Page:Thomas Hare - The Election of Representatives, parliamentary and municipal.djvu/377

Rh protection. In the mining districts, no doubt, there was a majority against protection. It was clear, however, that even on the question of protection there would be a majority in favour of protection in two classes of constituencies, although those two classes might seem, at first sight, to have no connexion whatever. The result of the present electoral system had been, that there was a representation of interests, but not a representation of opinions. He did not think that interests ought to be represented at all. What, after all, was the representation of interests but the representation of selfishness? Men's "interests," in the common meaning of the word, implied that a certain number of persons belonging to the same sphere or the same branch of industry thought their selfish interests would be advanced by a certain course of legislation being pursued. That was not what ought to be obtained in the selection of representatives; but if, as was the case, it was found that the people of the colony held very different opinions, the object ought to be to get as many as possible of those opinions represented. How was the truth to be elicited but by hearing different opinicms expressed by those who were best able to put them forth in the Legislature? Every interest in the colony might be represented, and yet nothing like a majority, or even a fair proportion, of the opinions of the colony be represented. It had been asked what practical advantages would follow the adoption of the principle of the clause ? Great advantages would follow it, if it were carried out systematically. All classes of opinions, or, at all events, all those opinions which commanded the assent of any considerable portion of the colony, would be represented in that House, and all sides of any question would be heard. Whatever Ministry had been in office, he believed that it had not represented, in any degree, opinions, and the consequence had been to degrade the politics of the colony. Instead of being supported on the ground of its opinions, the Ministry had always been supported on personal grounds or interests; and either a Ministry or an Opposition, supported on those grounds, did not tend to raise the character of the Legislature. In the constituencies of Collingwood and St. Kilda, large minorities were defeated on every contest The result of all elections had been that the minority was politically annihilated. This was calculated to lead to political inaction. The minority, feeling themselves powerless, would decline to take any part in future elections. This was not a desirable state of things. It was not to the interest of the colony that a large body of men should be led to feel that it was useless for them to take any part in political contests. A gentleman sitting behind him said, "Divide the constituencies." No doubt, in some cases, one class of political opinions was predominant in one part of a district, and another class of opinions was predominant in another part of the district. This, however, was a mere accident; it was one which was not likely to continue, and above all, it was one upon which no stable system of legislation ought to be based. The Legislature ought to endeavour to give the minority a fair share of the representation in every locality. It had been said that the four constituencies ought to be consulted by their representatives before the