THE DEADLOCK.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 2, Issue 299, 25 October 1879, Page 2

THE DEADLOCK.

To tk Editor of ih; Wai'iahaafa Dii/v. Sib,—The present oppos'tinn, composed of Greyites. or the so-calle 1 G eit Liberal Party, areuh true'in < Iho business of the country and refine to grant supplies, in order that Mr Hall and his government may be prevented from bringing forward those reforms demanded by the people which the former chum as exclusively their own. The Ministry, mi the other hand, are desirous of proceeding at once with the public business; they have on their order paper all those measures of reform, framed in the mo it liberal manner, but. they decline to incur the danger of seeing them placed in the hands of men who have been condemned by two Parliaments in succession fur gross incompetence and maladministration," and the exposure of whose reck ess and unscrupulous manipuhitbn of our finances has thoroughly star;led the country. Thus matters remain at lojmerheids, ami as the only constitutional so'uti.m uf the difficulty, we are threatened with all the excitement and expense of another general election. It occurs to me, however, that a more simple and partialis as eiliciuot a mode of testing the feeliiuof the electors might be arrived it. The question is whether the present Mnistry should be allowed a fair trial, (as wis dem Hided and grained to Sir G. Grey in 1877) and he entrusted with the prosecution of the liberal reforms and reorganisation of our finances, etc., in preference to the late corrupt and hypocritical Government. The constituencies should be asked to give their opinions pubiicly and formally, at monster meeting called for that pu pose, and their represHiitiiii<esivqnrsit'd to comply with the expressed wirti-.s of such meetings. It w,»,dd be an opportunity also for the people to record a strong protest against the piosiitntioii, for jarty pmposes or ut iscvnpiiUs am l itinn, of our -epresentanve system, by defeated Ministries bringing forward no confidence motions against ihcir successors, on the eve of taking oaice or before the country has an opportunity of judging either the policy or administration capacities of the new Government. I have, itc, X, X,

EXTRA REPRESEtfrmON FOR THfi WAIIURAPA. To the Editor of the Wauaeapa Daily. Sir- There is a feeling here that there should he an alteration in the number of representatives sent to Parliament by the Wairarapa district. The idea is that there should be a third member for the country to the eastward of the thickly settled districts of the Wairarapa, or I may say more particularly the East Coast. The settlers residing within this portion of the Wellington Provincial District have great cause to wish some change. No part of the Cohu'y has been move neglected. The only remedy for this evil seems in having a lepreseiiliilive of our own, and one whose interests are identical with ours, and whose proclivities will not draw him to getting everything for the townships and their imniedi.ite siiriruiidings. A.< matters stand now, the out districts have very little power to influence the elections. Tiie towns, on the other hand, from their number of inhabitants, naturally have a preponderance of power, the sequence to which is that the representatives elected (human nature being but frail) vote the way that will please those in whose power they will be when seeking re-election, i. e., the centres of population get the loaves, while the out districts are left in the cold. I Anyone reading the election notices for meetings of constituents must have come to the conclusion that the Eist Coast district was of little or no importance at election time. With the exception of Mr Beetham, the candidates quite ignored us. I cannot help feeling that if constituencies are neglected and slighted durin" election tune (when promises and fair words are used freely), their case will be pitiful indeed when gentlemen seeking political honors will have gained their seats, Surely the inlulntants of this large district have put up with this state of affairs long enough, and, now that there is a chance of the representation of the colony being readjusted, they should demand s.nne consideration in the nutter. Population, taken as a basis for representation, can gi e no fair play to the scattered, struggling settlers. It is fraught will) all kinds of danger political to the'in. No doubt it, is a fine idea for Sir George Grey, and it is own brother to manhood

suffrage, and goes dosvy readily with the mob, to whom at nil times he U willing to pander and fawn to gain Ins own autocratic and Utopian end?, Is it a liberal measure to give power into the hands of one or two classes of a community and not to the whole alike? Too far east is west, and too far liberal may also be illiberal. It can be no liberal measure to give representation on a basis of population ; it simply gives the dwellers in towns the power, to the detriment of the out settlers. |& In this question the feeling of town vj* country plays a somewhat prominent part. But it is an item that should not exist at all, for the one is dependent on the other to a great degree. It may even be said that the towns could not exist without the back country. It is a common saying " that such-and-such a country will go ahead; look at the country surrounding it," By out districts having their fair share of public money spent in opening them up, the towns must of necessity advance in prosperity. People arejnv* duced to settle on the land, who in 'SHf buy their stores from the townships, and after a while produce themselves a quantity of the necessaries of life at a cheap rate that the inhabitants could not exist without. If the townspeople would only look at the question in a truly liberal or even selfish light, they would find it would tend to their advantage to see justice done to the pioneers of colonization, the back settlers. Help us to get roads and you will soon see sheep get less, and the much talked of, written about, and hoped for small farmers in the place thereof, either as freeholders or tenants. Good roads aro an essential element to the success of any agricultural industry. Again, the railways are expected to pay, and how can this happen except by opening the country and giving producers a chance to get with ease to the various depots and stations on the lines. In conclusion I hope all in this district will join heartily in trying to devise some remedy by which we may gat out of this quagmire of stagnation in which we have so complacently wallowed for the last twenty years. If any individual can find any other plan than that of an extra member for the Wairarapa district, and that one to represent the East Coast, I feel sure he will confer a benefit on the inhabitants here by making it public. lain, &c, M. _ P.S.—Since writing the above I notice in your paper that you recommend the union of the East and West Counties of Wairarapa as a remedy by which we may be better able to do battle for our rights. Doubtless there are strong arguments botli for and against this scheme. I trust some one will be good enough to take the matter in hand, and thoroughly sift its merits, through the aid of your valuable columns.