ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 57, 11 October 1864, Page 3

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

♦ W"B DO SOT IDENTIFY OUBSELVES IK AST WAT WITH THE OPINION BXPBESSED BT OTJB COBBEBPOXDKKTB. - ♦ (TO THE BDITOB OF THE BOTJTHULND TIMB8.) glB, — If any special argument in favor of our having some member of the Provincial Council who is -able to give practical information to other members, and to the public through the House, on railway matters, were required, it is given in the address and speech of Mr. Tarlton — one of the candidates to represent Invercargill. The present political hobby of this gentleman is the abuse of the railways and their construction. Abuse is the principal weapon of the designing and ignorant, and is generally in proportion to these qualities in the abuser. It becomes as harmless when it encounters an experienced representation of the question at issue, as darkness when it encounters light. A little light on any question at issue affords, at least, the means of seeing correctly, and acts moreover as a check on the evil designs of those Who love darkness rather than any light not afforded by their own rushlight. The interests of the Province undoubtedly require that the public should be well informed on railway matters, for as these are well or badly conducted, so will they be either of great benefit or injury to the Province. To suppose it preferable to sit in darkness on the possible chance of some glimmer of light being obtainable from the honorable candidate mentioned, who professes to be au fait on railway matters, as on every other subject, and to reject a candidate whose occupation has always been railway affairs, because that gentleman is a government contractor, would be to refuse a good lamp to throw light on the subject, because there is iome question of whether the oil supplying it was obtained from these shores, and would be the expression by the electors of their preference for darkneßS, and of their doubt of the honesty and discernment of twenty other members. Doeß it follow that because a man quotes a little Latin, that he is a Latin scholar ? that because he profesßeß a knowledge of English, he must therewrite it correctly, or fluently? because he talks of Greece, and Koine, he is an Encyclopedia ? of gunpowder, and he iB a Friar Bacon ? of railway matters, and he is any authority ? of being » Koman citizen, and that he has that at present doubtful honor? Admirable Crichtona are not plentiful, and InTercargill is rather a small place to possess one to itself ; does not such assumption therefore lead to the consideration of what such a candidate really does know, and on what subjects his previous experiences authorise his expression of public opinionß ? . Admit that this gentleman may be a Latin echolar, correct writer and accountant, Greek and Boman authority, pupil of Friar Bacon, railway authority, and Boman citizen, even then too great & blaze of light is almost as'blinding as darkneßS, end it would appear equally desirable in any matter particularly affecting the interests of the Province, that some humbler and more terrestrial experience should be present in the Council to prevent its members from being altogether blinded by such a light. . Electors who doubt the honorable candidate being all that is stated, will naturally question the sincerity of a man pretending much whilst possessing only the ordinary requirements consequent on his training, experience, and calling, and will be led even to question his possession of acquirements he might otherwise be admitted to possess ; also whether the statement that he has benefitted to the extent of many hundreds of pounds by the railways, the cost of which he deplores, is any exaggeration. Such electors will regard the candidate as a rushlight of doubtfid glimmer, and will naturally support any man whose lifelong experience enables him to throw the light necessary to put out any sparks emitted by such a rushlight as might otherwise smoulder into a flame destructive to their property. Electors who believe the honorable candidate to be all he professes, will be anxious to afford him fuel for the blaze of his light, and will equally support the man of practical experience in the momentous question to the future progress of this Province — ita railways. _ . With every desire to act charitably to Mr. Tarlton, my interest in the prosperity of the 3?rovince compels me td confess myself an elector who doubts that gentleman's sincerity in professing to deßire the promotion of the public welfare in any matter not tending to hia political aspirations or primary benefit. The grounds on which I form this opinion are, that I can have no confidence in a man whom I believe not to be a Latin scholar, whilst he professes to be a Boman citizen? not a fluent writer, or good accountant, whilst professing to be both; not to bo conversant with Greece or Borne, "whilst delighting publicly to debate on these topics'; not to be a- pupil of IViar Bacon, although I have heard him debate on gunpowder and all itß civilising tendencies- ;■ not to be any railway authority, although 'he assumes- con-^. fidentiy to be one, and whilst ; lamenting the effect of the cost of the railways' to' the Province^ he himself requires payment' for land taken of him for them, to the tune of hundred* over its ialesble value. .<,.•) : J"'v A I • ~* Desiring men. of. a different stamp for our representationr, I shall not,'in this belief, vote for Mr. Tarlton. - ;.;,;,. ,v Vj . , On the" principal bf securing the best light obtainable, on the most important question to the: future welfare-pf -this -Pjovince, and as the only, candidate who has , considerable experience jn vuhrty -*&s&: •s£*##^'fr*** '*&*?:

