ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1877, 17 July 1884, Page 3

ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

The preparations for the general electioa are going on right merrily, the candidates are addressing those whom they desire for their constituents, and they and their friends are spending their days and their nights in studying the rolls and canvassing the electors. Some of the rolls are not yet out of the hands of the printers, but, from a cursory glance at those that I ha\ c seen, I should be inclined to say that there has been a good deal of " stnffing," and that there arp considerable numbers of those whose names appear with a residential qualification who might fairly be challenged on the polling day. It is quite certain that no man has a right to vote in three different electorates under the residential qualification. In his speech at Parnell, Mr Mnss expiesscd his opinion that no man should have more than one vote, which, of course, means that he wouM abolish the propeity qualification, This, I think, would be most unfair, even more so than the abolition of the leasehold qualification, I know a gentleman who lives in the Mauukau electorate, and has pioperty worth £10,000 in City East. Does it seem fair and reasonable that he should be debarred from recoiding his vote in the district in which his property is situated ? If those who ha\ p not property are to be allowed to dominate over those who have, communism will soon take the place of law and order. The man who o\vn3 pi opeity certainly has a light to take his shaio in the decision of who shall make laws affecting that property. This applies to leasehold as well .as to f toehold. Surely the Queen stcect business men aie as much entitled and as well qualified to elect a member foi City Edbt as the denizens of Chanceiy Lane, and yet it was the latter who elected Sir George Giey three yeais ago, while the formei would have elected Mr J. M. Clark, had they not been depiived of their votes by the abolition ot the leasehold qualiiication. *

Since I wrote last week's "Echoes' Major Atkinson ami .Sir Geoige Giey have botli addtessed their coiistituet ts, or rather those who have been and who they hope will soon again be their constituents. Them was, as usual, the greatest possible dilleience between the two speeches, Major Atkinson's being a clear, stiaightfoiwaid, business-like and honest statement of facts and policy, while Sir Geoige Giey kept as far aa lie conveniently could from both facts and policy, giving his heaiears instead a lot of humbug about the land for the people and the unearned increment. I fancy that, if some ot you Waikato farmers expiessed your opinion on the subject, you would be inclined to say that the people aie best off who do not ow m the land but leceive wages for cultivating it. Judging from the cui«ory glimpse I hod of Sir Geoige Uiey's audience at the Theatre Koyal, I should bay that the vast majonty of them weie small shopkecpcis and arti/ans — people who do not want land to till and who would simply staive if they weie compelled to subsist on what they themselves could grow. They know that, too, and will take veiy gieat caie not to piove the fact from theit personal experience. At the present time, Sir Geoige Grey's ii lends, the " down trodden seifs" are the most independent and well to-do section of the community. They have plenty of work and good wages and can live very cheaply on account of the very low prices of pro- \ issions of all soits. They do not want the land, except it be a nice allotment or two in the city or suburbs.

At the close ot Sir Geoige Grey's speech, some of the audience called tor Messrs Tole, George, Moss, Dargaville and otheis, who stepped foruaid and made a few remains. They all had the good sense to make their speeches ot the very bi lefest order. Of these, the only ones that weie woith of note weie those of Messis Daigawlle and Moss, the one for its " cold cheek" and the other for its manliness. Mr Daigavil'.c, said that he was not a Gieyite but a Dargavilio, but that there was a piob.ibdity of a coalition between the Giey paity and the D,uga\ille party. It lias been evident fiom the time of Ins election that Mr Daigaville went into Parliament solely in the hope of obtaining oflieo, and that he has been constantly intriguing to attain his put pose, but it was haidly to have been expected that, on the e\e of an election, lie would have had the elhouteiy to state the matter so boldly. Mr Moss was equally bold in his statement, but his was a speech much moie creditable to him. In the presence of a large audience, still under the spell of Sir Geoige Grey's eloquence, he said that he was sony that Sir Geoige Grey had been led into acting in concert with members who had no friendly feelni" towaids him, and into taking advantage of their assistance to defeat the Government. Despite intcuuptious made by the lowest class of the Greyites, Mr Moss went on to &ay that he had given Sir George Grey an unwavering suppoit for six years, but as he had taken an important step without consulting his followers, the people had no right to pledge any of their members to follow him. This was too much fjr the labid Gicyites, who letused to listen to another woid spoken by Mr Moss. I ha\e not hitheito been an admired of that gentleman, but I could not help admit ing him then, for his pluck and manliness in standing before that audience and telling Sir George Grey to Ilia face what he objected to in his conduct, and I believe that admiration was felt by the large majority if the audience, though the noisy minority vrould not allow him to finish his speech. * *

# We are badly in want of good men to represent us in Parliament, but I should certainly hope that the want is not so great that we will allow the Greyites to toist Messrs DeLautour and Gannon on us as the membeis for Newton and Bay of Islands, and yet that is what they are trying to do. Mr DeLautour is said to be a clever young lawyer. He has been connected witli Mr W. L. Roes in his land schemes, aud it is to fuither those schemes that he wants the electors of Newton to give him a seat in Parliament instead of electing Mr Peacock, one of themselves, and undoubtedly one of the best members that Auckland has ever sent to Wellington. I give the "free and independent " of Newton the credit of not having so many fools among them as there would need to be to elect a member of Mr Reess land ring instead of one of the moot capable of our Auckland citizens. Mr Gannon, the gentleman kindly provided by the Greyites for the Bay of Islands constituency, is one of those who were defeated at the East Coast election a few weeks ago. I believe that he is a very respectable and intelligent man, though his intelligence is at fault just now, or he would not have come up he:e on a fool's errand, for that is what his present journey is almost .certain to prove itself to be, He haß for an opponent (to say nothing of two or three small fry, who will receive only a little local support if they go to the poll, which is extremely doubtful) Mr" Hobbs, who has been for the last three years the representative of the district, aud who has proved himself a most useful member, and who will receive the, support of all the best people in the electorate. lam doubtful if those who induced Mr Gannon to come up here believe that he is likely to be elected for'i the Bay of Islands, or care ■v^liether he; is or not, their object being to get h,imj away from the East Coast, so that Mr; Rees may be able to defeat Mr Locke. 1 Well ! I hope that Messrs DeLautour 8 * Gannon and Rees will all be among the, defeated candidates, " ' ] * * *

In the excitement consequent. pnl the: elections' we are apt to overlook lopalj matters to a ' t considerable extent; rfctit, ,there are some whiclr it is, not;safj& ntoi ''overlook ■altogether. /, ,Ori^ of these J is thes /attera^of thef Freezing .^Qnlpan^to-Mti

sublet at. least a portion of the area leased to them and which is now in process of reclamation. There was a gieat outcry at the time that the concession was granted to the Freezing Company that the JB arbour Board should not alionate public propel ty, but many people, myself among them, considered that they confer so much benefit on the Pioviucial District, and especially on the farmers, that it was quite right that great concessions should be granted to them. This application for permission to sublet is "a grey horse of anothei colour." If granted, it will benefit no one, except the shareholders in the Freezing Company, and will probably o.tusc loss of revenue to the Harbour Board by lessening the demand for the board allotments. It is to be hoped that the majority of the Harbour Board will remain finn and not be misled b) any specious arguments to grant further concessions to the Freezing Company. St. Mu>go.