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Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2976, 14 August 1888, Page 2

Is the representative of Masterton "an unscrupulous land grabber?" According to our local contemporary he is, and we give below the text of the indictment against him:

The Native stonewall lias come to an end, the Government has carried the day, oud there seems ever; likelihood that their Nafive Policy Bills will bo passed into law. One of the first fruits of these measures will bo that a million acres of splendid land-the best of the country available for settlement in the North Island—will bo handed over to a few unscrupulous land jobbersand syndicates. Mr J. D. Ormond, his son, and brother-in-law, mil acquire between them the control of over 111,472 acres. A syndicate represented by Anderson and Bovse will bo able to complete their titles to 163,500 acres. Mr J, P. Hamlin, a brother, wo understand, of the member for/Franklin South, will eoouro 3,377 acres; Mr G. Beetham, M.H.R., 14,110

totes;Mr T. Tanner, M.H.R.,3,769 aotos, Mr W. a. KuaseU, M.H.E,, 6,333 sores. A Parliamentar? return shoffa that in the Hawkes Bay district alone the Native Land Act Repeal Bill will enable thirty-eight persons comprising a good many members oi thejHouso ot Bepresentatives with their uncles, their cousins and their aunts to grab exactly 888,805 aores.

If the above indictment were true, we would ourselves sign n requisition asking Mr Beetham to resign his seat, but we happen to know, and possibly our. local contemporary inay uot be aware,that the aboveis not" the whole truth and nothing but the truth." We would not, of course, accuse our contemporary of intentionally misleading bis readers, but he is apt to indulge in rhetorical flights, in which he soars right away .from faots into the realms of fancy. In Mr Beetham's case, what are the real sober facts ? He, in conjunction .with some of his brothers, lenses a .native run in the Hawkes Bay district. The lease has some twentyyearsyettorun'andMrßeethara has not the possession of a single acre of freehold in that district,. or the prospect, or obtaining one. The Native bills of the Government do not affect bis interests as the lessee of this particular property; they do not hand over to him a single acre of the I splendid million to which our contemporary refers. According to the; text of"our looal contemporary, Mr 6. Beetham, M.H.E., will secure as the first fruits of the Native Policy Bills, 14,110 acre's, but as' a matter of absolute, fact Mr 6. Beetham, M.H.8., will neither gain nor lose a solitary acre, iThe charge against Mr Beetham is an imaginary indictment: a species of fireworks let off for the edification of certain discontented people who will believe anything. If the other cases cited rest upon no better basis than the one affecting the member for Masterton, we feel sorry for our contemporary, Someone must have deceived him with fictitious yarns about Hawkes Bay land-jobbers and syndicates. We cannot for a moment suppose that be would intentionally garble Borne facts and suppress others in order to trump up a bogus charge against Mr George Beelbam, M.H.8.-