OUR NEXT MEMBER.

Manawatu Times, Volume IV, Issue 88, 10 November 1880, Page 2

OUR NEXT MEMBER.

Coxstdtcrably more interest would se«ra to b« taken outside than inside the County with resjavd to tho representation of Manaw.ntii nfc (he nart general election. The rri'r'hiu n<:? dismiss iVfr.. WALTER JoiTXaTONE m a very summnrv manner, and either ussiime that he will not run the gauntlet of criticism upon his apathy which would b© sure to greet hisennvnss ; or, should he be poseeissed of loinpr'lv to do so. he would not stand tho ghost of a show. We must eonfoss tra ere not suOieiently deep m the confidence of Mr. JoTixsxovi! to either contvadict or maintain that lie will contest the eor.stittienny ; but wo will venture to say tJUttt should he do so, h-3 will not sit m tho

new Parliament. It is perfectly true that when fif htir.g the last election campaign he distinctly refused to visitithe electors during the recess ; but he certainly led bis constituency to suppose that ho would pay tome small attention to its wants. That lie has most egregiously noglocted to do so, we do not think, that even, he himself will dare deny ; and not only this County, but a large portion of the colony has good reason to bewail the gross neglect of duly of which our present member :s gully. When the twenty per cent, of the land revenue was trembling m the balance, and one rota I would bfivo turned the scale and saved hundreds of thousands to this County, whera was Mr. Johxstoke? Conspicuous by his abssnee. Had he been mindful of the interests committed to his charge, his voice would have been beard upon x subject so fraught with vital interest! to tho»e whom he represented, and his voto would hare averted the blow. He was recreant to lm trust, and by his most culpable indolence an injury has been inflicted upon the progress of Manawatu from which it will late years to recover. Notwithstanding that Mr. John t stoke wishes to be a legislator, he hat no ambition to be a working memb«rj he courts retirement and the dolce far nlenie, and revels m the exquisite pleasure of doing but what he likes, but, un--1 fortunately for this County, its interests and ' his likings hara vary little affinity, Mr. JOHKBTONE has been a steadfast henchman of Mr. Hall — that is, to the fullest extent that his sluggish nature would allow — and as he aspires to senatorial honors without 1 the trouble of earning or working for them, we would suggest to his Ministerial patron that he placed upon tlio elevated roost m tlm Upper House, vacated by the new Agent-General. By such a judicious conive 1 of action^ the Government would secure, ' or rather retain, a blind supporter; Mana- [ watu would h* relieved of a guard inn of ■ whom she would be only too glad to be re- [ leased ; and Mr. Joiinstone would bo I saved what the Irishman designated " a \ broad hint," otherwise posterior propulsion. k And now — presuming that we have got rid ! of that gentleman — from what quarter are we look for his successor. A Wanganui paper asserts he is to be found m the person of Mr. Q-. G-. Fitzgerald, a gentleman, who, if we mistake not, unsuccssfnlly contested Hokitika with Mr. Seymour George a few years ago. The Marton paper — which assumes a voluntary guardianship J over this County, which if disinterested 1 would be quite generous — andories these- . lection, quotes the pedigree of the ps°udo- " candidate, and concludes by presenting its protege with a brand new " character " for I the electors to peruse. We have heard from other sources that Mr. Fjtzggi?a.ld is an able man, and one fitted to shine m any walk of life, and we ourselves are quite willing to give him credit for political ho- \ nor and honesty ; but, unfortunately, a reputation for ability was the serpent gaze that charmed the electors when Mr. Joux- \ stone c*si his spell over them, and how , much have they benefitted by his clever™ ness? Your very clever, mpn are apt to be erratic or lazy, only working by fits and , starts, and if Mr. Johnston- .2 did not exert 1 himself sufficiently to be tha former, his lethargic indolenco -to put the matter m the nicest language— was proverbial. Mr. . Mr. JoffJfSTONE knew very little about tha , wants of the County ; but' Mr, Fitzgerald , would know less ; while his private interests as a Wanganui journalist would be m direct varianco with his public duties to Maim watu, were the electo'-s to bo so insane as to commit their interests to his keeping. 1 As a pendart, however, to the foregoing. . the Marton paper winds up its paragraph , with the following: — " Whilst on the subject of candidates for Manawatu. we may mention that there is another member of the Fourth Estate nt the opposite end of tho railway line from Wanganui, who, it is said, intends to woo the electors of Manawatu." Now, who can it be ? We have not heard that our brother Scribe at Foxton has any political ambition ; we avo quite sure that ■ we have not ourselves 5 neither, we imagine is our contemporary at Feilding givon that 1 way ! Can it be that the member of the Fouth Estate who interviewed Mr. Jo 11N- - stone and impoi tuned him lo start an 1 organ to fight his election campaign, is 1 going to entc' tho lists against him ? In 1 the absence of a better solution that is our reading of tho enigma, for we feel that the man who would h.ve impudence to propose the one, would have the audacity to attempt the other, and the fate of the last will be the same as the first—a ridiculous and contemptible fiasco.