PARLIAMENTARY ITEMS.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1753, 2 October 1879, Page 3

PARLIAMENTARY ITEMS.

[By Telegraph.]

WELLINGTON, October 1. The whole of lost night, from 7.30 to midnight, was occupied with the speeches of Mr Hall, Sir G. Grey and Mr Saunders. Mr Hall’s speech was quite a pattern to the House, and contained more than any other speech I remem’ er to have heard. He lost no time for show or flourish, but at once proceeded with an orderly array of circumstantial charges of a character that could easily be disproved, it untrue, and which could leave no doubt of the utter unfitness of the members of the Ministry for any office, if true. There was too a temper and impartial manner that left nothing to desire. When he sat down after speaking for an hour and a half, Sir |G. Grey found nothing that he could reply to, and simply made a few futile denials without a single fact or proof of any kind, and at once went off into his old speech, delivered at the Rink at Chris church, and the Princess Theatre, Dunedin, with some of the wildest parts left out. He spoke an hour and five minutes, and was followed by the member for Cheviot, who spoke an hour and a quarter, and condemned Sir G. Grey out of his own mouth. This afternoon Mr Speight made a long and fluent speech, which was based on information evidently inspired from his chief, and containing very little truth. His confidence is too complete and his manner too self-sufficient, and shows too much of the paid lecturer to be appreciated, and there was a thin House when he sat down. His command of language is groat, but marred with a slight accent, a little deficiency in his acquointance with Murray, and very vulgar manner and choice of terms towards hie opponents. Mr Snoight was followed by a member ox o widely different stamp, Col. Trimble, who is slightly less fluent, infinitely less self-suffi-cient, and who at once brought the House back to the business before it by some quiet unanswerable arguments, and some gentle* manly reproofs to Sir George Grey’s tirade against English statesmen. At 5.30 he was ; putting facts in juxtaposition with the Governments statements regarding Maori affairs, in a very effective manner. After a dreary speech from Mr Moss, the Opposition tried to get a division to-night, but after the ayes had been given Mr .Giiborne rose to prevent a division. The division would have been forty five against the Governmint. The Resident Magistrates Act, 1867, Amendwent Bill, introduced by Mr Pitt, oqn&\ns

o:ily one enacting clause, as follows : “ Whenever any corporation or incorporated company shall be a plaintiff in any Resident Magistrate’s Court, the application and deposition on oath required by section thirtyfour of tho Resident Magistrate’s Act, 1867, shall (if in other reipecta sufficient) be deemed sufficient, if made by any officer or agent of such corporation or insorporatsd company on behalf thereof.” It was reported this morning, on the authority of an ex-Minister, that a reconstruction of the Ministry will take place, with Mr Maoandrew as Premier, and Mr BaUanco as Treasurer. It was also stated that Mr Pyko would support this reconstruction.