THE MANAWATU SEAT

Manawatu Times, Volume X, Issue 1248, 19 July 1884, Page 2

THE MANAWATU SEAT

,TQ Til? EDITQJt. §ib,— You an<j the editor of jbhe opposition journal haying sunk'yqur differences and jftade common cause m eulogizing Mr Macarthur, and endeavouring to damn Mr Fraser with great praise, it behoves the settlers to Bpeak and think for themselves. Perhaps jn fairness to the majority | of your readers whose ppjnions differ from yours pa this question, you will allow me* to state m Mr Fraser's defence, and m reply to several articles which appeared m your columns of late, that capital is made of the fact that because Mr Macarthur expressed his views first, Mr Eraser's views are similar. Granting that their views coincide on some of the leading quastions, they differ materially on others, and are so differently expressed as to preclude all possibility of their emanation from; the ; same source, as has been alleged. This being admitted, 1 the question is narrowed down to personal merit, as to which is the most truthful, reliable and independent, '

Your statement that Mr Fraser has shifttd ground on the education question is hardly correct. With i Mr Macarthur he is m favor of les* senin£ its cost, but he has never varied m stating, that, if found possible, by any measure which may be introduced, to assist any dcnomin&H tio"i without injury to the present secular system or increase or expe <- diture, he will support it. On tho j land question you infer that Mr Eraser is afraid of depreciating his own property by cheapening Crown Laud. Your inference only applies to land speculators, not to sefctler3 of Mr Fraser's class, who depend on what the land produces and not its marketable value. Mr Fiaser has si ated repeatedly that our Govern*, ment should not make profit out of the sal« of land, but should spend the difference between the cost and selling price m the construction of roads m each block, thus . enabling the settlers to spend the money m improvements which would otherwise go m taxation. Mr Macarthur'a most prominent supporters inform us that m our degenerate days, honesty is not essential m a politician, and why ? because it cannot be denied that the candidate they champion possesses a few peculiarities m common with " Bret Harte's " Heathen Chinese m ways that are dark, &c. I am proud" to state that the ranks of Mr Fra3er's supporters are chiefly composed of thjse who are old fashioned enough to set sotob value on political honesty. Mr Fraser ,supporta Government management oE railways and on this point he is m accord with the majority of the candidates how seekimg election. Mr Fraser argues that if the management of railways be handed over to a non-political board it would still be Government manager ment for where is this non^politioal board to come from? By whom will they be elected or nominated ? Will they not require large salaries ? Will they not require over-looking or at least will they not be responsible to Government which cern tainly is Government management m a more expensive form. In conclusion, I submit that although your adverse criticisms on Mr Fraser are hardly fair, inasmuch as he has not time to defend himself, and has no journal to champion him, ycu can claim the merit^of being consistent, not having occupied the editorial chair sufficiently long to be otherwise. But the Standard can put forward no such claim. Its, readers must therefore he charmed with the reliability and truthfulness of that organ, remembering the series of abusive and almost libellous j articles which appeared week after j week against the man who is now the recipient of its fulsome encomiums' — - Yours truly, Jasjes King. [We totally deny that the majority of our readers are m favor of Mr Fraser, As to the land speculator business we fail to,' see what other name can be applied to one who, holding a large block m one county deems it necessary to have a 2000 acre block m another. If Mr Fraser finds this large area necessary to enable him to live, the majority of the settlers must be m a very starving condition, fllr King states that Mr Fraser argues that the management of railways by a n on -political Board would still be Government management. Mr King is a prominent member of Mr Fraser's committee, and we must take iji for granted he i£ conversant with his views, 'In this case it ; is only the more evident that 1 Mr Fraser does not understand the question. He might just as- well say that the business of our Law Courts is under Government management, for it is proposed to appoint the non*political Board m precisely the same manner as Judges of the Supreme Court, and to remove them m the S3.rae way as these are. The' last 'pa'ragraftb of Mr King^s. letter calls for" but little "com" men q. as. we may remark. tb,at our connection with the Times extends over nenrlj two yea-s, and during that period we have had excellent opportunities of watching Mr Macarthur's public career, with the result, that m our opinion, he is by far the best of the two candidates now seeking to represent Manawatu.-, Iffhe elfecjior| \piit a man of action and ability, Yrj4 a man aqle tq hold his own with others, they will return him. If they want a repre« senjia^iye fpr Rangjtikei, whq may he called, a • • poqr hut honest politician" they will rettfrn ilv Fra3er.-^-E,D.]