Evening Sitting

Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3375, 16 October 1879, Page 2

Evening Sitting

The House resumed at 7.30.

Mr Macandrew moved the adjournment of the House. He said that the proposal that he made, for going on -with the business not having been assented to he had no other course left to him.

Mr Hall appealed to tho House to allow the private business on the order paper to be gone on with. Ho hoped the deter* mination to obstruct the business to the extent of keeping back that business would not bo persisted in.

Sir George Grey said that he stood there an outcast amongst men, he was therefore in the position of an independent member, pure and simple, he was in a position to give a disinterested opinion. He denied that any time had been lost, the time spent was of the utmost importance to the colony. 'It now stood 50 years in advance of what it was at the beginning of the session, members on both sides of the House, men were row committed to the passing of those liberal measures he had so long advocated. Those who once opposed him, would now be bound to go into the same lobbies with with him; he would now drag them along with him at his chariot wheels. It was the duty of all now to insist upon the Governor removing these gentlemen from the Government benches. He had been told that so long as he remained a leader of his partyf members would not Vote for these Liberal measures and he bowed to that opinion and retired from the position. It was the duty of the Government to follow that example and to retire when they found that they were obstructing the passing of the measures referred to, and their not haying-done so simply confirmed the opinion he had formed that their principal object was to serve the purpose of a landed aristocracy. The member at the head of Government should not hare been allowed to resign his place in the Upper House and the Governor in allowing his resignation had made himself (the Governor) a partisan, in fact ho (Mr Hal!) simply held his seat there as a representative of the Governor. The Government having been constituted in that way it was the duty of the House to oust them from their benches. He would say that they would not; represent the country and they were not to be allowed to hold their seats. An address should be moved to the Governor himself to dismiss them. He (Mr Hall) was the representative ■ of the great laud ring of Canterbury, and the member called to the Legislative Council held a similar position with respect to the Forth Island. If then the great Liberal cause was to be trampled upon it was necessary that such a combination should not be allowed to control the administration of affairs. Some people had said he set class against class ; it was these gentlemen who had created the class distinction, and now when he wanted to destroy it tho cry was set up class against class. He was now one of the rank and file of the party, and he would stand by Macaudrew in the determination he had come to allow no business to be done until this Government was ousted from office. They ought to make a stand against the other chamber's interference in Bending down a man to them to be their Prime Minister. The election of such a one ought to remain solely in their hands. He had heard all manner of rumours, and thought some of them were not without foundation. He had heard it said that if an Imprest Supply Bill was passed a dissolution would be granted tomorrow. They too would take good care to prevent that. Ho would not. trust them with the money.' They had the noses

of the Government party to grindstone, and they would take good care to keep them tho re.

Me Itolleaton said there was a time when ho thought that there wag the ring of honesty in the toice of Sir George Grey, but he felt sure that if the House thought with him, tbat opinion was amistake. Me felt sure the House was tired of listening to the.caut of the previous speaker. He said he had threatened them with an address to the Governor for their removal. They would not do as he had done, drag the, Governor, or an absent man, to the floor of the House for the purpose of, odium; bat when they were called upon constitutionally to abdicate their seats they would do bo. Sir G. Grey had in reality degraded the wholo of their party system during the last two years : he had brought' constitutional Government into more disrepute than il was possible ever to have thought of. The previous speaker bad told them that a reconstruction cf the Government ought to have taken place on the late want of confidence motion, but what were the facts of the case. In the coune of the debitte they were told that no coalition or reconstruction could be listened to, and tho division on that motion took place with a full knowledge of that fact, and to day the laLeJPreniier came there and stntod that they were not the true representatives of the people. Now what were the facts of the caso: Wheu he was in Canterbury he gave him an opportunity for impeaching him before the constituencies. He attended one of the meet* ings held by Sir G. Grey in. Canterbury at which, instead'of impeaching hint, he told the meeting that he (Rolieston) was a mau for whom he had great respect, and he only wished to have him voting with him on his side of the House. Now he was prepared to vote with htm for his measures, andjwhat was the result, he was tact with greatest possible odium, he (Sir G. Grey) could not heap upon him. They had been told the Governor did wrong' iv accepting the resignation of the Premier as a member of the Upper House. iVow what were the facts of case, years ago when Sir George Grey was Governor of New Zealand, Mr Hau then a member of the Upper House resigned and he (Sir G. Grey) accepted his resignation. • '

