Sir George Grrey before the Thames Electors.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3471, 9 February 1880, Page 2

Sir George Grrey before the Thames Electors.

Tho announcement that Sir George Grey was to address the electors on Saturday evening was sufficient to draw a large crowd to the Theatre Eoyal. The number present has been variously estimated at 1500 to 2000. On the stage were seated the members of the Liberal Association, distinguished by blue ribbons in the button-hole, together with a number of the leading friends and supporters of the hon. member for Thames. Sir George Grey's appearance on the stage was the signal for loud and prolonged cheering.

On the motion of Mr Wood, seconded by Mr Horn, the Mayor took the Chair.

The Chairman after a few introductory remarks said that before Sir G. Grey went on with his speech Mr Carpenter, President of the Liberal Association, desired to say a few words.

Mr Carpenter then came forward, and, on behalf of the Liberal Association, presented to Sir G. Grey the follovring address:—•

To Sir Gbovge Grey, KC.B. .—Sir,—On behalf of the Thames Liberal Association, we hay« aiuch pleasure iv giving you a hearty welcome. On tho occsision of your last visit you held the honourable position of Premier of New Zealand, and although you have ceased to hold office, you are noue tho less esteemed by u% and wo believe by the miijority of t'le colony We thank you sincerely for your exertions s»s one of the members'of Parliament for this constituency, und hope we miuiy lofcg retain you as our friend and Representative—(sinned) Wm. Cahpenter, President.; Jas. S. Small, VicePresident ; Henby. J. Lee, Secretary.— Thames, 7th February, 1880.

Sir George Grey briefly requested Mr Carpenter to thank the Liberal Association for their kind wishes. Turning to the electors, Sir Geo. Greysaid :—He now had the pleasure of addressing a portion of what the English papers styled " the mob of New Zealand," (laughter and applause). A great many of the ministerial journals of Great Britain had accused him of placing himself in the hands of the New Zealand mob, and attributed his downfall to this circumstance which they asserted was fortunate. He believed there were two kinds of mobs ; the first which was a long suffering and patient mob, a number of people suffering from unequal laws, but who generally succeeded in getting them remedied. This mob was made up of people who had made Great Britian what it is. And there was what is called the swell mob, who do their utmost to lire on their fellow-men. He would rather belong to the first mob than the second, and he thought he had not been led by the mob, but that he had endeavored to lead the people of New Zealand to that which was right and good. They had followed him, and ifc could not be said he had placed himself in their hands. (Applause.) Me said this because a great deal of attention was being paid to what was going on in New Zealand by the people of Great Britain, the fact being that this attention would not be paid if it was not believed that it was a battle of right against wrong. They dreaded the opinions arising in New Zealand wouldspread to Great Britain, and the people would strive to obtain rights that they were determined to be possession of in New Zealand. They, therefore, had recourse to the powerful implement of ridicule, and availing themselves of it, said that there was a great-mob in New Zealand and that he had placed himself in the hands of that mob. .-This, however, could not even make him angry. They knewjthat men were only men, they should be gratified at what was said, as it showed their actions were attracting attention, and certain success would follow their efforts. He hoped they understood their respective positions. He would now turn to other matters. First, he would tell them that before he came down he saw Mr Sheeban, and did his best to get him to accompany him here, but he had been unable to complete his business arrangements, Some days ago Mr Sheeban advised him not to go to the Thames just then-; he said the speaker was very unpopular in certain parts of New Zealand, and that every word he uttered to his constituents would be severely criticised, and his object was to wait till alter tliese criticisms and then come down and answer them. They were unfortunately deprived of his company. He had told Mr Sheehan that if they both went down the criticisms would not hurt them much, and just before the^ session they could both go down again and answer them. (Cheers.) He agreed this was the wisest course, and would have been present could ho have released himself from his business engagements. He would now speak to them on local affairs, which he would endeavor to take in the order mentioned by them. The first thing he would mention was " Lands for the people of the Thames." They should understand each other on this point, and he thought when he had finished that it would be admitted that a great deal had been done in this direction. After ordering certain blocks to be purchased, the Premier is cramped, and the Minister of Lands hands the purchases oyer to the Waste Lauds Board—an institution; peculiar to New Zealand, and unknown^ in tiny other country in the' world. These boards were introduced by tb,e party calling themselves the Liberal party—the party npw in power. The .Board were nominated by ministers, and empowered to sell la-nd how they liked. If he had the power no land would be put up tp auction until the wants of the peoplehad been satisfiedj on the Homestead or Deferred Payment Systems. They might say, why not alter the law ? but it must be remembered that when his ministry went into offico, they found an assembly elected to support a different party. They never possessed the strength as did au .English Ministry when the party voted as one man, and they were not allowed to appeal to the country. But he was sure if they considered the tracts of land purchased during their term of of^cice they would say they had dove all they possibly could. For years previous to their accesion to office they had been promised a harbor, when they pame in they had the happiness of handing pyer to the Thames a large endowment in. the shape of the foreshore, and in introducing into the country % great marjne engineer who had prepared plans, and in a few years a good harbor would be in existence.. They next devoted their attention to a railway for the Thames. He had no hesitation in saying that once they had communication not only with the tracts already settled,

