A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 1, Issue 23, 24 June 1867, Page 147

A GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE.

GENERAL GOVERNMENT INTENTIONS By the-arrival-of the schooner* Herald on Saturday last we have received a copy of the Oamaru Times, which republishes from the. Lake Wakatip Mail of a speech' delivered by the Hun. J. C Richmond to the inhabitants of Queeustown-on the intend tions of the General Government with regard 4o 'the of the goldfields and the proposed ShireCouncils' Bill. We append the re-* marks of Mr Richmond, and commend iv to the careful perusal of the public:— I will.pass oyer painful details up to the time of'ilie rietebut 'eleetiori. It is enough 1 to say that the Ministry had no doubt* whatever that Mr Macandrew was not a person* tu be entrusted with, the high power# ‘ ho. was se-king.; Immediately ’on 1 the con-ch.eiohibf the poT, it became their duty to cod?ider a line of action. Now, it ha# been asserted that a cowardly course! was pursued—that.the natural thing would’ have 'been -1 to dlsalloW' the* but! that the Ministry were not man! enough* to faco the-struggle that would have followed ; for it is admitted that disallowance would haVia" bebnT f<Mlowetr'by~re-el.-ctiun, •nd so on again and again, with perhaps growing excitement Now you.shall judge wb ther cowardice was the cause of the action of the Government. cqurse, thought of disallowance—it was tnore natural and direct; but tiie duty of the Government was to look into consequences. Mrl'iek would difire remained in office as ibcumrteaen* ; as the law stands, he woijjd not have been able to asse.uible'the PrdviheihlX!(>up.eil.i ; Appropriations were required, and he would have been unable to obtain them, and a recent stringent Act- preveuts the issue 6'~ public funds to the - exoeu ti ve - of-1 li e Province without appropriation. All payments, then, to the Provincial Officers—all expen ,oij bridges, harbor improveniehts, Ac., w.buld liave dud g’reut distress - andhave followed. The Cabinet had abundant courage to face the excitemeut of Hr M ieahdrew’a' su porters ; llufy , weVe not prepaied to face s dead lock in all Pro viucial' business, and that—unless they could find funds— have been the consequence of disallowance. They were u table to .find funds for the same reason that would Jbave presented the < interim G-o'vernm’ent';. ; namely,; that their ch,esi;, too,- They* therefore reserfved that as • large majority cf the electors bad chosen that the power and honors in thei: gift the wpwld not interfere; with that choice jregard the

