THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, AUGUST 27, 1892. THE SPEAKER.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2391, 27 August 1892, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. SATURDAY, AUGUST 27, 1892. THE SPEAKER.

The Timaru Herald must have whined a couple of days ago when it had to publish what practically proved that it had stated what was the very reverse of the truth. This was a letter above the signature of Mr Hall-Jones. The Herald of course cannot see anything good in the present administration, and whenever it can get any opportunity of saying an iliiiajuved thing about the Government it never UtS it pass. The Herald fmds it dificult to' pick holes in the Government, for to tell the truth there are not many to pick, and so it has very often to invent faults. -Being hard up for wrtcflthing to say, it vent on to abuse the —Major Steward—who belongs to the Liberal party, and has been placed in his present position by this Government. Of course the blow wa* intended for the Government as well as i for Major Steward. Mr Hall-Jones's letter 'shows that the Speaker had nothing to do with the matter for which he was abused; the occurrence took place in Committee, and it was i the Chairman of Committees who presided on that occasion. Really the Herald ought to know better than fall into the error that the presides at meetings of the Committee,! No doubt it did, and knew very well that its attack on Major Steward was unfair and unjust, aafl that the charges were false, ' With regard to Major Steward, we find that he is coming in for a good deal of abuse from ike. Conservative Press, and that he is very frequently treated most unfairly. It is admitted on all *idcs that Major Steward is most fair in ins <i&.cssfo/>s in the chair, but ho lias a most diSlic^Jt, House to manage. Finding themselves in the unusual position of powerlessness the Conservatives show a .'great (leal of bad temper, they say very nasty things, and they provoke others to do ; the same, with the result that it is extremely difficult to maintain order. This is what is at the bottom of it all, and hence the attack on Major Steward. In all his rulings so far it has turned out that he was perfectly right, and the only fault to find with him is that he is too easy, and too indulgent, but no one accuses him of leaning to .one party more than another. At auy rate we think the attacks on him most unjust and unfair, for we believe that few men in the House could fill the position so satis. factory as he <loes.