Provincial Council.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume XIII, Issue 585, 11 June 1868, Page 2

Provincial Council.

TUESDAY, 9th JUNE. The Council met at 3 p.m. Present,Ail the members. i’he minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed. TELEGRAPHIC MESSAGE. His HONOR handed to the Speaker s telegram, the first received from Waipukurau, addressed to the Superintendent. Se* "oral members oiprsased doubts as to ths admissibility of the m6saogo, aud some little discussion ensued, which was closed byt he Speaker ordering it to be read. It was as follows : To his Honor the Superintendent, Council Chamber, Napier. Mr Russell offers congratulations to the Superintendent and Provincial Council on the opening of the line between Napier and Waipnknrau. He has no doubt but this will greatly tend to the convenience of business, and to cement those cordial relations between town and country which are so desirable. Henry Robert Russell. Major LAMBERT considered that it was not right for the Council to receive communications from private individuals. He wished to know who Mr Russell was. He would move “ That the Council do not receive the message." The motion, not being seconded, lapsed. PRIVILEGE. Mr CARLTON objected to it being reported in the papers that he had “ ignored the authority of the Speaker.” He had never ignored the Speaker’s authority j but only the authority of that book so often quoted—May’s Practice of Parliament. The book was no authority here, and the Council edition, being some sixteen yeats old, was now out of date in England. It was also reported that ho was “ repeatedly called to order." Now, the public might infer, that ho had infringed some of the rules which he had not done. There was a great difference in being called to order, and in being out of order. PETITION. Mr LOCKE presented a petition signed by one hundred and eightj-nino townspeople, praying that the proposed Telegraph and Post Office should be built on the reserve fronting Hastings and Etner-son-streets, instead of in the Government Buildings Reserve, and moved that it be read. After some slight discussion, the petition was read and received. PAPERS. His HONOR the Superintendent laid the following papers on the table:— Correspondence relating to the Wellington Debt. Correspondence relating to the Waipukurau Telegraph Station Rates of Pilotage for the Ports of Napier and Wairoa Mr Gill’s Report on the Tanpo Road Air Ross’s Report on the Tanpo Rond Mr Weber’s Report on the Tanpo Road Returns showing the Lands in the Papaknra Block which have been sold and paid for; also of those portions which have been applied for, but not purchased ; as well as of those which have not been applied for in the same block. ADDRESS TO HIS EXCELLENCY. Mr M'LEAN moved the suspension of Standing Orders 26 and 27 to enable him to bring a motion before the Council without notice.—Agreed to. Mr M'LEAN moved— For the appointment of a Select Committee to prepare a congratulatory address to his Eicellency the Governor, to be presented on his arrival in Napier. Such committee to consist of the Speaker, Messrs Ferard, Whitmore, and A’Deana. Report to be brought up to-morrow. Agreed to. THE WAIPUKURAU TELEGRAPH.

Mr TANNER moved— Eor all correspondence relative to the establishment of a telegraph station at Waipawa, —Last session a resolution was passed unanimously by the Council requesting the General Government to fix the telegraph station at Waipawa instead of Waipukurau. This, he believed, was forwarded to the General Government, and was backed by a numerously-signed petition from the country settlers. These recommendations —representing, as they did, the opinion of the entire Province—had been disregarded by the General Government. If this was the treatment wo were to expect if we should ever be handed over to their tender mercies, we might well tax ourselves to prevent such a contingency. He should be glad of an explanation of this matter. Mr CARLTON seconded the motion, which was agreed to. THE PROVINCIAL SOLICITODSHIP. Mr CARLTON asked leave to withdraw the following motion standing in his nsmer That the Provincial Solicitor’s office shall either be abolished, or that the Provincial Solicitor shall for the next official year be paid by way of fee instead of salary. —He still retained the opinion he had so frequently expressed, that the Provincial Solicitor should have a seat in the Council. He had considered that very great inconvenience would be caused by a system of payment by fees, and as a motion for which notice had been given by one of the members for Napier would have the effect he desired,he would, with the leave of the Council, withdraw his motion. Leave granted. PAPAKUEA BLOCK. ctTnyrAy j iu.r ouiivxi muveu— That a return be laid on the table of all lands included in the Papakura Block which hare been sold and paid for. Also, those portions which have been applied for, but purchase not completed ; and any Lands which may not have been applied for, shewing the rate per acre at which each section was for sale.

