THE REPRESENTATION BILL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1923, 30 July 1889, Page 3

THE REPRESENTATION BILL.

An enthusiastic public meeting of electors in East and South ; "Wellington strpngly; condemned the Eepresentation Bill and the action of Government in passiug it through, '{he meeting was addressed by Sir Gerjr'ge Grey, Mr Izard, Mr Fisher, Mr . Taiwhanga, M.H.R.'s, and Mr T. K. McDonald. Mass meetings at Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin, have also condemned in the strongest terms the Representation Bill. At Dunedin Sir R. Stout moved—" That this meeting- protests against the passing of the Representation Bill now before the House of Rapresentatives, as its provisions are unjust and opposed to the best interests of the colony." He condemned the Bill on the ground that it strikes at the root of every democratic principle. Democracy demanded that one man should count for one man and no more, and any government that attempted to clothe the people with special privileges struck at the root of good government, and was sowing, he believed, the seeds of anarchy and rebellioa. He explained his action with regard to the quota in 1887, and said that if the townspeople had stood by him then, there would have been no need to stonewall this Bill, nor any need of a public meeting to protest against it. He claimed that the Bill had no principles underlying it, and said that the Premier and his party had merely pricked the card to see how the majority went, and determined to go with it.