wjiich the Governor could,delegate, theySrould* neveAulttsethattliey should be delegated to the present Superintendents f’ ® . i The course. wq have taken in declining delegation Jwe are, prepared to abide by, and to ' butHo the 'laat; and we be-, lieve,that, the Provincial GovernmentW fighnngotir battlejfor securnYgus the support of every sober man in these jslaridsw 'But.now .yoa "will ask iae, wlsat are! you giving to do ih the way of adroinitration for the future.# To begin witpi, we have taken official departments, ?. we now ; pay. salaries 9* Wardfens paid]tho half apportioned to themas Resident May, st&ad of Mr Dick. Tins .was about .all, .the changes would have been if .the Prio\ihcial Council had actedwisely, ,We are ndt ambitious. to meddle xn. public, works and immigration. We do“not seek, now to fake education and the: cdre of hospitals, ferries; scab, Ac:,.from local'management. Our views of the*proper‘duties of the Go vernm'eut are different. *!! * # * -* The General Government watches over the framing and administration of tiie aw ; nppoints "the.Jiidges and Magistrates, and pays them. _ You, gentlemen, can say whether this is weirdone. or not. Then the General Government organizes and maintains offices for the, registration o : for your deeds, and for births, deaths, and marriages. It furnishes postal communication within the. Colony, and on . a laage scale beyond .Its borders. It , establishes telegraphs for a , like purpose. It .provides organization for defence; and does one other thing I will uow mention of some.little importance to the Provincial Governments, If they do “ a little” in the way of public works, who supply the means ? Every penny that the Provincial Government spends is raided by. and handed over to them by the General Gevernnaei’t, which looks on them, not as a hostile power to be put in competition, but as pari of the Government of the country. What’ would Mr Maeandrew and M- Yogel do il we insisted in raising no more than encu<*h for our own immediate wants ? WoukTu not be a way to explode'the Provinces, if such were our end?. Would not thenpopularity wane when.they came to tax as well as to spend ? Ido not think it is our duty to be rushing in tlie van of enterprizY and : speculation, raising million loans fo: railways to -(A Voice: Say Skippers) —Well, say I think our duty i* to preserve peace and order in the land—to see that no factious obstacles stand in the way of enterprise. It is for you—for the people in their private capacities—to furnish the progressive energy, and I am sure, from what I have seen hereabouts, that the spirit of the race is not wanting Government, in the ordinary sense, is doing its work best perhaps wlieii it is least conspicuous. Well, then, if it bad been possible to trust the Provincial authorities with the balance of your sneciai revenues after paying for the administration of jus tice, wo were ready to have entrusted them with thet balance, so that things might have been as little as possible changed. Ot one thing be certain—we shall not centralize the. expenditure of thatbalance. Rather, we shall further localize it. * * # Failing the Provincial Government, tinnatural machinery for appropriating this balance will be the proposed Shire Councils' I shall not required to say more of tho de tails of the proposed measure than that it will divide the country into counties, which will probaby elect Councils off the. present Rolls, and the Councils will meet twice of four, times a year, to appropriate money aiid to fix local rutes. • I'do not'think much legislative power will be needed, be; yond the power'to deal 1 with public nuisance, and proteet public works. Endowments from the 'public* revenue or estate; will be necessarily one feature. T- e-e are what I believe must be the principles’ Several ablo men ure engaged reducing them to form. Put I warn you., that ihe question is complex., You .yourselves can' see in the districts arouud what- a clivc-sitv of circuuistarice has to be provide! for. -Some have no arable land, in som- the Imd lias' " been muclT briCsbloT, some "are Gold-' fields, some past ral districts. There mav be then; in passing a Bill'next session! and you. inu«t be patient in that! case. i (Hear, hear.) I am, however, sau guine that'iL godd Bill will pass; and I reihij.d yoU that the men who'are now supposed to be at the opposite poles in politic.-. in Orago—Major Richardson an ll Mr Vogel, sat together„oh . a .C.ommittee las session! preparing such a Bid, and j seemed equally -earnest 1 in' pressing it 'on the Legislature. But • understand that- a fear exists that if the Government persevere in t h eirpreaent eourse.the ProvinciaYa utho ri ties' will visit the iniquities of Ministers on this and any-otlierdistrict whiciihijissuppbr ted them. I hop.- that such will not be tht case, ai.id .do'not' likefto anticipate evil But even the Assembly can proti-ctyou. Id—as I- confidently-expeet, - the-Assail bl; support the Ministry, and see that .tin questionii-now broadly put whether there shall any longer be a Ci lbtiy of New Zealand or no—then -1 feel sure they, will do all that is necessary, to carry outdhe course Ministers‘Have adopted! ‘ You'"are a ware ] t Uat_uotUi ng.!Jnow jjre.v.e.nts appropriation iu the General Assenibly lor,pupiic.works Except’ a' mutual understanding -bet ween ! the Goloniah'and ProiinciairGov* rmuenls. If it appears likely that what i# feai-bcfbei-L may arise, anti. tliafTKa Prbyihciiil authorities deal 4 vindictively with 1 ' the district, 1 can .; hardly doubr that the Aisembly'Vih Vote a fair subsidy to local works.' (Hear, hear.) _~ r , T ,!._. •; ..„j. l ’ ‘ . ‘ 1 . ‘ . .