POLITICAL NEWS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 1456, 16 September 1885, Page 3

POLITICAL NEWS.

?-, A letter has: been deceived, froni D. H. v Macarthur, Esq., M:H.R., with which he "encloses a copy of the Supplementary 'Order Paper containing the clauses inserted m the Municipal Corporations Act Amendment Act, m reference to Borough Councillors being proceeded against to.retsover penalties for the sale of goods suplied to the Council m the ordinary course of trade. Clauses are also . inserted m: the Amendment Act to enable the Pal- . merston North Borough Council elections to take place and a new Burgess Roll to be prepared m lieu of the one destroyed by the recent fire. The alteration m the clause m reference to contracts has been passed m Committee, and a clause to the effect that no prosecution under! clause.. 63 shall take place without the consent of the Attorney-General having been first obtained./ All penalties are also to go into the Borough fund. The Governor may f urtlier remit penalties now ,or hereafter being sued for! : Mr Macarthur expects 1 tliat this clause will meet' alljexisting difficulties, and a similar clause is ; to be inserted m the Counties Bill, m /the Upper house, applicable to County Councils and Road Boards. Mr, Macarthur regrets very, much that the Gorge Railway has been shelved for the year. He has, no doubt of its being : carried next year, though of course a year's delay is a great blow to the district. .Our member would not vote with * the Atkinson party on Captain Russell's motion, beciiuse he foresaw . what ;w6uld be the inevitable result. He voted on this occasion with the Government much 'to Major Atkinson's annoyance.. He ; also sppke^on the item, and showed : that the lino from Napier was paying over 4 per cent, above the working expenses, . and that the extension to join, the Wei: . lington-Manawsitu line must "miterially increase the receipts. It was of no i use, however. Those whei had voted for Cup Russell's /.resolution felt bound to;-, carry it to its 1 logical conclusion, byvbt- , : ing against each item ; and the Canterbury members because they could' not. get their ybtfl, viz., the East and West Coast liiiil way, carried, went against' everything. Mr Macarthur divided the. House on the .Gorge Line, and the North Island Trunk Line, m order to show those meiiibers tip on a division list who voted against .it and. to place .their action on record; The letter concludes, '• It is & sad blow, and Idm only hoping th.ii the Gorgo .Biridge vote comes up; but tliose who" have lost their railways are so mad that they will fire away ateyerythin«.": - ; 5 .r<r/-