ADVICE TO THE TE AROHA ELECTORS.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 2959, 2 July 1891, Page 3

ADVICE TO THE TE AROHA ELECTORS.

TO THE KLUTOH. Sin, —Thirty years ago Prince Albert during the evils which befel our starved soldiers in the Crimea said that constitutional government was ou ita trial. If that great and wise prince was now alive ho would say democracy was now on its trial. Constitutional government has survived till now, owing to the fact that till lately the franchise was so that there was a balance of power and no one class could dominate the other. Thinking men and far seeing statesmen in England seeing that democracy can have no check unless it be the check of intelligence, have if possible, to save democratic government from being a curse. They have formed a Primrose league which has local habitations in every town and many villages in England, the duty of the members of these habitations is to instruct the masses in great political questions of the day. We here in New Zealand ought also to have a Primrosa league to instruct the people and counterAct the " rollicking speeches " of political adventurers who in their recklessness mislead the people. It is well known that half the truth is a whole lie, these political adventurers speak speeches which arc half truths aud whole lies, their hearers take to the half truth but are i[uitc oblivious to the whole lie. Mr Editor, let inc say a few words tu the Te Aroha electors as tu who speak rollicking speeches. Rollicking speeches are the .'laying of what will please the hearers, these sayings are not the sayiugii of instruction and truth, but are spoken wholly by political trailers who live by the trade of being politicians and the making and saying of those speeches is the making of their bread and butter. It must be easily seen that where the whole object in view ia to gtt a living by

being a politician, all that is said in these rollicking speeches must be subservient to that and the wisdom nnd truth of what is said is no element in the question at all. The Hon. Richard Sodden, in returning thanks at a banquet at the Thames, said that when he was plain Dick Seddon he did make ro licking speeches, but now when he had become a responsible Minister he had to give up rollicking speeches. Now, Mr Seddon has by these rollicking speeches raised himself to the position of being one of Her Majesty's Ministers. By Mr Seddon's own confession he admitted that these rollicking speeches would not stand the test which is attached to responsibility. This is tantamount to saying that he attained his present position by telling untruths in rollicking speeche'a. The present Government came into power by each and all of them individually uttering rollicking speeches. Electors of Te Aroha. Arc such men to be trusted. Is the welfare of our country, is tlie future of our children, to be placed in the hands of men who make rollicking speeches ? 1 should think not. What we want so that democracy may not turn out a monster which will devour our liberties are M.H.R.s whose whole nature would revolt at making rollicking speeches. What we want and who we want for out M.H.R.s are men who, by their high sense of honour and truth, will advance the rights of mankind. Electors of To Aroha. if you are placed in the position that ail the contestors of this election are Government supporters, then the only way of you beiug i true to yourselves, true to your children's future, Is to abstain from voting ; have no act or part in supporting thi present Government who, by their acts, will overturn the liberties of mankind. Surely ia your own electorate you have men who can grasp the true responsibility attached to being an M.H.R. Why not elect one of those. Surely you have men in the electorate who have a true stake in the interest of the country, and who would lose, if t iandemonium was to happen in the near future, and pandemonium will happen unless there is a change in what is now going on. The whole fabric of what society rests upon is now being shaken; liberty is now bein assailed in all its foundations. Just a little farther, and that a very little, and it will be held that property belongs to all. Just a little farther, and that a very little, and it will be held that man has no personal liberty ; in fact, it is now held so. lam only to refer to a union man, saying he will not let a non union man work. If democracy does not become more conservative, the time will soon arrive when men will be shooting one another, and a reigu of terror, madness and wildness be the outcome. It is devoutly to be hoped that such a consummation may not arrive. That such may not arrive, "the sayings and doings of democracy during tlie present times will have to be checked. I would remind the electors of Te Aroha that the share of credit due to our present liberties and advancement, the share to those who pressed on is small, small, small to the share due to those who held back and checked the reforms. To the holdiug back of the reforms, we owe our present liberties, but this is too intricate a subject to be dealt with now, and to prove what I say it would require an essay to be written on the subject.— Yours truly, Hakapepe.