OTAGO AND SOUTHLAND UNION BILL.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2253, 27 July 1870, Page 2

OTAGO AND SOUTHLAND UNION BILL.

On the motion for the second reading of this Bill, Mr Macandrew said he should support the second reading of the bill. He did so, not so much on provincial considerations as on colonial considerations. As one who desired to see the number of the provinces gradually reduced —as one who desired to see them gradually merging into each other so as ultimately they might have one groat and united province in each island—he was inclined to look with very great favor upon the proposition which was now made on behalf of the people of Otago and Southland, He locked upon the proposal as a step in the right diroct on, and he looked upon it as the first step towards a further aud perhaps a more important amalgamation. He had always looked upon it as an evil day for •South'and as well as for Otago, and ho would say an evil day for the Colony, when the Province of Southland parted from the parent stem. When they reflected that the Province of Southland, although it only contained about one-fifth of the area and oueeiyhth of the population of Otago, yet notwithstanding that, it had been permitted to incur a debt very nearly equal to the whole debt of Otago, being about LIOO.OOO less —he thought the debt of Southland was about half-a-railliou, while that of Otago was over L 600,000. With these prospects and resources tho Province of Southland had irourred this large amount of debt, and'there was very little to shew for it. What had they been doing in the neighbouring province of Otago ? They had for years past been endeavoring to make roads and bridges over the whole length and breadth of the province—they had been building schools and establishing schoolmasters throughout the province, subsidising local road boards, and many other things too numerous to mention, lu the Province of Southland at the present time there were, comparatively speaking, none of those things, fldiile he believed that if the Province of Southland bad not been severed from the Province of Otago, its material progress at this moment would have been infinitely greater than it actually was. On the other hand, if there had been no separation, the Province of Otago’would have saved many thousands of pounds which had been expended in making roads into those portions of its territory the natural inlet to which was through the Province of Southland. Notwithstanding the highly colored pictures which the hon. member for Wallace had drawn on the subject the other night he maintained that his (Mr Macandrew’s) asser? tions were indisputable ; the stem logic of facts proved that such was the case, and any one who travelled through the two provinces must admit it. Those who were acquainted with the relative geographical position of the two provinces could notfail to see the utter absurdity of having two sets of governmental machinery with all its paraphernalia, where one was quite sufficient. The Government of Otago was now administering a territory twice as remote from tho seat of Government as any portion of Southland would bo if the bill were passed. In fact their colonising operations at the present time might almast be said to surround Southland, and any one who had the slightest acquaintance with the practical operations of Government could not fail to see that the existence in tho midst of their territory of a comparatively effete Government, must seriously impede the progress of both provinces. He would allude, for example, to immigration. It frequently happened that the Provincial Government of Otago received money from settlers in the Province of Southland for tho purpose of bringing out their friends under the system of assisted immigration. He need not say that that money had to be returned* pending the re-union which almost every man in the province was anxiously awaiting. He might allude also to the construction of railr ways. There was not the slightest doubt that one of themostprofitablerailwayswhichcould be constructed in the Colony at the present time, would bo a’ line from Dunedin to Kingstown, which would pass through a considerable portion of the Province of Southland; but it was clear that such an undertaking could not be carried out in the existing state of the political organisation of the districts concerned. With respect to what had fallen from the hon. member for Manuberikia, he would at once admit that for some time the re-union would be rather hindersome than otherwise to the Province of Otago ; but he believed that wonld be merely temporary. He quite agreed with the hon. member for Wallace, that the resources of the Province of Southland would ultimately he ample to meet all its liabilities. What were the immediate benefits which would result to Southland from this reunion ? In exchange for its Governmental machinery, its Superintendent, its Provincial Council, and its various headsof departments, it would at once participate, for example, in the Otago Education Scheme, —a scheme under which a schoolhouse and schoolmaster were provided in every part of the Province where there was a sufficient number of children available for purposes of education. That of itself would be a very great boon to the Province of Southland. Besides, it would participate in the grants in aid to District Road Boards and Municipalities in the outlying districts. It would also participate in the immigration schemes, and share in tho benefits arising from the Hospital, and tho Lunatic Asylum, and the Industrial School, in the Province of Otago. There wonld also be a great saving in the Police expenditure. The gentleman who was now at the head of the Otago Police Force was formerly Commissioner of Police in tho Province of Southland, and he had no dnuht that, from the local knowledge possessed by that gentleman, tho police of the two Provinces might bo amalgamated without much extra expense. The only member who had really spoken against the proposal was the hon. member for Wallace, and others would probably follow an the same side by saying that, if the measure were framed, it wpuld h® aggrandising the Province 6f Otago, He wanted to know what was meant by aggrandising the Province of Otago ? He would be very glad if the bon, member for Wallace would give

some explanation on the subject. If it was meant that enabling the united Provinces to conduct their Government more economically, andcnablingthcmto open up the country more successfully, was aggrandising the Province of Otago, he -would appeal to the common sense of lion, members not to allow themselves to be led away by such clap-trap. It had been said that if the proposal wero adopted, it would /.ivo Otago greater influence in that House. He confessed that he could not understand what was meant by that. He did not see what influence the Province of Otago had in that, House, beyond that exercised by any other Province. If thoy were to judge of those things by the fact that within the last twelve years the Northern Is'and had mulcted that Province of over a million of money, they must sec that its influence had been very small indeed, in as far so its own interc t has been concerned. There had been a great deal of nonsense talked in that House fur years past about superintendents and their tails exercising an undue influence there ; but as far as the Superintendent of Otago was concerned, he did not believe that he had as much influence in thi\t House as many private members. Ho there simply in his position as representative for the Clutha district. He had often lost all patience with that absurd rhodomontado about superintendents and their tails coming np to the Assembly and carrying important measures. The fact of the matter was that, perhaps from advantageous circumstances, Otago had been more successful than any of the other Provinces in the work of colonisation ; but instead of the Province of Otago being a fair object of rivalry on that account, he was sorry to say that it had too often been the object of narrow-minded jealousy on the part of its m ighbors, and he believed that that, feeling would be at the root of any successful opposition to the proposal now before the House. He trusted that the House would rise superior to any mch considerations, and that it would give effect to the almost unanimous wish of the people of Otago and Southland. There was not the slightest doubt that the hustings-cry at the last elections in Southland was this question of re-union, and, with the exception of the town of Invercargill, where objections were only natural, the country constituencies — the bone and sinew of the Province—were bent upon the re-union. He received letters by every mail expressing aspirations m that direction. The honorable member for Manuherikia bad said that the people of Otago had given no expression of opinion. The Provisional Council which must certainly be supposed to represent the people of the Province, had during two or more sessions, given nnmistakeable evidence of its desire to accomplish the union. As far as he was concerned, he could say that when he had the honor of contesting the election for the Superintendency a few years ago, the question of re-union was one of the main subjects brought forward, and he had then declared that he hoped it would be accomplished during his term of office, and that expression of opinion met with a ve y kearty response throughout the country. He did not think that he need occupy the time of the House by going further into the matter. He looked upon the question, not from the narrow platform of the present, but from the broad platform of tbe future. He hoped the House would take a broad comprehensive view of |the subject, and that looking to the interests not only of the Provinces more immediately concerned, but of the whole colony, it would pass the second reading of this Bill by a large majority.