THE STANDARD TELEPHONE

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 542, 9 December 1890, Page 3

THE STANDARD TELEPHONE

Tino—a— lino ! Intelligent elector, again, please! One from Mr Arthur's side I Good morning, Standakd ; hands across, old fellow—you’ve won the day, but defeat does not mean to be vanquished or disgraced— Certainly not; those of ns who cannot agree to differ (if differ we do) are very silly people indeed. Your sentiments are mine, also—one or two on your side seem to me to show too much gnsto in their jubilance, but I will not quarrel on that account. Sensibly spoken—but yon must allow the blame —if blame there be—is not on one side only. When the paper which is your mouthpiece is so insulting, some few may pay more attention to it than it deserves. You needn't cast that up—we place our own value on the newspaper Not much, methinks ; but let me explain. This paper has been brazen enough to tell 539 Poverty Pay electors that they have disfranchised the district, politically buried it for the next three years Oh, that explains the crape on the Masonic, ah ? At daylight on Sunday the hotel was found to be draped in deep mourning, the balcony was enveloped by yard upon yard of crape, and the jets that were to brilliantly illuminate the victory wore the sombre

garb. That was cruel—cruel I—it might have been better left undone—yet I don't know but it was drawn upon you by the drivel of the doddering Refrigerator, whose parochial son! cannot soar above the limits of dusty Gladstone road. H’m, our party have found that its opposition would be more beneficial than its support. But do you really think an outsider like Mr Kelly will be able to serve the district? I thought you had better sense than pay any attention to that twaddle. The fact that Mr Kelly got most of bis votes from this quarter would alone be a guarantee that he would work might and main for its local interests, and he will be backed up by Mr Bees and O'here—and be will not imagine that tVaianu is Poverty Bay. You put the thing differently to what the Befrigerator does. What have you got to lay about the analysis of the voting? That is the best feature of the whole lot—it shows that the people are rising above Staking politics a parish concern. Mr Arthur got nearly half the votes recorded on the •thsr side, and Mr Kelly got a little more than half of those recorded on this side. According to the Evening Refrigerator’s arguments the 539 Poverty Bay people who Voted for Hr Kelly arc something worse than fools, and the Bay of Plenty people Who voted for Mr Arthur are ditto. You know what Carlyle said ? That molt men are fools f—Yes, I've yaad it, and I believe that of all the fools that ever fooled, the Refrigerator is the most laughable. It would throw mud at the stars if they did not twinkle as it The stars I—stars ! eh What’s the matter with you—you don't Seem to be a don at astronomy. Beg your pardon, I was thinking about the gloomy star at the corner, which seemed to get dimmer as hope flickered out. I didn't mean that—l don't believe the Arthur people were responsible for that mockery ; a few are not taking the defeat with good grace, but the majority are not to be b'amed on that account. Well, I know for a fact that some of cur pwn side were not pleased witn the sarcastic Speech made at the finish. Strange, too, that the Localism bogey should be worked up after what Mr Arthur ■aid on the other side of the range, that it Was not a fight on local grounds. You're right—the two yarns won't dovetail. Let me give your side a little advice for the future. When you win a political battle, don't try and turn the other side into ridicule, and say that if you put up even a wooden man you would win. Such a thing was never said. Yes, it wss, and by someone whose remarks were not likely to go unnoticed. Then the man must have been a great fool. And if you want to work on local grounds you should select your candidate from the dozens of men who have ever identified themselves with all public matters of local interest.