=A return had bssu laid on the table-! but not so complete ss ths one asked for. | His reason for calling for this return was ' that a general impression prevailed that , the Government had been losers to a considerable extent by the Papakura Block ; although it was provided in the Act that the sections should not be sold below their cost price. He observed that about six of the sections had no price marked against Mr WOO'D seconded the motion. , Mr BUCHANAN ssid that the Govern- , ment should have published the return in - the shape asked for by the Council. < His HO NOS said that the return was | as complete as the Government could • make it. Some of the sections had not yet been valued. 1 Major LAMBERT would recommend the member for Napier to act in a direct ' manner. He had no faith in the manner in which the Government would manoeuvre when asked a question they did not wish to answer. Let the member for Napier put a question, asking at once whether they were gainers or losers by the transaction. The motion was then put and agreed to. PILOTAGE. Major LAMBERT moved— That, with as little delay as possiible, his Honor the Superintendent will cause to be laid on the table a return of all vessels brought into the harbor or berthed at the anchorage outside, by the Pilot, from the Ist of December 1807, to the 81st of May 1868, showing their tonnage and ths harbor dues received. —His object was to sea if the duties of the establishment were sufficient to require both a harbor-master and assistant. For his own part, he did not think they were. Mr KENNEDY said that the information would be laid on the table. He considered that a good man to assist the harbor master was actually required, and the whole of the establishment were fully employed at all times. Agreed to. TE AUTE SCHOOL PROPERTY. Major LAMBERT moved— That his Honor the Superintendent will be pleased to cause to be laid on the table any correspondence that may have been received from the trustees of the Te Ante school property, that the Council may be, in a position to take into consideration any paenniary assistance that may be expected from that source before the Bill for an Educational tax, about to be brought before the Council, is considered. —He must again call the attention of the Council to the Te Aute School Trust. He hoped the Superintendent would take means to ascertain what the Government had a right to expect from that quarter. If the trustees could be set aside for not fulfilling the terms of the (rust, it would be an immense gain to the Province.

Mr ORMOND would give an explanation of what had been dome since last session. The Council then passed a resolution authorizing the Superintendent to make inquiries into the matter. The Superintendent wrote to one of the trustees, the Bishop of Wellington, on the subject. Nearly two-thirds (4,000 acres), of the land had been given by the Government for the education of natives and Europeans, •while the remainder (3,000 acres) had been given by the natives, for the education of their own people. The bishop said that the estate would be in a position next sear to yield £I,OOO per annum, which would be devoted to the education of both races ; but gave no intimation that the trustees had any intention of handing any portion of it over to the Provincial Government, In the House of Representatives last session he (Mr O.) had raised the whole question of these reserves, and a committee was appointed to inquire into the matter, but the information they obtained was very meagre. The whole question would, however, be fully gone into next session. The Bishop of Wellington had shown that the To Ante property had been better managed and more carefully nursed than any other trust. As an instance, he might mention that one of these reserves, comprising about one-third of the Town of Wanganui, estimated to be worth £IO,OOO per annum, was bringing in only £l5O per annum, and had still seven years to run at that rate. He might have his own opinion on the proper application of the trust, but did not think the House of Representatives would be inclined to remove the present trustees, or that the Provincial Government stood any chance of getting the money into their disposal. Mr BUCHANAN said that by the deed the native gift was for the benefit of the native race, and not restricted to educational purposes, so that there was nothing there to prevent them from dividing the proceeds annually among themselves if they were so disposed. He quite agreed with the member for Porangahau that there was very little prospect of the Government getting any of the proceeds. The only way by which the trustees could be reached was through the Supreme Court. Major LAMBERT considered that the matter was one of great moment. By bringing pressure to boar they might get something, which would he better than none at all, is at present. Agreed to. . TOLL-GATE ACT AMENDMENT.

•» r 0-r'-mrn/~VTLT . , ju.r ouiiun moTea — For leave to bring a bill to amend the “ Tollgate, Act 1857."

Last session ho had opposed tho present situation of the Toll-gate. He considered the only fair position was at the junction of Tareha’s Bridge with the main road, so ts to take in both directions.

Mr WOOD seconded the motion. The bill was brought in, read a first time, ordered to be printed, and the second reading placed on the orders of the day for Thursday,