VICTORIA.

Grey River Argus, Volume VI, Issue 386, 4 July 1868, Page 3

VICTORIA.

(From the Daily Times correspondent,) Melbourne, June 18th. The Sladen Administration still continues in office, but I can scarcely say in power ; for its operations are so thoroughly "cabin'd, cribb'd, confin'd," by the action of the Opposition in the Assembly, that. in Parliament at least, it may be regarded as no more capable of transacting any business than the benches upon which its membere sit. It is, of course, impossible that such a state of things as this can last .rery long ; but it is possible, nevertheless, that the Ministry may retain office until the vexed question of the Darling Grant shall have been settled. Of one thing there is no doubt, and that is, that the Ministry would now be only too glad to get that grant out of the way upon the terms of passing it in a separate Bill ; but seeing that the very issue placed before the constituencies at the late general elec tion was, not whether or not Lady DarJing should get money— for that question had been decided long before — but whether the vote should or should not be placed in the Appropriation Bill, the majority in the Assembly aflrm that they should be false to their pledges if they now consented to a compromise which would virtually give up the main point in dispute. The old Ministry and their supporters seem to think, however, that they have hit upon a third mode of arranging the present difficulties, what in legal phraseology would pc called a tertiumqdid, which ought to be adopted by both parties to the struggle, without loss of nonor to

either side ; and since it is a point of policy with the opposition to keep the present holders of ofiice, as it were spell bound, in their seats without power to meet hand or foot, except as the Majority of the House shall dictate, Mr M'Culloch, on behalf of that majority, has taken in hand the settlement of the question, in his own peculiar fashion. After due notice given, and a brief debate, the Standing Orders of the Assembly were last night suspended, in order to enable the late Chief Secretary to move — that on tho following evening, the House should resolve itself into a Committee of the whole, to consider a resolution to the effeot that " in the opinion of this House, it is expedient that a sum of L2,756',8Q5 13s Id be granted for the purpose of the Parliamentary supplies for the year 1887, as the same were granted by tho Into Legislative Assembly, and that an address be presented to His Excellency the Governor, praying, that he will bo pleased to recommend the said purpose by a message to the Legislative Assembly, under the 57ih section of the Constitution Act." The motion was carried without a division, after a protest against it from the Treasury Benches, on the ground of its irregularity. The answer to that objection being in effect, that the times were out of joint, and the whole system of strictly responsible Government in Victoria, just now in abeyance. There is no doubt, that the motion will be carried in Committee tliis evening, and then His Excellency the Governor and tho Legislative Assembly will be brought face to face, without the recognised intervention of a Ministry to which the latter refuses to concede the title of a responsible Government. In the event of the supplies for 1867 being granted in the mode thus proposed, the Darling Grant of L 20,000 will be included in them, and it is hoped that the Council may then be inclined to agree to pass the whole amount, and thus terminate the dead lock. It is indeed high time that the disputes should be settled in some way or other, for not only are thousands of private individuals suffering severely from the effects of our long continued financial crisis, but a number of charitable institutions in this city, and in other parts of the Colony, find themselves most seriously cramped in their operations for want of those Government " Grants in aid," on which they are to a considerable extent dependent. Foremost in its claims amongst those charities is the Melbourne Hospital, which, in spite of certain charges which have recently been levelled against its management, may fairly lay claim to be considered as one of the noblest institutions of its kind upon the face of the earth. To this establishment.there is now due something like Llo,ooo from the Government, in the shape of unpaid grants in aid, and, as a natural consequence, the Hospital is very heavily in debt. The overdrawn account at the Bank amounts to LB,GOO, while there are other liabilities, including salaries, amounting to about ! LSOOO. Not a nurse or a tradesman has 1 been paid for the last three months ; and, unless the Colonial Treasury is speedily ( unlocked, the doors of the institution will have to be closed. These facts were brought prominently before the public at a meeting convened by the Mayor of Melbourne, at the Mechanics' Institute, yesterday, at the request of the Managing Committee ; and it is hoped that the revelations then made will induce the friends of humanity here and in other parts of the Colony to come forward, for the purpose of lending a helping hand towards the Bupp< rt of this great charity.