WELLINGTON.

Southland Times, Issue 1714, 14 March 1873, Page 3

WELLINGTON.

> (fkom our own correspondent.) March 5. Long ere this reaches you, the telegraph will have conveyed to you the news of the present • great political crisis ; but telegraphic news must necesearily be somewhat meagre, and being on the spot I may be able to place before yjur readers a clearer i lea of the whole transaction than Can be gained bj mere srooni-hand quotations from the various news^apars. When the defeat of Mr Stafibr I's Mi us try on the 4th of October last, place 1 thj mistery of the situation in Mr Voxel's han U, ail when be declined to take advantage of the turn of affairs by holding the Premiership he had fairly won, transferring it instead tj Mr W\iterhouse, and himself returning to his form >r post of s ;corH in command, hij frien Is felt thit ha had made a mistake — that he had c emitted what in politics is " wor3e than a crime — a blunder." Doubtless i he thought to extend his influence and prove that he was not actuated by mere ambition ; but he was wronj?. All his opponents and many of his supporters set it down to conscious weakness, and augured ill from this apparent shrinking back. However, the mistake was made, and Mr Waterhouse became Premier, not nominal but actual Premier, whose death or resignation — as the Opposition took care to elicit in Parliament — must ipso facto dissolve the Ministry. It has I loag been no secret here that Mr Waterhouse was uncomfortable in his position ; indeed the mere sight of his face and demeanor was sufficient to stamp him a " discontented politician," and naturally he was watched with curious eyes '• Whene'er he took his walks abroad ; " and everyone interested in politics knew a " storm was brewing." Early last month, Mr Hal) resigned and left for England, and the question arose, who was to succeed him. Mr Shephard, of Nelson — one of the two whose votes and change of side ousted the Stafford Ministry — was mentioned as a likely man, and a rumor, amounting at last to a positive statement, found general credit; that he had been promised the first vacancy in the Cabinet — of course not as the price of his votp, not at all — but at any rate he did vote on that side, and such a promise was said to have been given by Mr Togei, through a third person, whose name I strongly suspect I can guess, but do not think it fair to mention unless certain, especially as this same " mediuw" has evidently in some way seriously compromised hia principal. The Government organ, the Independent, on this rumor gaining credence, stated positively that there was no intention of appointing Mr Shephard. The Southern Cross (Auckland — Mr Vogel's pap<*r> spoke of Mr Shephard in the highest terms as the coming Minister. Here was a palpable want cf accord. On the 20th ult. the storm burst ! A most solemn article in the Evening Post (with a portentous heading in gigantic capitals) reported serious differences in the Cabinet, and next morning, the Independent announced the resignation of the Prime Minister — Mr Waterhouse — on the ground (1) that Mr Hall's intended retirement had long been known to Mr Yogel and not confided to him, and (2) that a promise had been made by Mr Yogel to Mr Shephard which " neither he (the Premier) nor any of the Ministers could approve." .During the followirg week it was known that an active correspondence was going on between the GoTerror and Mr Waterhouse, and at length it transpired that His Excellency had positively refused to accept the latter's resignation until Mr Vogel's return. The Governor then made arrangements to leave for Auckland last Saturday by the Government steamer, the Luna, and intense interest was felt as to the result. Meanwhile Mr Fox was applied to to act the peacemaker, and the three Ministers resident in Wellington— Messrs Bathgate, O'Rorke, and Richardson — sent a very able and magnanimous memorandum to the angry Premier, endeavoring to dissuade him from persisting in his purpose. Sir George Bowen's fixed determination to leave for Auckland, and Mr Waterhouse's determination that His Excellency should not go without releasing him from his office, necessarily brought matters at last to a dead-luck, and it, only remained to see whose resolution was the stronger. On Saturday the Governor oonsented te postpone his departure until Monday morning, but no longer. On this, Mr Waterbouse apparently j arrived at the conclusion that the time had come to bring matters to a crisis by a coup d'etat. He therefore la«t Sunday informed Bis Excei- | lency that he had forbidden the captain of the Luna to leave without his express permission ! The Governor, finding himself practically " under arrest" — as the In lepeadent justly remarks — felt he had had enough of this recalcitrant Premier, and at length accepted his resignation, making it a personal request to Mr Fox that he Bhould •• tako the ren c" until Mr Vogel's return, daily expected. Mr Fox, with apparent reluctance, consented, and thus matters remain in abeyance until the Colonial Treasurer's return. It is generally felt that there must be much more behind the scenes than meets the eye, as no adequate reason has been given by Mr Waterhouse for his unprecedented conduct. It is hardly fair to mention mere rumors or my own , suspicions, or I fancy I could hint at the real " motive power." Perhaps the Premie- himself , supplies one suggestion in his mention of slights received irom the G-overnor. He is evidently a weak, vain man, who has greatly overrated his own ability and influence- Unless he can explain his conduct very much nnore satisfactorily than he has as yet in his pu lished memoranda, hi* career a« a New Zealand politician presumably may be regarded as closed. No confidence can in future be placed in him. Whether or not Mr Yogel can rebur the charges brought against him by Mr Waterhouse, remains to be ?een ; but in no degree do they warrant the unreasonable behaviour of the latter. The Post says that on " Sir George Bowen finding himself checkmated, if report speak correctly, His Excellency's rage wss intense!" It also reports >ir George's departure last Monday thus : — " Yesterday the Govenßr left for Auckland by the Luna, and thus shamefully deserted his post in the thick of the battle," and further, that he, having " plastered over the wound, vanished away in early morning (!), leaving the Chief Justice and Fate to finally settle the difficulty as best they might." It must be confessed the demonstrations on His Excellency's departure from the wharf were by no j means what might have been expected on suoh an occasion, and this coolness certainly rt fleoted the general feeling that the Ministerial difficulty — however needlessly and senselessly caused by Mr Waterhouse— was of much more consequence than the native meetings His Excellency insisted on attending. The latter however sound more imposingly, and are more piotur*sque — points of no little importance ia Sir George's eyes. The Farewell Ball to the Governor was an utter failure — regarded as a public demonstration. Very few attended, although the price of tickets was low. The new Theatre made a charming ball-room, was beautifully arranged and fitted up for the occasion, the sloping floor of the pit being raised by hydraulic lifts to the level of the stage, the rear of which was turned into a supper-room. Nothing, in short, could have been nicer than the arrangements, but the public wouldn't go. Those who did, danced away vigorously till daylight, and the ladies of course, and as usual, looked killing! v.