The Evening Star. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 1876.

Evening Star, Issue 4265, 27 October 1876, Page 2

The Evening Star. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 1876.

There is an old proverb about the uselessness of shutting the stable door after the horse has been stolen. It is one that commends itself to everyone’s mind when preventive measures have beta neglected until attempt at remedy is useless. His Honor the Superintendent seems to us to have been placed in a dilemma by his advisers. Abolition is an accomplished fact; the Provincial Council sat quiescent duringtheoperation of extinguishing it; its members never mustered nor raised a protest against it, but left the work of resistance to an ill-organiser l and badly conducted Opposition, which pioved incompetent to the work it undertook. It is, therefore, difficult to divine what object is to be gained by the con-

ference of magnates, invited in terms of his Hovor's oir ul«r, to extricate “ the ■ ro ■ ''m :ivc:. ■ c •

. tit ’0; ■ lor ~i I’c.-vinc.;., Vh f * verbiage is cloudy enough to embrace aii>.i eoverauy wild and visionary project that mav l av., beam brewing in the iiumts of membeii?. of the Political Association, who, we are in- I dined to think, are pulling the strings and, in. i niitation of the monkey that usedthe cat’s paw • to get the chestnuts out of the fir , are* placing his Honor in front to bear the brunt;: of their ill-advised dying struggles. We doi?ot suppose the muster will be very largo, although the time and circumstances a're skilfully chosen. By the Bth of next morPth Parliament will have closed its session, and as some amusements are expected to take place on the following day, a number of Mayors, Chairmen of Distiict Road Boards, Local Education Committee-men, and others may “ kill twobirds with one stone,” and form a sort of “ Gave of Adullam ” in the Provincial Council Chamber, We have sufficient confidence in his Honor’s good sense and loyalty to believe that he will not sanction, any course of action of a seditious or revolutionary character. We cannet say so much for many of the zealots who seem to imagine that all good rests in Provincialism. It is high time that that delusion was abandoned. Nobody denies the benefit Provincialism conferred when settlements were remote from each other and communication difficult, but all sound politicians agree that those impediments removed, unity of law and district administration of it are likely to be far more beneficial, as they tend to equalise the advantages that each Colonist has a right to share. Provincialism interfered with equality of administration, raised local prejudices, fostered local jealousies, frittered away revenue in a variety of ways, raised money at ruinous interest, meddled with many things, perfected few things, was powerless to carry out schemes of wide utility, and placed artificial barriers to the homogeneity of the Colony. It is assumed that the measures substituted are fraught with evil, but that is mere matter of speculation. No measure is p- rfectv cl at once ; and, therefore, Parliaint nt will need to revise its own work, just as the Imperial Parliament has been doing s ; iice the days of Henry the Seventh. j3ut the fallacy that underlies such assumptions is the insinuation that evil.'* will result from the adoption of a new system that had no existence in that which is superseded. This is the style of argument "hat was used in opposition to vote by ballot. It was assumed it would lead to bribery, hypocrisy, and corruption, as it no such crimes had before existed, notwithstanding the black revelations before Select Committees, the riot and disorder at i lections, and the volumes of Parliamentary enactments professing to devise remedies for those immoralities. It may be fairly conceded that all forms of government are only comparatively good or bad. Even the best laws, badly administered, are intolerable, while the 'worst, wisely exercised, may he made to prove beneficial. Very possibly this Convention may work good. There can be no harm in meeting to consider that which is new in administration, if the questions are discussed m a fair, temperate, and rational spirit. Tho-e who have been engaged in the actual conflict of parties in Wellington, and whose feelings have been excited by party warfare, may be pardoned if they exceed the bounds of fairness. They have their conduct to excuse and justify to the public ; but the cool common sense of Icokera-on will not readily respond to imprudent counsels. There is much to be gained and nothing to be lost by “unity of spirit and (a) bond of peace and whether his Honor’s invitation be f widely or sparsely responded to, we hope the I chief end of the Convention will be how best to render the new measures conducive to the true moral and material interests of the people. It must not be overlooked that whatever takes place, this cannot be a representative meeting, but one of individuals, who may each entertain views not in the slightest degree binding upon the community. They may utter the wisest truth or the moat foolish sophisms, or recommend the most prudent or the most revolutionary course of action; but they have no power to decree, and must bear the blame or praise of their own doings. Their functions are, therefore, not more potent than those of a debating society. For good or for evil they are powerless beyond the moral effect of their ideas, and we trust the influence of them will be to blot out all past heartburnings and to unite all classes in a common determination to work out the new arrangements so as to secure to the community the highest blessings of peace, order, and good and equal government.