but also with the virgin land wliich lay beyond, the Thames would advance to a pitch of prosperity never previously contemplated. (Applause.) They had been '' told that Government did uol intend to complete the railway, but let them not believe these croakers. He had not the least doubt but that it would bo completed; indeed, no Government would venture to refuse it. The House had twice voted the money for its construction, and the present temporary delay would never prevent its completion. That day they had interviewed one of the members of the present Ministry, and from what he said the real difficulty appeared lo be that there was a desire not lo continue the line till all the land had been acquired, and he gave as an example that when a railway was commenced before the acquirement of the land Government were continually liable to actions for compensation, and from the tendency of juries to pity inJividuals, verdicts of £300 and £400—he thought these were the sums meniioned —were frequently given against the Government. He didn't agree with this policy. The In w ! said they were to have the railway, and the defined the rights of the Government and of individuals, and the Government should not look for rights they did not possess. They should go on with the railway, and the law would protect them. £35,000 had been voted for works at this end, and if not expended before the end of next month, the vote would lapse. He said that no obstinate land owner should be allowed to be the cause of delay which would produce many disastrous results. The contractor would be ruined as he would have to sell his plant at great loss, whereas if the work went on he could obtain another section, or sell the plant to some one else. He said that Government are bound to spend the money as Parliament ordered, and he believed that Government would soon be of this opinion also. He need not dilate on the advantages of a railway to them. Several parts of New Zealand were jealous at the Thames getting a railway, as they thought it would inflict an injury on them. This was not the case, as the prosperity of one part of the colony was found to be advantageously felt throughout. He never doubted but they would get their railway. He told them that it would be commenced; and now he told, them it would go on ; and as had his first prediction proved true, so would hisi; second. (Cheers.) He had done his best to get them a High School, and he hoped they would push it on and make it the success it should be. He owed them all explanation upon one point. They were good enough to return him as their representative, (" And will again." Cheers.) and he was most grateful to them for what they had done. It was with a real desire to further their interests that he bad allowed himself to be nominated for Christchurch, and with nodesire toleaveor neglect them. He was elected at the head of the poll, but the validity of his election was questioned, and the whole matter was dealt with not iv conformity with the law either of Great Britain or New Zealand. It was referred to a committee and made a party question of to get rid of himself, and to appoint a party man in his stead. Although it injured his party it did not injure himself, as it left him in the hands of his friends. But it did this harm. The English law enunciated this principle, that the next largest number of votes did not take the seat except under certain conditions, as the votes of men were not to hS thrown away unless it was proved that they were aware that the man they had voted for was not'qualified to sit. They should have had a new election, and according to law he should have been permitted to sit. It was a cruel thing to force upon the electors of Christchurch a man they had rejected. As they all knew he made an effort to get the decision set aside, but was unsuccessful. A similar thing happened in the House of Commons, and he intended to bring the matter up again. They had as much interest in the matter as the people of Christchurch. It a Committee of the House have the power of forcing a representative on a constituency it was a monstrous abuse. Now there - was a rumor current that he was an irritable, disappointed, disgusted man, and had retired in a dudgeon to his island home, had determined to abandon the colony, and had made arrangements to return to England. He believed that everyone , that was doing what they were doing were assisting in an enviable and heroic work, and he would never leave them—his health permitting—until they had free democratic institutions throughout the land. (At this point the whole audience rose, and a loud, prolonged round of applause shook the building.) They had such a constitution here once, but ; the party now in power swept it away. He would stop here till they had equal institutions. (Cheers.) He would have an enormous majority of the people of New Zealand on his side, and would triumph in the end. Let not their minds be disturbed. Rely upon it i Key had bound themselves together by chains of gratitude. (Applause). Playing cleared up these matters, he would come to the most important point of last session—the downfall of the Ministry, and his abandonment of the leadership of the party. It was impossible to tell the motives of all men—he could only tell the salient points, and he believed that when he was done they { would believe his eoncliisionJTwere correct. Soon after the session began he found | that there was a decided intention on the j part of speculators in'Otago to get the Government to purchase certain district railways. The leaders of this movement had purchased large estates which they expected to dispose of to English farmers at the enormous profit, and it was resolved to construct railways under the District Bailways Act through the land, so as to considerably enhance its value. The work was commenced, and it proved to.be a more expensive undertaking than they had supposed, and he was called upon to provide £400,000 to purchase the railways. He pould not comply with, the demand in justicVto the rest of the colony. Some members were in favor of it, and from that moment he knew that his fate was sealed. There was a peculiarity in the laws of New Zealand admirable in its curiosiiy. If a party is in power and they don'f; like a weuiber they put him into the Legislative Council, and a peer can resign and get elected to the Lower House for a rotten i^orough. As lpng as the ruling party in (threat Britain are hpsfile to the view of the land question taken up in New Zealand, their representative in this country must help to carry .out their views," lie saw there was very little hope for himself. He tried to prevent Hall from leaving the Council, but could not, and fofore long ho was ousted <

