The Evening Star SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1873

Evening Star, Issue 3315, 4 October 1873, Page 2

The Evening Star SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1873

The Governor’s Speech on proroguing the General Assembly, yesterday, is a very guarded affair, and judiciously so. Almost necessarily it is nearly confined to a recognition of what has been done, and makes very slight mention of what has not been accomplished. The general impression is that very little good has been effected this session, and therefore some surprise will be felt at the statement that “ tbe labors of the session have been more than usually important.” Such an opinion emanating from so high an authoiity, as a matter of course, should lead to a review of events, in order to correct any erroneous idea that may have gone abroad on the subject. In support of the assertion that the As sembly has passed “more than usually important measures,” special mention is made of the arrangements for “ cable telegraphy” with Australia, the endowment of the North Island with land, the “ Native Land Act,” and the Life Assurance Act. The first named needs no comment. It is an expensive necessity, which, however, will repay its cost by affording] commercial information and facilities required to enable New Zealand to maintain its position in the Industrial world. It is to be hoped the endowment of the North Island with land will be the last special expense to which the Colony will be put for the sake of that most costly dependency upon the Middle Island. If it should be so, the money will be well invested. One fact seems now evident; there is now a tendency to strengthen rather than destroy Provincialism. Whether the islands would be better concentrated into two great Provinces, or whether it in preferable to continue the territorial divisions as at present constituted, seems more doubtful than it appeared sojne years ago. Before the passing of the Loans Consolidation Act, when the North Island was rapidly draining the wealth of the South for internal improvements, as well as defence, separation seemed the only remedy. Localisation of expenditure has been and is the great necessity in these Colonies. But even had separation been then effected, the question of one government for each island must have been something to be decided. The advocates of such an amalgamation of Provinces base their arguments upon the folly of supporting five Governments where one would do. They say the expense of the present system is too great for the results; that men of a superior class would be sent to represent the various constituencies, and that legislation would be better adapted to the requirements of the populations. If this could be proved as probable, there would be a prima facie case made out for a change. But a careful watching of the working of concentration of legislation has a tendency to shake faith in it. The events that have occurred each session since the prosecution of public works by the Colony have pointed unmistakeably to utilising Provincial institutions instead of abolishing them. Politics is not an exact science. Human passions, interests, influence and inteltn mpnsnif>mpnt; they must alwajj c unhßßs quantities, incommensurable by any formula contrived or uncontrived. In estimating their values, therefore, wo are reduced to reasoning from analogies more or less exact. : We cannot even

say that because a certain portion of th population comprises such a proportion of merchants, tradesmen, farmers, and squatters, it will be a progressive or a stagnant district unless it could be stated howv'lfar the were dependent upon'the squatters arid formers. If that we ascertained; far. less difficulty would present itself, for; if dependent, it may be set down as a dead, certainty that, under such a c6tfdition, progress would be impossible, unless the projected improvements would multiply the value of their estates at the expense of the public. It follows, therefore, that too large a proportion of tlrat class in any Legislative Assembly has a tendency to one-sided legislation, or to keep matters in statu quo. This is the reason why such determined resistance has been made to every measure designed to localise expenditure, so as to lay upon local owners of property the cost of improvements in their own districts; ■ The CodoYiy, taken, as a whole, is not fairly represented, either in the ,Council or House of Representatives. In the Council especially,; the element of stagnation, excepting at other people’s expense, finds undisguised expression; and considering the infant condition of manufacturing and mining industry in the Middle Island, it seems more than probable that 1 the Munro class, very respectable, very wealthy, and very well content with things as they are, would predominate, were there but one government for the whole. Then what has happened in Wellington would be equally likely in the Middle Island. The smaller and nearly landless Provinces would hang themselves upon the others, and by combination amonst each other, and with interested or ignorant parties representing the larger, would contrive to divide and weaken them. Log-rolling would be as rife,'as corrupt, and as shameless as in Wellington, That thewe are essential differences in the legislation required for the two islands we quite believe, but it may be met by Provincial better than general governing bodies. Could a sound system of representation be adopted whereby no one or two interests were permitted to over-ride the rest, we can see great advantages from a division of the Colony into North and South Provinces ; but with the light of the experience of the past three years, we confess ourselves doubtful as to the good to be gained by it. One important fact pointing strongly in that direction, however, ought not to be lost sight of: it was not the Representatives but the Council who would not consent to bear taxation for their own . interest. Not the least advantage of one government for each island would be getting rid of the obstruction of the Legislative Council.