THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY,OCTOBER 15, 1891. MISCHIEVOUS MEMBERS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2267, 15 October 1891, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY,OCTOBER 15, 1891. MISCHIEVOUS MEMBERS.

The time appears to be approaching when th\s electors of this colony will find the chosing of a Parliamentary representative a difficult question to decide. The chief point which must trouble them is to make a choice between clever men and whatever else may offer—fools, if none better can be found. It will undoubtedly be a sad state of affairs if they shall feel constrained to select fools in preference to able men, but really we are afraid this will be the end of it. There are in the present Parliament three clever men, but it would be well for the country, if not for themselves, if their places had been filled by noodles.- One of these is Mr George Hutchison. He is undoubtedly a man of great ability, a splendid speaker, and a highly cultured man, but he apparently lacks every other essential attribute. He is devoid of loyalty to party, insensible to the good opinion of the public, and unscrupulous in the means he takes to secure his own ends. He went into Parliament in 1877, and soon came to the front, his great masterstroke being the charges he made against the Atkinson Government in connection with the Bank of New Zealand. There can be no doubt that he shook the Atkinsonians from the hairs of their head to the toes of their feet by these charges ; it is also true that he was never answered, and the fact that the Government burked inquiry is prima facia evidence of their guilt. Mr Hutchison became a hero, and he was looked upon as a man of promise, who would one day, in all probability, rule the destinies of the nation; but those who knew him intimately shrugged their shoulders significantly and said “Wait a bit.’* We have not had long to wait. Mr Hutchison was elected under the segis of the present Premier, who did all in his power to secure his election, but he neglected one important matter—he did not include Mr George Hutchison in the Ministry. That spoiled all, and now Mr George Hutchison has flung off the cloak of the candid friend, which he wore during the most part of the late session, and appears as the bitterest enemy of the present Government. Exactly by a similar line of conduct Mr Wakefield ruined what might have been a brilliant career, and where is he to-day ? He is, we believe, somewhere in England, but his life is a blank. Without the slightest doubt Mr Hutchison will come to a similar end. If he succeeds in getting the present Government out of office it is not likely that he will be taken into any Cabinet formed by the Opposition, and so he will be out at heels and toes. Then there' is Mr George Fisher. He was elected as a supporter of Sir Julius Vogel, but because he was not included in the Cabinet he became his most violent opponent, and by the next shuffle of the cards he joined the , Atkinson Government. His term of office was short. He was kicked out by Sir Harry Atkinson for having been guilty of corrupt practices as a Minister. He immediately wont over to the Opposition, but when the present Government did not give hW a billet he wrote to a Wellington paper stating that he would make them “ expiate the insult they had given him,” and now he is one of their bitterest enemies. Then there is Mr Fish, of Dunedin. He was elected as an opponent of Sir Harry Atkinson, but supported him most loyally until just before the last election, when he turned round and joined the other two gentlemen above named in heaping abuse on the leaders ha had followed during the previous ihj ee jfoSsiirk i« “ e?leo ‘ii and now he is another bitter enemy the present Government. Of the three of these Mr George Hutchison is the ablest man, but he is also the higges fool. He ought to see that it was impossible for the Premier to include him in the Ministry. Both live in the town of Wanganui, and it would not do to give two Ministers to one town. It he had waited his time would come. As for Messrs Fisher and Fish, no Premier could possibly think of includmg them in any Cabinet. That is out of the question. Both are able men, but a little more than ability is necessary. We need not specify what that little may be, bat at any rate no Government could cany either of the two gentlemen on it» back

as Ministers. The country wauld revolt at the idea, and consequently so long as they remain in Parliament they must be a thorn in the side of the party in power. The simple lesson to be learned from all this is that it is dangerous to return men of this character to Parliament, and electors must henceforward decide whether it is not better to send noodles than the likes of them. ' It is absolutely necessary that we should have a Government of some kind, but men of the stamp above referred to would render Government absolutely impossible if they were numerous enough. Their aim is to destroy, not to construct, and consequently to tolerate their conduct can only result in political anarchy. We have now two well defined parties and we must made up our mind as to which party we shall follow. Having accepted a party our course henceforward is clear. We must elect a member of that party without any further consideration. This is the way elections are conducted in the Old Country, and until we adopt similar tactics we shall have Fishers, and Fishes, and Hutchisons doing mischief instead of good in Parliament.