WESTLAND AFFAIRS IN THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Grey River Argus, Issue 154, 8 January 1867, Page 3

WESTLAND AFFAIRS IN THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

DEBATE ON THE ESTIMATES; (Abridged from the ' LtjUdtun Times.) Friday, December 28. The debate was opened by Major Hornbrook, member for Port Victoria, who wished the Government to consider the marked difference between East and West Canterbury. He thought that tbe Government should not open up tracks and roads to the diggings before they were bring worked. The population was too uncertain to warrant the large expenditure on permanent works contemplated by the Government. Mr BaiGirr said lie was surprised at the tone which the lion, and gallant member for Port Victoria had assumed iv speaking of Westland affairs. He might be pardoned if he said that the hon. and gallant gentleman had displayed a most lamentable ignorance on the subject on which he had ventured to address the House. Such ignorance, however, was by no means uncommon on this side of the range. The hon. gentleman had said that the population of Westland was a ~ fluctuating or itinerant population. This assertion only served to show that the hon. gentleman was not aware of the real facts of the case. ;He could assure the House that the population of Westland was to the full as permanent a population as that of Eastland. it only required a visit to the various mining centres to show this. If hon. members could go there at that moment and judge for themselves, they would see such proofs of permanency, would perceive such undeniable marks of fixedness, as would at once and for e>'er dispel from their minds any idea of fluctuation. [The hon. gentleman then dwelt at length on what he conceived to be the particular wants of Westland, and defended the representatives of the district from certain charges which had beeii brought against them with regard to the manner in which they had voted on Eastland affairs.] . He had no sympathy with those who were inclined to advocate the separation of Westland. He could not disguise from himself the fact that the Provincial system was doomed, and he thought those who advocated the separation of the disttict which he and his hon. colleagues -had the honor to represent hail failed to realise the great— he might say insurmountable— difficulties which would be thrown in the way of the creation of another province. So far was he from advocating separation that he thought it was particularly fortunate that a community such as Westland, springing into vigorous life nlmoat at once, and leaping from one stage of its existence to another with giant strides, should have by its side such a community as existed on the eastern side of the ranges. He would remind the House of the high and solemn duty which it owed to Westland, would urge upon it the necessity of watching over, and guiding the destinies of a new country. He believed in the good intentions ' of the Government towards Westland, and was ever ready to recognise the amicable spirit in which he and his colleagues had been met by the Honse. He trnsted that notwithstanding what had fallen from the honf and gallant member who had resumed the debate the- Council would be prepared to Westlaud affairs in a generous U Wit. ;>. ;]Mh Thomsox had hoped that the Govern£rv\ut would give some idea of v policy, not IW>-for-.W.C3tland, but for" tho whole Pro-

viuce. They had failed to do so, and the House was left to conjecture .as to whether the Government had any policy at all, or whether, having a policy, it was such as his Honor the Superintendent approved of. The estimates for Westland, which were now before the House, were not such as to in- > spire confidence, and the Government had left the House in ignorance as to their reasons for placing certain sums on those esti-' mates. They seemed to be relying on the commission which was to be appointed, ami which, as it appeared to him, was to teach the Government their duty. As to the sum placed ou the Westland estimates to be : derived from tbe sale of land, he would ask hon. members to discard it at once from their thoughts. It gave a most unreal and most illusory show of wealth, and would only lead to further unpleasantness. Mr Bkswick. said he had listened attentively to the remarks made by the ■•: hon . member for Timaru (Mr Thomson), but ho j had really failed to understand what the hon. gentleman meant. He complained that the Government had given no indication of a policy, either ;is regards the East or West Coast. Was not the policy of the Government clearly indicated in the estimates they had brought down ? The Government could not frame a policy with regard to the future government of Westland till the commission which it was intended to appoint had given in its report. It was certainly a most novel .proposition that the large sums to be expended on public works in Westlaud should come out of the land fund os the whole Province. The estimated revenue of Westlaud was far beyond the estimated expenditure, and the Government would holi the balance as a guarantee for the payment of the debt due by West to East Canterbury. Mr Bahff said the remarks which had been made by the hon, and gallant member for Port Victoria had displayed nothing so much as a dense ignorance of the West Coast and its alfairs. The hon. gentleman had said that the population was itinerant, and would rush oft" somewhere else if it thought by doing so to better itself. Did not the same remarks apply universally ? Would the hod. gentleman assert that he would not go elsewhere if he thought be