Sir G, Grey said ho wished to' explain that on that occasion he hud do'idea that he was going to contest a seat in the Assembly. Mr Hall had laid that one month before he sent in hit resignation he had been addressing a constituency for a seat in the Assembly. ' ' <''.'':''. Mr iiolleston then went on to review the statements made by Sir George Grey when in Canterbury, and went on to «ay after these facts who could possibly respect a man who could thus mutilate and distort the true facts of the caie. He had been told something about a dissolution having been provided for/ it was the first he had heard of it. The Government benches were ho easy, seats. The state of the public exchequer was something alarming, and he could tell. them that before long that would become. the burning question of the day, tnd it would be more severely felt when many other questions now before the Howse were entirely forgotten. The conduct of the Opposition had been most discreditable, before they had got on fie benches they had a rote of want of confidence levelled at them; they would not stick to office, nor would they remain a moment longer than the House had an,opportunity for passing an impartial judgment upon them.

Mr Reid spoke in support of the course pursued by the Opposition, and argued that it was most unreasonable that they. should bo aaked to remain another week before they were allowed to bring on their want of confidence motion. It was, he said, the duty of. every West Coast constituency such as he represented, to support a Gorernment that had done so'much good to the district. He regretted: Mr .Masters' defection, and concluded by ex* pressing his strong conviction of the propriety of the course adopted by the Opposition.

Col. Trimble said they had been told by previous speakers that Sir George Grey was a great statesman of world wide renown. The fact waa there were two Sir George Grejs, and he had evidently, confounded the one with the other. Sir G. Grey in that House was a man comparatively speaking, unknown so far at world wide fame was concerned; in fact it was the reputation of the other Sir G. Grey- who had thus been confounded with. that of the late Premier. Sir G. Grey had spoken in slighting terms of Upper House, the fact was that no one had called more men to that House than Sir G. Grey himself, and out of respect to those very men whom he had created Legislative Councillors he ought to hare refruned from speaking in tbe way he did. The speaker also reprobated the allusions made to the Governor, adding that these quarrels with a Governor vu an old practice on the part of Sir George, Grey, and could only be accounted for on the plea thai; he desired to be Governor himself. He cited the practice of the Imperial Parliament to prove it, was not necessary to have a clear majority before bringing down their (policy. He counselled the Gorernment to.maintain the stand it had taken. .:

Mr Masters said that hit name wai dragged into the debate, and allegations were made that he had not fulfilled nil hustings pledges. He quoted from a paper of the district to which he belonged to prove that (hat opinion was not shared in by his constituents.

Mr Hursthonse spoke in favor of the course taken by the Government. The socalled Liberal measures of the iatePrsv^ mier were sicaply clap-trap. What the country demanded was a liberal land law, and he (Sir George) had given it a Triennial Parliament Sill—a thing it never asked for. The member for Hokitika had said that the late Government had done so much for the West Coast. The fact, however, was significant that the plaet ' was being deserted because no provision existed for settling residents on the lands. . Sir George Gruy had told them that this House should be the governing body of the colony. Now, the fact was that it was no such gcverning body, unless when Sir George Grey was Premier. During that period ho (Sir G. Grey) constituted himself the sole governing body, and in support of that, he instanced the Thames* Waikato. railway and other jobs under* taken in defiaoco of tho House. He thoroughly approved of the action of the Government, and hoped they would main* tain tho position they had taken. Immediately on the re-assembling of the House after the evening adjournment, the motion for adjournment was put and carried on the voices. The House then adjourned, at eleven o'clock.