THE WAIPA ELECTION.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 565, 4 January 1876, Page 2

THE WAIPA ELECTION.

Sib, — The gravity of the crisis through which the country is now pausing makes it oC the m ott vital imp >rtance that we should lend to the Assembly the bett man we can get, no matter whence he cotneth nor whether he be rich nor poor, providing he be thoroughly able to giapplo with tuch questions as may arise during the next fession or two of Parliament. A groat deal has been laid upon tome of the question* by both candidates and their supporteis, yet the real matters at issue'havo not received the attention they deserve We hear of the Abelition of the Provinces, but none nppeirtogive us a notion of what should be substituted. Ihey do not tell us which of the schemes they would support ; whetker the Government proposal, that of our whole colony with the land fund of each provincial district secured to that particular portion of the colony now pisseaing such land fund (for this is really the Governmeni proposal, no matter wkat is taid to the contrary, and without which th« Gc-vern-ment would not secure the middle island rotes), or whether they will to the utmost of their power insist that all revenue from all sources — no matter how or from what raited - -should form one common fund for the benefit of the colony as a whole ; or will +b«y support the. diuding of the colony into two government! — which some have recommend«d, and of which •ome of our be*t politicians tkin|c to favorably, and of which any unbiased political thinker — though he may not fully agree with the plan i* net prepared to condemn in toto ; Mr Cor has touched upon this latter slightly but not fully : Mr McMinn still much more slightly, as though he scarcely knew whit it signified. Another point which I think has hot received tho attention which it ought In have from the cvndidatcs is : Providing the Government scheme was carried, with the alteration that all revenuo should bo common stock, io v what ' proportion would they recommend its diitri'bu'* bution throughout the colony. Shall it be ia ' proportion to the amount raised in each part of the colony, or in proportion t> p~Dulitiou. I am not now speaking of grants to Highway Boards, <fed but the spending of the general revenue. Will each Provincial District (as the Abolition Bill calls it) get spent in it upon the public works an equal proportionate per centagt of tin Custom-house and other revenve raited in it, or only what minitttr* mould call a fair share ? Te speak plainly — will the revenue! of Otago and Auckland be spent to improve pocket boroughs and to buy middle island votes by the government of the day ? [Aa unneoeisary question. The interest on the loans will toon take it all— Ed. W.T.J Another v'tal, probably the most vital, of all the questions, and of which we hive heard nothing from the candidates, is the fair distribution of repreientatives — a question which habecn many times ably advocated in your jours nal. Are we to rest satiafie 1 with the miserable measure of last seition— surely not? What is the use of agreeing to total Abolition of Provinces if the Northern island in to he swamped by the votes of pocket boroughs. If the present inequality is to continue it would be far better for ut if the islands were divided into two colonies. Will our representatives go in for a fair political representation in proportion te population. A further point we have not had fully discussed is tho rotten constitution of wliat it called the Upper Houie ; this is an abuse which mutt shortly be corrected. How it it constituted and of what use is it ? First if the ministry of the day think they are likely t» be beaten upon any measure, they nominate to the Upper Houte (save the mark) a number of persons {many of whom would not get elected by any constituency) whom they know would do their behosts, and second it comes in so handy when they find they cannot find gentleman of the Lower Home sufficiently willing to take office, at the sacrifice of their political independence, to put in a civil (?) servant or two and make them their Cabinet Minister* for the time bring, who when done with can fall back upon their former billets. The sooner this blight upon the country is destroyed the better, as certainly it is neither useful nor ornamen'al Now these beinc some of the matters to be settled shortly tho next chief point for us is to choose the more fitting man of the two aspiring to be our representative. Mr McMinn is aa honest, straightforward, and persevering man, but not possessing sufficient knowledge of the routine of the Assembly to be able to take any active part in tho busineis of the next Parliament, would require two sessions before be could get information sufTr'ient upon questions to be able to address tho boose, nnle<* he wishes te make a fool of himself, and bo a butt of Home member* which I think Mr McMinn woald bn too ditcreet to allow. This being to it is morally certain be could exerciie but rcrj little influence upon the vital subject! to foe decided next session. Then as to influence to enable him to carry members with him, at present he possesses none and would not pottest any for several setiiont no matter how smart a man he may be, and this fact is proved in the experiences of all etatetmen. By (hat time the constitution of the Colony and the other great quektiont will have been deter* mined. These reasons above, although there are others, I have not time to specify, showld be sufficient to prevent our choice, at the present time, falling upon Mr MoMinn. Then at regard Mr Cor though then may be some objection! to him, it mast be admitted that ha cortainly doet potiess the qualifications we at the present time require in a representative* in an eminent degree. Like Mr McMinn, be too is honest straightforward and enroest, and beyond this he has a through knowledge of the rnlee of the house, a through knowledge of the questions before the country, p sseisea large persopal influence and tact to carry members with him when he wishes to do so. As a reoent instance of this, it was be who gained for us the second member for the Waikato, not onJy will Major Jackion bear me out in what I say, but alto many gentlemen who were in Wellington during the time thii question was being diseutsed, that although not a member of the Assembly he was able to persuade tarn* honorable gentlemen to rote for it, and tome who would not vote for it he induced not to vote against it but to abstain from voting at all, and thui his influence carried that point, which would be found to be more difficult to carry than a vote for the making of both the Raglan and Woipa, and the Alexandra end Ngaruawahia roads. Ai to the objection! raised againit Mr Cox, what are I hey ? Firit, that he i* a big man, a large iquatter, well, but who amongst us don't «nvj him and would like to change places. If there be such an one let him shew himself and ha ihall be immortalised. Don't jou think, Mr Editor, that tho dutrict would be improved amazingly were there a few more such Mr Cox's in it t [Put 'em in the swamps by all means, but let us have Cockatoos of from 60 to 1000 acres on the easier worked lands, Ed W TJ. Does the country between Hamilton and Cbaupo, also around by Te Rori and Whata What* look any worie since he came here. Shew me sir, the hundred or the two hundred small men who could have drained that immente swamp and turned that wilderness into a garden at he has done and it still doing. Was not a very large portion of the land around that swamp the property of small men, and whit did they do to improve it or advance the district ? My small property adjoint a twamp held by a imall man and miles and miles of good land around me is held by other small men and what it the reiult P A dreary, cheerless waste of fern and ti-tree. Then, I say, away with such an objection, it has too much of the dog in a manger spirit in it and can only have weight with men of very small means and still smaller minds. Objection No 2 — That he has equal interests down South and will therefore vote for Southern interests — what a paradox surely —who can understand any man doing tuch a thing. A man generally has his greatest intereit! where his family reside, whore he makes his head quarters. V hen I find a man spending nearly the whole of hit own time and all the time of his grown up sons, and a very large amount of mon^y upon any property, it would take something very

