PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Evening Star, Issue 3837, 11 June 1875, Page 3

PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Thursday, June 12.

In moving that his-Honor the Superintendent .be requested to take such measures as will prevent the Dunedin Harbor Board from levying dues on the railway jetties at Port Chalmers, Mr M'Dermid said his object was to restrain the Board so as not, to permit them to tax goods which might never come to Dunedin at all. There was now a large quantity of wool brought from north and south which did not come, 'through Dunedin, and he thought it unrighteous and unfair to tax this produce to open up a channel of communication net required at all. The only supporter of the motion was Mr MANDERB,.who supported it, not as a question as between Dunedin and Port Chalmers, bnt as It involved additional taxation. The motion was opposed by Mr Mills and Mr M'GlashaN, who pointed out that there; was an absolute necessity for levying dues; and by the. Provincial Secretary, who thought Mr M‘Dermid’s zeal had outstepped his judgment. It was to’ the interest of consumers in the Province to have the* proposed dues imposed. If the Harbor Buard had the funds to cany on its work, in eighteen months or two years a groat saving would be effected to consumers by vessels being able to discharge at Dunedin. Mr Rbevbb argued it was not Port Chalmers that was taxed if dues were levied on the Railway Pier. There was no disguising the fact that for years past the cost of the Harbor Department had been a drag on the revenue of the Province, and until more revenue was got it would be impossible for the Board to carry out its functions. If 2s a ton were charged at the jetties at Dunedin and Is per ton at the railway jetty at Port Chalmers, a sum would be raised which would pay interest on a loan of L 40.000 or L 50.000. Such a sum per ton, even on salt, was ridiculously low. The motion was negatived. The following, proposed by .Mr Millls, was agreed to :—“ That an address be presented to his Hbhor the Superintendent, requesting that he will, in assenting to the Harbor Board of Otago levying dues on the Railway Jetties at Port Chalmers, provide that a corresponding increase be made cn the dues levied at the Dunedin Wharves.”

Despite a dozen speeches and a compact with the member for Oamarn town, the latter inducing- Mr Moody to liken the hon member for Waihopai to the man with |lhe ass, Mr Wood did not succeed in getting jiistice done to the Invercargill Hospital Immediately on his moving that LSOO should be Voted for the purpose^©?'increasing the subsides to the Invercargill and Dunedin Hospitals, Mr Fish moved the reduction ef the item to L2OO, and the omnaissiop of Oamaru, as the Hospital there ha<L besides a landed estate, 1.2,000 to its credit. The reduction of the amount was was agreed to by 2 to 7, and the omissions of the words “and Oamaru,” by 18 to 12, Thereupon Mr M‘Lean obtained a further reduction of the item to LSO, and Mr Wood intimated that he declined to accept such a paltry sum. ; The recommendation of the Petitions Committee that LSOO should be voted to Mr Geo. Dodson, gave rise to considerable discussion. It was opposed by Mr Tubton, who considered the amount was not only exorbitant, but that nothing should be paid; by Mr Turnbull, who complained that neither he nor Mr Bastings had been asked to give evidence ; by Mr Haggitt, who could not imagine why LSOO had been recommended, when the jury only awarded L 200; and by the] Provincial Secretary, who said if the money'were voted it would imply that the Council affirmed the claim for costs. If it had been recommended to .. .waive the costs it would have been reasonable; but to vote LSOO would be placing the Government in this position: they defended an action in which the plaintiff was unsuccessful, whereupon the Council should refund the individual as large a sum as if the case had never gone against him. The recommendation of the Committee was endorsed J>y Mr M'Dermid, who thought that Mr Dodson was only getting half what he should; by Mr Beeves, who considered the Government had acted disgracefully in this matter ; by Mr Gillies, who considered it the duty of the Government to have at once paid the award of.the jury, and that the Government had no right to take advantage of a mere legal quibble, and lake the case into the Appeal Court—forcing an individual member of society to defend a case which had been already determined; and by Mr Dbiver, who contended that the Government had no right to take advantage of a technical point. To plead that the Superintendent could not be sued, and at the same time for the Superintendent to sue people, was not an honorable position to take np. Motions te reduce the sum by L 250, aiM to refer the matter to the Committee were negatived, and the vote was agreed to.

In Committee of Supply L 2,000 was voted to the ■ formation of a road from Alexandra to Waikaia Bush; L2OO for a cattle driving roa(l from the N.E, Valley to the main South road Ll5O as compensation to James Stuart, and L9O as compensation to Bichard Quin;; The Government intimated that they intended to place LSOO on the Supplementary Estimates to assistthe General Government iii making another attemptTo introduce salmon. ■ In order to enable hon. members to attend the funeral- of the late Mr Hawthorne,' the Council met at 2, as usual, and adjourned for an hour.

, In answer to questions, the Government stated (1) That they did not intend to place ja sum on thfc Supplementary Estimates for the erection of the 'Maerewhenua Bridge, (2.) That they did not intend to take any steps asi to-the for Athenaeums and Mechanics’ Institutions that were disjallowed by the General Assembly, so that ( those , institutions might , be equitably dealt with.' ■ ? .It ; had . been ; /suggested ithat all the endowments should be nujged into one, and a proportionate share of the proceeds divided among them (and the Provincial Secretary, who answered the question of Mr Sumpter, thought this would be the most equitable plan), but districts that had already got endowments did net see it in that lights ; . -

! Petitions were presented-from residents at Switzers, praying that certain lands might not be included in the proposed Educational endowments ; and from residents at Ancleison’s ® a 7, Paying that it might be declaie l a separate road district.