WELLINGTON.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1651, 5 June 1879, Page 3

WELLINGTON.

[from odr own correspondent.j June I. The Mayoral election resulted in the return of Mr Hutchison, and ef course the so-called Liberal party are very jubilant, and threaten us with his Worship as one of the candidates for the House, and I fear he will have every chance of being returned. He signalised his tailing the mayoral chair by a speech to the councillors, which his friends, of course, applaud for its boldness, but his opponents consider remarkable for its unblushing effrontery and impudence. All the councillors opposed him at the election, and, natur lly enough, no one of them made a congratulatory speech on his entry into the Chamber. He at once took them ’to task for not giving him the right hand of fellowship, told them in effect that it was very indecent of them to take any part in the contest, and very plainly intimated that he meant to carry things with a high hand, and that he had a very different notion of the duties of Mayor from that which bis predecessor entertained. He seems to think that the Mayor is very far from being merely the chairman of the Council, and that ho is really a governing body quite independent of the Council. By his casting vote, the motion for taking immediate steps to promote the formation of a Harbor Board was lost, and the question, therefore shelved. But, fortunately, the supporters of the Harbor Board have a majority in the Council, though one of them was absent that night, and the motion will accordingly be brought on again. The opposition of the Hutchison party to a Harbor Board is something incredible, because the principal merchants here, and most persons really interested in the welfare of this eity are anxious 'to do something for the improvement of the harbor, which they think cannot be done without a Harbor Board. Mr Hutchison is bitterly opposed to it, on the ground that the city will be robbed of some of its endowments. This cry is of course rradily’taken up by the working classes, who forget that anything which helps to increase the trade and commerce of the place will benefit all classes alike. The Governor gave a sort of semi-official dinner on the Queen’s birthday to the judges and a number of other gentlemen. Some surprise seems to have been expressed that the foreign consuls were not asked. The Wellington Club gave His Excellency a dinner last Wednesday, which went off very well. , , We have bad a great deal of very wet weather here lately, and the roads have been in a shocking state, though one dry day, with the help of a strong Wellington wind, soon dries them again. Some of the roads in the suburbs, however, notably the Adelaide road, have been in a fearful state. With that sublime folly which is characteristic of municipal bodies, our City Council chooses this time of the year as the time to alter the levels of some of these roads, which of course renders them still worse. We shall never have good roads in Wellington until wo get better road metal. A football., jnatch was played the other night in the Basin Reserve by aid of electric light, but it was rather a failure. The persons who bad the management of the lighting apparatus did not appear to be very well up to the mark.

The Native news is anything but satisfactory. Wo look anxiously for the meeting of Parliament, that wo may have an opportunity of really knowing what has been done. There is some talk of Mr Ormond’s intention to move a direet vote of no confidence, but I do not know whether it is true or not. It is the general impression, however, that Parliament will not long bo in session before the Government will be placed in such a position that they will be compelled to resign or aik for a dissolution, which I suppose cannot well bo refused to them now, I hope, however, that before a dissolution takes place we shall got a Redistribution of Seats Bill passed. The Government scheme will give Wellington another seat. With the prospect of a dissolution there is a good deal of talk now as to whom wo should get as candidates for Wellington in addition to Mr Hutchison. It seems doubtful whether Mr Pearce would stand again, and also os to Mr Hunter. I do not think that Mr Barton will have any chance hero, as he ruined his chances by his opposition to the Thomdon Reclamation Bill. Mr Travers will not attempt to enter Parliament again for some time, and I really know of no gentlemen who are at all likely to offer themselves. There is some talk of Mr Walter Johnston standing for the city in lieu of his present constituency, and Dr. Bullcr’s name is also mentioned, but it is not likely that both of these gentlemen would stand for the city. If one of them offered for the city, the other would go to Manawatu. The block of business in our Resident Magistrate’s Court is becoming a serious matter. Mr Mansford works very hard, and speedily, but cases have to stand over sometimes four or five times before they can be heard. Mr Mansford has far too much to do. The Government promised a second Magistrate, but afterwards declined to appoint one till they got a Parliamentary vote for his salary. The legal profession are memorialising the Minister of Justice on the subject. Their wish is to get an R.M. appointed to do nil the criminal and licensing work, with jurisdiction in civil cases up to £2O only. Mr Mansford then to sit almost daily as District Judge, taking all other cases in that capacity. If this arrangement is to work at all satisfactorily, however, the District Court procedure and practice will have to bo simplified, and assimilated to that of the Resident Magistrate’s Court. To my mind, however, the proper remedy is to make the Supreme Court Judges do at any rate the greater portion of the District Court work. They have not enough to do in the Supreme Court to enable them to become really effi-

oient Judges. They talk too much and dawdle over their work and allow cases to last days which would at Home be disposed of in so many hours. In this way we should have the best judicial talent of the colony doing the real judicial work of the colony, for undoubtedly the greater part of New Zealand judicial business is now conducted in the District Courts or by the Magistrates under heir extended jurisdiction.