by a majority of one. Hall formed a ministry, and a few days after this it was said to him : "We can turn out the Ministry if you like. Jf you will give up the leadership ami agree not to be a minister we will g.-t five or six votes from Otago and Southland." He took an evening to consider the proposal, thinking of the results that would follow, and agreed to resign, and Mr Mncandrew was appointed to lead the Opposition. When he had given up the leadership he asked, "Where are the six votes from Otago ?" (The Eats !).'=• No, the vats were alt rights then. They threw us over one vote, and he was sorry they got it. Then followed the deadlock, and soon after he heard that there was discontent amongst bis friends, and that four Auckland members had left the party. He assured his informers that it was not true, but the next day it transpired that the four had gone over, and the Government were quite ready to go on with the vote of no confidence. He was not going to pass judgment on these men, but he thought they did not doit in the proper way. He thought nothing could justify them. "Oh," it was said, "they did it to get money for roads and bridges in the north." For a few thousands they joined the Government, a step which did not compensate for the £300,000 extra Customs duty which would come out of the pockets of the poor man, while the rich man paid no more. He thought it was a fatal mistake of judgment, and it completely disorganised the party. (How much did Swanson get for his vote ?) He would not attribute motives. He did not think any justification he had heard of their conduct was complete. One of the pleas was that unless the deadlock came to an end the contractors would be ruined. He considered private interviews between members and Ministers most reprehen sible. They should not go privately asking as a favor that contractors' bills be paid, but should demand it as a right, and if the claims were just they would be paid. Until such a rule was made, there would, be no real purity of public life. Shortly before the end of the session Government brought forward the district railways question. He fought bard against the proposal to give the ££00,000, and after great difficulty got it reduced to £60,000, but he would always lament that they got anything. When the political history of New.> Zealand cjHttfV't'G,, be written this .would be one s flf^,' blackest pages. The first thing\Gfcwil!nent did was to increase the taxation'" by £300,000—a weight which rendered a large family to a poor man a burden. He believed it to be the most retrograde step in the history of the colony. Who believed that the £60,000 would be spent in Auckland, but the £300,000 was a real thing. A tax on property was proposed, but that was deferred for some months. The Land Tax put on by his Government touched the " unearned increment "—a tax which said that land bought for speculative purposes was increased in value with the increase of population, and should be taxed. From England.and America he had received letters expressing admiration at the tax, but the present Ministry spared the rich and made the poor man pay. Industry was' Used* and not indolence. (The speaker instanced the unfair working of the Property Tax.) He asserted that the statement that the deficiency was £800,G00, was a gross exaggeration, as he was satisfied at the outside it was not more than £550,000. The sole failure was in land sales, which, however, would -produce more, as the population increased. His Ministry "had proposed to raise the money by an income tax, and by increasing the land tax to Id per £. The question of subsidies was then referred to. He did not think the present system a good method of helping people to help themselves, suggesting that the residue of the general revenue should be fairly divided on the population basis. The speaker then referred to the question of plural voting, speaking