended in vain for the third place. In the last election, Mr Richardson was Minister of Public Works, and it was said, by various means, secured a large vote from the railway employes. Whether he secured the same votes this time or not, we cannot say, but certain it is that he polled hundreds more than he did in the last election. But the Greyites fairly beat him, and put in the Christchurch plasterer. As a farther evidence of the prevalence of Grey ism, we note that even Mr Treadwell polled nearly six hundred voles. He is a man who would be openly acknowledged by no party, but who would nndonbtably not bo a Conservative, he being a reformer on his own hook. Ho is a pedantic night-school teacher, whose pupils never advance. Ho has discovered the high road to learning. . Ho undertakes to make young shopmen masters of Greek m six weeks. He cannot abide any grammer, but one of his own compiling, which he makes his pupils write out for themselves to save printing. Hu has abolished declensions and conjugations, and strictly forbids the vicious practice of parsing. At the last election he polled 22 votes out of over 3,000 that wore recorded. Yet this man, who is known only to be laughed at, polled nearly six hundred votes. Here we have a measure of the prevalence of the Grey mania that is most appalling. Nearly six hundred electors, in Christchurch city, wished to oust such men as Stevens and Richardson, and put in the cx-Govcrnor, the journeyman plasterer, and the modern Dr Syntax ! O tempora ! O mores / Even here, however, the disaster does not end, for Sir George is now able to disfranchise an electorate until the first division is over. Mr Whitaker, who was defeated for Eden, will stand for the Thames against any Greyite who attempts to take Sir George’s vacated seat. We do not know what chance Mr Whitaker has—perhaps none ; but if Sir George should see any clanger of Mr Whitaker’s return, he will no doubt be able to postpone the election until he has got settled in Parliament, and- has made friends with the mammon of unrighteousness.