cialsd for J yearV in Victoria,' ag an upright and honorable man; -whose opinion is ..of. .value in all , matters in which he has., obtained experience ; and who confines the expression of his opinions to such matters, in the way men; deserving' of confidence are apt to 'do, I shall' vote for Mr. Davies, and I submit the considerations inducing, me to refuse my vote in the one case, and to give it in the other, to tho attention of my followcitizeha/ ■"' ' „•••. . ■ . „:'■; -- : -' :'..' " \ ■'" a :; v BIVECTOR. * (TO >TBM G9 THB SOUTHLAND : TliCEg) Sib, — A large number of electors . and npnelectqrs met, Mr. Tarlton, aphis', request, at the Theatre Royal, to hear nun' express his opinions relative to the forthcoming elections. Living out of town, I could not attend, but looked out anxiously for the report .of his speech in ihe papers: I regret to say I did not feel pleased when I read the account of the meeting. Mr. Tarlton was received" wirh applause, — would not give the past history of the Province, nor give any account of its present state, and condition ; , nor would he turn prophet, and predict its future. "He came as an individual on whom the town of Invercarg,ill hod devolved a certain amount of trust." With: respect to the above assertions, I may observe that candidates who come before their constituents for re-election are expected to give an account of their past career, the present state of affairs, and what they intend doing, if re-elected. Mr. Tarlton is too high-minded to do so, and tells us plainly lie won't. He will not tell us how he acted under the trust he acknowledges to have received. There ia no sensible man but can perceive how vague and empty such talk is ; in fact, it is talk, and nothing more. He next says, " Some gentlemen would persist in making statements in the papers which had no foundation in truth, and to which he (Mr. T.) thought that the person who penned them should have at least appended their name." I must, with all due respect to Mr. Tarlton, differ with him. Any elector is at perfect liberty to criticise the conduct of any public man without signing his real name to any communication he may send to a paper. If the correspondent should make a mistake or wrong assertion (gentlemen never tell untruths), I am perfectly sure that the editors of both papers are always willing to publish a contradiction of any such statements, particularly when they remark that they will not publish any letter of a personal nature. Mr. Tarlton's system of education is certainly amusing. He would pay the teachers of Invercargill (if on a careful inspection of every child who had attended the school — which was to be insisted on — it was found two-thirds came up to the standard) from the Provincial Treasury a certain premium, say, £1 for children in Invercargill, and £2 for children in country districts. Thi3 is what I call liberality itself. The unfortunate teacher in a country district with, we will say, fourteen scholars, which is as many as ho would get in large disiricts, gets £28 from Government, and say £3 per head from the parents, in all £70 per year. A shepherd gets higher wages than that, and, if I were a schoolmaster, all the harm I would wish Mr. Tarlton is that he should be a schoolmaster in a country district in Southland. On the question of immigration he gives no definite opinion. He s»ys he will not assist persons not capable of paying their passages. We all know that it is and has been bad policy to bring out a class of immigrants who have no means, we not having suitable work, but he will not say that he will assist the true immigrant — the man of small means, and one that has not sufficient to settle (after paying his passage for self and family) on the land without some help. On the whole Mr. Tarlton's address was anything but satisfactory to my mind ; while there wa3 a great deal said, there was no clear and straightforward statements of what he had done and what he would do. Although your paper states he was received with cheers, the electors should be advised to read his speech carefully before they give him their confi dence. He may have the best intentions, but I for one doubt his abilities ; legislation is not his forte. I regret to say I have seen too many of the blunders of the present Government and Council to give anyone of them my support. I am yours, &c, As Electob.