strongly against it. The proper remedy was to be found in federation of some kind. : In that only was to be gained a training in political knowledge. He referred to the necessity of watching the educational institutions of the colony. Their friends in England said that democracy has died in New Zealand, and owing to his dejection it would not be heard of again. [Rut- the people here were determined to;have a say in the Government of the cbuntryy and would never be satisfied, with a a? iiominal freedom; this they could never obtain till they had representation on the population basis. Liberal measures were of no use till they had proper representation. He shewed the effect of the land laws of Great Britain. They were determined there should be small estates in New Zealand. He believed the occurrences of last session would be no permanent hindrance to this as he was now unfettered by colleagues, and could take a fair, free, and bold course in seeing that right was done. He was sure they would not falter in the course they were pursuing, and they might rest assured that he would adhere to those principles as long as life lasted. (Loud and prolonged applause). In reply to loud calls Mr W. J. Speight, M.H.E., came forward and said that after listening to the eloquence from the lips of Sir George they would agree in saying that any young man entering on public life might deem himself to have reached the height of ambition in being permitted to serve under such a leader. He had no idea of addressing them till called as he owed an address to his own constituents first, though to the Thames people he would say the district had no warmer friend in the House than himself. As a young man sitting for the first time in the House of Eepresentatives, he had looked carefully around him at the men assembled there from all parts of the colony with the hope of finding a fit model on which to mould his future public actions. But the only result he could arrive at was that among the self-seeking and corruption which to a large extent governed the actions of many men, th.erp their representative Btood forth, Saul-like, head and shoulders above his fellows in the purity of his action, the honesty in bis desire to serve the country, and the irreproachable nature of his motives. Under such circumstances, to whom could he more fittingly look as a proper and model leader. Nowadays it had become fashionable for mobs, swellish and otherwise, to deride and affect to treat with contempt, the principles contended for by Sir Georgecontended for, too, not only-be fore large and sympathetic audiences such as this, but on the floor of the House in the face of dastardly and unrelenting opposition. Jt is, therefoie, consolatory to know that whatever course others may pursue the young blood of New Zealand recognise true worth when they see it, acknowledge a benefactor in every man who comes

forward to rectify their grievances, and are prepared to follow him even as he wasi whenever he chooses to lead for the furtherance of the true principles on which should be founded the Government of the. colony. The dastardly attacks on Sir George Grey endeared him more and more to their hearts, and strengthened their desire to follow and support him in the thickest of tho fight. (Cheers.) After a question re Sir George Grey's whereabouts in February 1845, to which he replied at Ruapekapeka, Dr Kilgour moved a vote of thauksand confidence in Sir George Grey, which being seconded by Mr McCullough was carried amidst vociferous cheering. After some remarks by Mr Donovan, laudatory of Sir Geo. Grey and his prin« cipal supporters, > Sir George Grey came forward and after returning thanks for the good will, moved a vote of thanks to the Mayor which was heartly given. - Three h-arty rounds were given for Sir George Grey, and three groans for the " Eats," and the large assemblage quietly dispersed. .:.'■•