aould do better for himself ? Such an assertion was childish. The hon. member had also said that it was uuadvisable to coustruct roads iv advance of tie population. Before making such' a remark it would have been well to enquire \Vhuther, in aiiy one instance, such a thing had been done. He (Mr Barff) was not aware that it had, and lie believed that he was pretty well informed on the alfairs of the district 119 hail the ; honor to represent. The lion, gentleman concluded his remarks by saying that the more he thought abort- the subject, the less he knew about it. Such an admission was not calculated to add weight to anything the hon. member might have said previously. It did not seem to have occurred to him that if he kuew so little about the subject he was speaking on he ought to have said less. The hon. member for Timaru had said that there was no use for a commission on Westland affairs, and that the House, advised by the Westland members, was competent to deal with the subject. He could not agree with this view of the case. He had himself felt very considerable diffidence in advising the Government on several occasions when his advice was asked for, for the simple reason that he did not consider himself possessed of all the information which might be had on tho spot. With regard to the debt alleged to be due by Westlaud, he would only say that his constituents .was most anxious to know what that debt was. They had no wish to evade it ; on the contrary, they were most anxious to settle it honorably and fairly. It was possible that the sum of L-W, 000 might not be realised from land sales on the West Cocst. This was exactly one of those points which it was necessary for the commission to inquire about. The people of Westland had no desire to be relieved from their just share of any expense which might be incurred for general executive purposes. He was glad to see that the West Coast estimates had undergone several changes. These changes were assuredly for the better. . Mr Whall had been astonished to hear from the hon. member for Port Victoria that there were extensive public buildings on the West Coast. He (Mr Whall) had travelled a good deal in the district, and he could not recollect having seen any of these buildings. It had been said that the Hokitika members had no provincial position in the Council— that they were mere delegates from Westland, and not entitled to speak on matters affecting the general interests of the Province. He, for one, denied this. He felt that he had a provincial position in that Council, and that he. M*as fully to comment 011 any subject if he thougHt proper to do so. (Hear, hear.) A great deal had been said about the West Coast having no land fund. If hon. members would turn to the estimates now before the 'House they would find a large sum set down for gold export duty. Was that not derived from the land ? Was the sum set down for miners' rights not drawn from the land as much as the money paid for pasturage rents ou the plains of East Canterbury ? When hon. members said that Westland had no land fund, they did not consider these .things. He was most anxious that a commission should be appointed to inquire into the affairs of Westland. At this stage the House adjourned for a quarter of an hour. Tho House resumed at 9.45. Mr Wyxk Williams said that he could not allow the debate to go on without reference to some misconception which appeared to prevail in the minds of the members for the West Coast. The position in which affairs stood was this — that Westland was virtually another province. The members for Westland voted for the Government from the force .of circumstances. The members of Westlaud had virtually the Government in their hands, and there was really no responsible government iii the province. Mr Bkigiit explained. Mr Wy.\x Williams continued: If the revenues from any particular district were voted for its own use, every district would have a right to have its income spent upon it. It would be better for Westland to have its own revenues in its own hands than to have them spent by a Government residing on this side of the range. If this view were carried out, it would be better for the province to be divided; this course would be best for both parties. Mr Hall defended the Government of which he had been a member, and said that any Government would have been unpopular in Westland at that time. He was in favor of a division of the province. Without the least wish to injure Westland, or the slightest unfriendly feeling towards the inhabitants, he thought that separation would be best for the two portions of the province. Their physical position, their interests, and their local requirements were totally distinct. On the notice paper of the day their were four propositions which showed the dissimilarity of the interests of the two parts of the province. The expenditure drawn from the coffers of the eastern side had caused dissatisfaction here, and had produced no satisfactory result on the other side. The hon. gentlemen at the head of the Government seemed to entertain the delusion that Westland could be satisfactorily governed from this side. There was a growing desire on the part of the eastern portion of the province to separate from the western, and he thought it better that that movement should take place white a kindly spirit prevailed than when the t ■ ■

