The Coming Election.

Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3318, 11 August 1879, Page 2

The Coming Election.

PUBLIC MEETING. !

A public meeting of the friends and supporters of Sir George Grey and the Hod. J. Sheehan, convened by!Mr L. Ehrenfried, ■ was held' at' the Theatre Royal on Saturday evening. There were about 1100 persons present; .and. on the stage were a number of leading- citizens. Mr A. Bruce moved and Mr A. Price seconded that Mr L. Ehrenfried take the Chair. This was carried, and the Chairman said he would read the) advertisement [A.,voice: ".W.hich:, bne?'*— Another voice : " Shut up."] [calling the meeting. He expressed gratification at the large assemblage. Referring to the t rumor that Ijad been circulated that Sir George Grey intended to ,stand for Christchurch he said he was in a position to contradict, on ,the. .authority* of (*' telegram from His Worship the Mayor. He then <ca]led 9a >Mr lA^am porter to? move the first resolution*. j's Mr Porter on. coming forward,-was received' 1 with loud' applause. He scid there mast be many''shades of opinion \ip >a, large meeting like this,' but he was sure all present would agree with the resolution he was about to propose; He would read it to them :^M;That in the opinion <}f this meeting the thanks 1 of the inhabitants of the Electoral District of the LTh'ames are due to the Hbn: SijrGeprge Grey, and the Hon. John Sheehan,'and; the other mem* bers of the Ministry, for starting the Thames and Waikato railway, it having been done in accordance with the law of the colony, not as a political job, as several members of tho Opposition have asserted, but as a just right and as pi small share of the public) nipijeys so lone withheld from this district." (Applause.) Previous to the Grey administrationcoming into power, £13,000,000 had been spent on public works, and of that, the Thames had had expended the munificent sum of £75 2s 6d. £8,000,000 had been spent on railways, and they all know how much the Thames had got ofi that. £4,000,000 had gone for roads and public buildings, and the Thames share of that was,' as he had;already stated* £?5 J2s< 6d. Indirectly they had had a share of the sum spent on immigration. He referred to the odium cast on Sir George, Grey for his action in respect to the "Thames and Waikato Railway job/ and said it was nothing but right to look at some; of the jobs of their predecessors. "The Taranaki Railway, costing £137,000, gave a loss of. 23 per cent. The Blenheim- - Picton 'line- cost £162,000; Patid' the expenses exceeded receipts 2 per Cent/ The speaker gave several other instances of unremunerative railways constructed by

the late administration. He quoted other figures to show how unfairly the Thames had been treated in the matter of publio works. The money expended in the colony would give an average of £40 per head, while that spent on the Thames (including the water rase) was only about £5 per head. He referred to the meeting held in Auckland at which it was decided to construct the railway by company, and said that the Bill prepared had been read by nearly all members of the House, ffl1 4!*ey. could ,^oyiujfc,, ; hajg J^naware , that the Thames people wanted the line made from Hamilton to Grahamstown.

Mr Greenville seconded

Mr Gar pen ter thong ht, r before -?, * th»< motion was put, that the meeting should give aa expression of opinion [on the shabby manner Sir George Grey had been treated, by the Opposition on the matter of the railway. In the course! of his remarks ho asserted emphatically jthat the geptlemeii wKo said iheyjilid not ;know it was intended to make the line \o Granamstbwh, simply lied.' (Loud cheers.) ; The resolution was put and ■ carried; most enthusiastically^ ) )■ Dr Kilgour moved— 1' That thjs meeting hails with the utmost Batisf|ction the intelligence that Sir George Grey land the Hon.Jho.Sheehan hire agreed iomWow themselTei to be nominjiited as.candidates to represent this district' in the forthcoming Parliament, and pledges itself to use every* endeavor to secure their return —convinced, that the; would faithfully guard its interests and reflect credit UpQjt :the colony." (Cheers'.) IHe Ispoke to some length on the action of the Government with respect to the railway and opening of lands for the people. Iv conclusion he said the presentseemed to him a favorable opportunity to Bpeak r? onjft subject he had briefly alluded,, to on a previous occasion. He; referred' to the separation of the two j > islands. He believed that the only relief from the fetters that now bound us was separation. The reason was obviom.* In> the South t|»e conditions for settlement were more faVor-* able, and having a larger population than the North they had a larger representation —-14' members more. This was! a state of things that could only be successfully treated by' separation, *as * th* couldnotbesettled as long aafvthey ; wprej in minority, ; (Loud cheers.) j ' ' yjMt) oafpenter, in. seeondiiigfthe ji?#fcio)pt spoke strongly of Mr Sheehan's integrity and desire to aid the Thames. ! . To zw,

Amidst great confusion Mr Stephenson moved as an amendment "That this meeting i* of opinion that anyl action taken at the present time is entirely premature."' He spoke'to his iniendment, but the noise was:so,great it wHY! impossible to hear what he said. Mr jfc. Simp seconded.,,; The resolution was thenpputt t and carried ■bj?.an,ojreMwhelming majority. ' Mr Brasaiey move^i— M TKat"thisi meeting form itself f into'committees for the purpose of carryiag out the foregoing resolution's; witli power to add to tt*|r;> number."'"-^ n^r^-,,^) V,-<?. -• j «-■.■■; ••■■rjli^^rii^eteftii'dba?.'. 155; 1;'' 1'1, 1 \ ■ ' -Mr Gl ©enby'said;;tt|e ij reason) of Mr Stephensou's pppo.sitidn' 'to ,^h'e^ 1 iNatire Miniiter^as that' because lie 'was \ mixed up in some not very straight land transactions in the. Upper -Thames, ?and Mr j Sheehan, had refused to help him out. i (Confusion.) -. rt | Mr Stephenson (amidst 'a itorm of \ groans and hisses) said he'had!known Mr i Sheehan for 17 years, and had; never I known him able to dd anything straight I The resolution was then put and carried i unanimously, and the proceedings .te?:' minated with a, vote of > thanks to tHe Chairman.