much stronger than supposition to convince me that suob * tnftn is »o far besirfe himself us to rote for anything ho thought would injure the district in which snch properly it situated. Were he to do to the sooner a lunaoy commission took charge of him the hetter. 3rd Objection— That he would rote for large land jobbing against small holdor's interests. W This, too, i« only supposition. No evidence to prore it. If a large swamp like the one he himself is reclaiming, or like the one being reclaimed by the Piako Swamp Company were in question he might do so, and I thrak would receive the support of all who understood the subject. Small men could not undertako it if they would, and for the Government to do so would make the ■cost of the land when reclaimed, very much be« yond the price small men would like to give for it. Many of us know what it costs the tfov■ernmsnt to get work done and what a Govern<ment job means. So this objection fails. In conclusion let me prrss upon the doctors not to disinfr*ncbi«e themselves by sending Mr TtfcMinn to Wellington. The district would be virtually §o Tpy the member for Waipa Toting agtinst (he member for Waikato East or by the •member for Waipa from want of the requisite (knowledge being unable to. act. Don't let us be a »party to the North Island being robbed by the South, Don't let us have to regret helping to maintain in the floulh out oT 6he reveuues of the North, the middle and high «ohools.and college* when we cannot g*t even an efficient common ■•ohool. Don't let us put trust in the promises of the present -Oorernmtnt. Have these been fulffilledin' reference to Highway Board grants— 'have we had the £2 for £1 as promised:? [Wm the Abolition Bill made to come into operation •t once as was calculated upon by the Colonial }/) Treasurer when the promise was made? Ed WT] To prevent 1 this, let at vote for the man who, *by his wealth, invested amongst us— for the man -whose interests are ours, and to whom we can 'look for support and help in this our country's .great need as unto an elder and more experienced brother. Then, vot» for l&v Cox.— lam, &c, A B*ALL 'Ngamawahia, Dec 31 it. 1875.