THE GLOBE. FRIDAY, JUNE 27, 1879.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1670, 27 June 1879, Page 2

THE GLOBE. FRIDAY, JUNE 27, 1879.

Harbor matters are exorcising the minds of the residents of Wellington to no inconsidoi’able extent. Is the City Council to hare control, or is a Harbor Board to bo formed ? The lately elected Mayor and a largo following in the City Council are for the former, but the Chamber of Commerce and most sensible men are for the latter. Mr. Hutchison, however, is popularly credited with having “ got hold of the Premier by the wool” on the subject. A deputation from the Chamber of Commerce waited on Sir George Grey the other day, and that section of the local press which disagrees with the views held by Mr. Hutchison and his following, were by no means delighted with the reception the said deputation received. The vaguest generalities are, of course, in nine cases out of ten, to bo expected from our Premier, but, on this occasion, the deputation, after sifting bushels of platitudes, came, after much mental exertion, to the conclusion that Sir George was rather against the object they sought to obtain than for it. It certainly will not add to the popularity of the Ministy in Wellington if, through their aid, the present municipal misrule of the harbor is perpetuated. Indeed, to an outsider the idea of a City Council adding to its other duties the care of one of the principle harbors in Now Zealand

appears utterly ridiculous. Supposing our own Councillors to bo burdened with the affairs of the Lyttelton Harbor in addition to their present duties, would it bo possible to conceive a more awful fiasco than would occur ? Imagine, for instance, Councillors Cass and Wilson airing their eloquence on nautical affairs ? Imagine a deputation of “ old salts ” being present at one of those stormy meetings, which will make our present Councillors historical personages? Captains, who had not quailed before the wildest hurricane, would grow pale before the fury of a Wilson. Should Councillor Cass hold forth the oldest skipper's ideas on the general principles of navigation would become utterly subverted, and he would probably fetch the south pole in a vain effort to reach Gravesend. Unless, indeed, the municipal body in power in Wellington is vastly different from that with wlilch we are saddled, the shipping interest there is, in good truth, in a sorry plight. To ordinary minds it would seem somewhat extraordinary that the Wellington City Council should bo so anxious to continue to possess a power which it must feel is beyond its strength. The thirst for power, however, is not confined to conquerors and the larger fry of the political arena. The gentlo bosom of a municipal magnate is quite capable of being filled with thoughts which, except in the matter of magnitude and capacity, are quite akin to the ideas that fire the braiu of a more lofty genius. Wellington is not the best drained, or the best lighted, or the best paved town in the world, but that the Council consider to bo quite beside thd question. It would see earth air and water at its foot. Nothing loss will content it, and Sir George Grey apparently sympathises with the municipal longings. Indeed there is a common bond of thought between the Premier and the Council. The Wellington City Council yearn for a vague rule which it could never hope to grasp completely. The Premier is possessed of a flabby idea that he was born to be a general benefactor to the human race.

We are glad to soo that a movement is being made by tho borough of Sydenham for the establishment of a Magistrate's Court therein. Such a Court would tend to lighten the labors of the Christchurch magistrate very considerably, and is certainly required. For a time, it might bo made a Mayor’s Court, with power to deal with the smaller cases and with civil jurisdiction up to a certain amount. So soon as the growth of tho population demanded it, a Resident Magistrate might be appointed to act as coadjutor to tho Christchurch one. Such a Court would be of great convenience to the residents in Sydenham, as they could then have their cases settled without tho loss of time, and consequent increasing of expense, now caused by their having to come to Christchurch. As wo have pointed out also, it would relievo the Christchurch Court a good deal, which is a consideration, as already the Resident Magistrate has his hands full. Wo hope that the Sydenham people will, with tho aid of the city members, find no difficulty in carrying into practical effect an arrangement which will so much conduce to the comfort and well being of all classes of the community, both in Christchurch and Sydenham.