two parties were acting under a sense of anger and disappointment. He was sure that a local government on both sides of the range would be the most advantageous for the interests of both sides of the province. The Government had most ingeniously endeavored to tide over the. diiliculty by appoint- 1 ing a .commission. This was a most clever device. He objected to the proposed commission, because it was to be composed of Westland residents, who were to decide upon the indebtedness of the Western portion of the province. He asked any reasonable man if this was a proper tribunal to refer the question to. Mr Stewaut explained that the commission was to be established to determine upon the proper organization* of the government of Westland. Mr Hall remarked that if, as was stated, the population of Westland would be a permanent one, it was an additional reason why a separate form of Government should be adopted for the two portions of the province. He thought that the question of the West Coast expenditure should be left in a great degree to tho Westlaud members, who ought to be the best judges as to how the money voted ought to be expended. Mr JoLi.iK defended his Government against the charges of having neglected Westland. Mr ' Dun-can hoped that the day was far distant when the province should be divided as far as Provincial Government was concerned . It would 'be the pride and boast of Canterbury to cope with the great difficulty of the geographical features of the province. It was not right to talk of dismembering the proviuee. Union was strength, and united Canterbury would yet be the richest and most prosperous portion of the colony of New Zealand. He hoped to see Lyttelton made. the harbor of the West Coast by means iof railway communication. The proposed commission was a most desirable arrangement ;it wo M UI uot be composed exclusively of West Cou'oii- s residents, but would be a mixed one, and much useful information would be elicited by means of it. Mr Hawkics, as being well acquainted with the requirements of the West Coast, had very great pleasure in endorsing the sentiments of the Provincial Solicitor. He regretted that the member for Itakaia should have spoken as he had done. Had he possessed an intimate acquaintance with the true state of the circumstances of Westland he would never have given utterance to such sentiments. He approved of the intended commission. Had it been appointed at an earlier date all the jealousies and grievances which had arisen would have been obviated. All the land in Westland ought to be thrown open to public sale. He hoped next session to see the estimates brought down as those, of the whole of Canterbury. In discussing the estimates he should endeavor to do so as •a Canterbury member, and not as a member either for one part of the province or another. Mr Oassius remarked that there was a sameness in the debate which was almost tiresome. The Westland people were satisfied with the road which had been made, but they were dissatisfied with the lavish expenditure which had been bestowed upon it. He thought that the Commissioner of the West Coast had too much power. Large sums {Iliad been spent without any tender being advertised for. The late Government were, of course, responsible for this, and not the present. He thought that the aceonnts of East and West Canterbury ought to be kept separately. Self-government v nder the supervision of the Provincial Council was the most desirable institution for Westland. Road Boards and Mining Boards would greatly facilitate the good government of the western portion of Canterbury. He hoped that an end would be put to the jealousies ami grievances of the two sections of the Province. A. broad field t.f generous competition would be far. preferable. The members of the West Coast would, he hoped, form a link between the two districts, and would help to cement the union. Mr Stewart replied. He thoroughly endorsed the remarks of Mr Cassius. A clamour had been made for the road between the two sides of the Province. That road was now made, and lie hoped that no more would be said about it. He believed that it had proved the bond of union between the two districts. Mr Stewart then gcive some explanations with regard to the proposed commission, and the system of keeping the estimates of the two districts separate. He mentioned some of the duties of the Commission, and pointed out the allocation of the debt. Such portion of the debt as was fairly due to the eastern district would ba required from Westland, and he was sure that the West Coast members would not object to this course. Much had been said about the separation of the two districts. Mr Hall had made 11 most exhaustive speech. But, whilst admiring Mr Hall's speech, he entertained an objection to a separation between the two sides of Canterbury. Perhaps it might eventually become a matter of necessity, but he hoped the day for such a' necessity was far distant. The Government had no intention of consulting His Honor the Superintendent as to whether he approved of their policy or not. They were put into their present position to advise his Honor, and if any difference arose between himself and them, they were perfectly aware of the course which iv that cose they ought to pursue. He was sure thai theadjustment of the debt due from the West Coast would be amicably carried out. Mr Hall had stated that the Government m-jis in the happy state of promises.' He (Mr Stewart) was sure that the Government, promises wonld not prove political pie-crusts, only made to be broken. The items of the estimates would be discussed in committee. The Government had no wish to burke any discussiou which might arise]; on the contrary, they were desirous to afford the House any information in their powor. The motion was put and carried, and the House went into committee on the estimates.