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Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 568, 10 February 1891, Page 2

A Wellington journal makes the following remarks under the heading “ Unforeseen Consequences ” :—Both Sir Harry Atkinson and the Governor made a great point of the rejection by the Council, in the session of 1890, of Sir George Whitmore’s Bill for its own reform, as justifying the addition of the new members. Neither, however, mentioned the singular fact that if the Bill in question had been passed, Sir Harry Atkinson himself could not have been appointed to the Speakership. One of the clauses of the Bill proposed to deprive the Crown of the right of nomination to the Speakership, and to give the power of election to the Councillors, by way of compensation for shortening their tenure of office. Sir Harry Atkinson would, therefore, have been out of the running had the Bill become law. He would not then have appointed himself, and it may, therefore, be doubted whether his regrets as its non-passage are very sincere. Probably, however, a good many of the Councillors who opposed the Bill, now deeply regret having done so. They would have voted differently had they foreseen that the result of their rejecting the Bill would be the addition of half-a-dozen new members to their Chamber with the annexation of the Speakership by the then Premier.