The Globe. TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1877.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 854, 20 March 1877, Page 2

The Globe. TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1877.

The recent constitutional changes have taken place so quietly and with so little confusion, that our Provincialist friends are quite taken aback. The , T vc.7, rruum ue ail tended with, not only political, but social confusion. With the departure of elected superintendents and elected provincial councils, we were informed, that all political freedom would disappear, and we would sink into a condition of abject political slavery, unless energetic steps were taken to oppose the change. No such steps have been taken, and we are accordingly told that we have received for provincial institutions absolute Centralism; that we are relieved from all the anxiety and i trouble of ehosing and electing our local executive officers; that in fact we have no choice in their selection • and have no control over their conduct. Such is a provincialist exposition of: the new system of government. How l entirely it is not in accordance with I fact we need not insult our readers by j explaining at length. Englishmen, \ and especially colonists, are not I in the habit of calmly, and of their S own free will, divesting themselves of’ their political rights. The County Councils, Road Boards, and munici- ; palities, under the new Act, confer upon us far more real self-government than we ever had under provincial j governments. The tendency of other i recent legislation has also been in the j same direction. The management of j education, and our harbours, has been j placed in the hands of local bodies. The County Couucils have got absolute ! power over the surplus land revenue, I and the powers of the Provincial 1 Councils have not been usurped by the j Genual Government in this matter, j It is true that certain departments i have been handed over to the Central authorities, such as the railways, the surveys, &c. But no one in his senses will maintain that we are parting with our political rights by so doing. The fact is that the recent changes have been carried into effect without the slightest difficulty, and provincial institutions have passed away all but uoregretted, because the colony has entirely outgrown them. «. It is a pity that the Provitcialists can not let the question of abolition alone The change which that Act brought about was the necessary result of the progress of the colony. But if is is to be discussed at all now, the least wt can expect of those discussing it is a truthful statement of the question involved. Of course it is a matter of opinion whether we have “ disfranchised ” ourselves by transferring local

administration from the hands of Superintendents and Provincial Councils to County Councils and other

local bodies; but it is not a matter of opinion but one of fact, whether the state of things which existed since the passing of the Abolition Act till the beginning of the present year, was in any way to be regarded as the result of Abolition. We maintain that it is misrepresenting facta to a-sort any such thing. That Act only came into force at the beginning of the present year. We have to thank the Provincialists for the two years’ reign of Superintendents and Provincial Executives. Although defeated at the general elections by overwhelming majorities, and although but a small minority in the House, they refused to accept the voice of the people, and so rather than continue to waste the public funds any longer the majority gave way, and agreed to postpone the bringing into force of the Act for another year. Hence it is that Superintendents and Provincial Executors have been allowed to rule “in darkness.” And if appropriations of Provincial money have been extravagantly made “by secret concert bet ween Superintendents and Cabinet Ministers,” no one is to blame but the prcvincialists themselves.

The latest intelligence from the Tha mes goldfields is of a most encouraging nature. The returns from two ot the large mines are great, and there is every prospect ot the yield continuing. In the Moanataiari mine a most important find has been made, and one which promises a rich harvest tor the shareholders. Not only is the stone exceedingly rich, but the gold is obtained at a lower level than has hitherto been worked. Speaking of the find a Northern contemporary says“runningthroughthe Moanatairari mine, and apparently in a continuous direction through the entire length of the Thames Peninsula, is what is technically known amongst miners as well as geologists as a ‘slide.’ These slides, as they are _ called, are generally found in gold mining districts in the neighbourhood of the richest goldfields, and rightly or wrongly they were supposed to _ carry the gold with them or m their immediate vicinity. Experience at the Thames has served to confirm this theory to a great extent, and in no instance more prominently or conclusively than in the Moanatairai Company’s mine.” There is every indication then pf a revival of Lbe naming has been in a very depressed state. Should those golden expectations be realised, we may look for a great revival of trade in Auckland. Not only will individuals gain, but the colony generally will be benefitted by the increased revenue which will be obtained.