The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 609, 15 April 1876, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equal and exact justice to all men, Oi whutevei suite ol j)u,»uasion, iei!gi >\n or polivi^.-i ***** He'e •lialllhe'Pres'* the People's najhtmiliitaia Uiiawtd by nifluuia-e and ii.ili.iL.cd by g.un.

SATURDAY APMLIb 1876

Coming events cast their shadows before and tbe letter from the Saperinteudent oi Otago addressed to the Premier, refusing to treat with the civil servants appointed to enquire into the finances of Otag-o, may be taken as the manifesto of the Provincial party, and shows that though scotched they are n«»t kill«d. To give weight t the couteuts of his reply, Mr M<tCundrev\ has made it a "state document" by publishing it in full in a " Provincial Government Ghetto Extraordinary." The tone of this letter ot Mr Macandrew is resolute •md defiant, albeit that the wording of it, unlike the correspondence of our own Superintendent, is courteous and guarded. Bat it is none the less menacing aud detoruiined. That Mr Macaudrew is nail lug the Pi'urluGidl flag to the mait, there

*«n be no uuiiOi, whuii he b.i^s: — *' lue " present action of the Colonial .Executive '* in taking for granted that the new Par- " liament, to which was relegated the rati- " ficatton or otherwise of the Abolition of " Provinces Bill, will ratify the same, ap- " pears to me premature, and that it will " be time enough to fake suoh action after " the Parliament determines a-j to what " is to be the specific form of Government " tor the futuie. I cannot for a moment " suppose that iv the tmeof Otago, where, *' uudor (he much abiued provincial insti- *' tuiious, the province has grown np and '! flourished to a marrclloas exceot, these " itietitacioas are to be wantonly destroyed j " in the very piimo of their manhood and 11 directly io the t33ih of vJi« declared aud " all but unanimous desire aud convictions "of the p°ople. I feel persuaded that, " if a plebiscite were taken on the ques- " tion, a T.ist proportion of the votes " would be on one aide, and in favour of ' " the province regaining its own revenues, " distiibutin^ theji ou its o'.vn behalf, " and working one iic own dealiny in its " own way." And again, " I cannot reco»- " nise the right of the rest of the Colony i " to force upon Otatjo any system of ad- " miuistration of its local affairs which "is centered at Wellington, and which "does sot commend i'self to ihe judg- " ment of the people concerned." Mr Macandtew basoa his refusal oti the narrow grounds of the interests of his own j Province. Ocago, he says, even now con- 1 tributes nearly the half of the eaure revenue of the Colony, and if left to hernelf, will, in a bhort time furnish mo -k revenue than at present raised from the whole Colony pot together. Therefore argues Mr Macandrew, *' You may resi " assured that the people of Uiis proriucf "• will not tamely oubmib to hi»ve forced '' upon them a system of poli^f/l coui- " munism from which the}' have evei'v- " thing to loao and nothing to gain, and to " aid and abet in which, on my p.m, " would be to belie the positiou which I " have for so many years held a.. Lhe '♦ hands of the pople." This is pUi.i bpfakiu^. He does n>> talk rebellion and revolution as does fau> Northern brother Superintendent, neitbe doe« he threaten to resist the law With tin i <tud sword at the head of a thousand anne 1 non, after the fashion, of same Auckhud literary "swashbucklers," buc then is no mistaking liis firm oelief ohai he b-itile if A.bolilion has yeo t> >rt foHght on (he ft\>i>r of the Aas'Jiubl That there will be found in (he next m>iiu • nere a Provinciitl ptjulani how uuiner >u j >r how ctrong 1 cannot yet be ascei-uaa^d vho will be coment with noting lesi llian the ropealof the Abolutiou Bill is beyout loubt, but tli.it it will be found to be but.i i >ilofu hopp, we brlieve, and one that wnl nd iv mosl «ik,'ua, defeat anddisastorio vln lAity of which Mr Maeaudrevv is one vi :he leidin>f chiefs. Mr Mitundevr believes I hat the new Parliament will revere ihe dcLiMou of the preceding one, it lei? 1 , he says, " as far as Otago is concerned" — an unhappy phrase in jie lelter that reveal^ now as distinctly as evir ulie weak jwmi "i the pcovinciil haruei^ whiob uoJiin,', u soemi, can cooper U[». " I'.ac'u for himse. i t.ui ill .sounding cry woeuthe routb°gins. mtit is an orninuuti somi I indeed wnou r used in c idii.o- rhecharge. Ysi thirst / idiLiuu ot the Pi'iviiuu pa t y. Iv Jiago and the Auckland fiii^i ut i „ .'lovincial army are only ke t tVoui turning their arms on one another by Uiepr t - *enceof he centralists netore them. Auok 'and hungers for Olago's laad fuud, Hi" uidisiuriied possession of which is iht dpha aud omega of the political creed oi Mr Macandrew and his Ougo following. In thii lies the strength of the Abolitiouisis. Clearly, however, tho Stipeiiuiemldut of Otag.) b«lieves that there ii yet a chance of defeating the Abolinoniiti in ..he Assembly, and we may tuerefotc look "jra sformv, and, fora ume, m<iy be, a wasted session.