NELSON FINANCIAL REFORM LEAGUE.—PUBLIC MEETING.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume III, Issue 190, 13 August 1868, Page 2

NELSON FINANCIAL REFORM LEAGUE.— PUBLIC MEETING.

A public meeting, convened by the committee of the above association, took place yesterday evening at the Temperance Hall. The attendance was at' first exceedingly meagre, but increased as the evening advanced. . .

, On the motion of Dr Irvine, seconded by Mr Barlow, Mr H. Drew was elected cfcairman, who after a few preliminary remarks, called on the Secretary to read the report, which was of considerable length, and to which we have already referred.

The Treasurer, Mr W. H. Barlow, then read the financial statement, from which it appeared that the Association comprised 277 subscribers paying Is. each per annum, giving a total income for the last year, together with donations amounting to £7 175., of £24 14s. 6d.

Mr Barlow, after expressing his hopes for the future welfare of the Association, and recommeuding vigilance over the ac-

tion of the Legislature, resigned the Treasurership, his term of office haying expired, and his departure from Nelson preventing his further co-operation with the Association.

Mr D. M. Luckie, on moving the adoption of the Eeport, expressed his disappointment at seeing so small an attendance present, which he contrasted with the crowded meeting held at the Provincial Hall on the inauguration of the Association. He was afraid that this state of things tended to corroborate Mr Stafford's insinuation that the whole thing was a sham, and that very little interest was taken in its operations. Was this owiDg to the public or to the committee? He was willing to admit that the report was meagre, but this might easily be accounted for. He had warned the society against playing into the hands of those whose designs it was its object to combat, and his warning had been justified by the derision with which the acceptance of Mr Stafford's offer to become a member had been generally met. The question was, were they justified in admitting as members those who profited by the present lavish expenditure of the Government ? Mr Luckie then quoted a letter from Governor Sir G. Bowen to his Grace the Secretary for the Colonies, forwarding reports of speeches made by. Sir David Monro and Mr Fox, with reference to Centralism and Proviucialism, and he contended that Sir David had transgressed one of the rules of. the League by discussing a party question ; that his statement was one-sided, and full of misconceptions of the law. of England-, and as such should .not have been. -sent- home as /an .embodiment of the feelings of the, colony at Jarge. He= regretted that the Superintendent was not present, as he would have reminded hina c»f a pieiiige given by his Honor when, contesting the , Superintendency, iie said, 'If you wish to' muzzle Hie,^or make me fiesta* regards Proviucialism, elect me

as your Superintendent.' He did not consider that the Superintendent had redeemed this pledge. Mr Luckie concluded by saying that if the League bad done no other good, it had at least been the means of awakening a large interest in other parts of the colony.

Mr Clements seconded the adoption of the report, and said he was not satisfied •with the committee. He had himself done his best, but a damper had been put upon his action,' the Superintendent, a sakuied officer, having be&n elected chairman, and they would allow that it was a delicate thing to meddle with finance in such company. They were debarred from discussing local subjects, and were thus obliged to go abroad and consider things they knew nothing about (Hear, hear). Before a general meeting could be called, Mr Stafford had become a member, and Sir D. Munro had not only paid his shilling, but had also been elected a member of the committee at a meeting at which only five members were present, Sir David being proposed by Dr. Irvine and secouded by Mr Elliott. He (Mr Clements) had then moved an amendment, which was seconded by Mr Luckie, that Sir David should not be elected until after a general meeting, at which he intended to move that no salaried officer of the Government should be a member of the League. This amendment had been lost by the casting vote of the Superintendent. This happened six months ago, and various impediments had been placed in the way of holding the general meetiug. At last Sir David Monro moved that the partnership hitherto existing between tbe General and Provincial Governments should at once and for ever cease. Ho (Mr Clements) opposed this motion, and an amendment by Dr Irvine, which met Sir David's views, was carried. The four addresses delivered to the League might have been good, but he judged from the appearauce of the meeting that the committee had not the confidence of the public, and the fact was that it had been crippled by its rules, and by the coining into it of those who ought never to have been members. He theu moved the adoption of the report, which was put from the chair aud carried unanimously.

Mr Barlow then proposed the following Committee for the ensuing year : — Dr. Irvine, Messrs. Luckie, Webb, Elliott, M'lntosh, D. Grant, 0. Curtis, T. R. Fisher, and Clements.

Mr R. Lucas objected to any salaried officers being placed on the Committee, and then moved an amendment to the effect that the public had no confidence in the Association, which was seconded by Mr Clements. Dr Irvine expressed his readiness to resign his seat in the committee, and thought that the torpor of the public was the real cause of failure, but reminded the meeting that the early meetings of the AutiCorn Law League had been attended by only two or three members. The object of the League was a good one, and at nil events it should not be dropped inconsiderately. The Chairman having suggested that Mr Lucas's resolution should assume a more definite form,

Mr Luckie proposed that its consideration be postponed until several resolutions of general interest had been brought before the meeting, and it was therefore withdrawn.

Mr Elliott expressed his regret at seeing the meeting so poorly attended, which, he said, must be attributable either to a want of interest in the object of the League, or to a want of confidence in the committee, and if to the latter, the people 6hould have been present to say so. Allusion had been made to the differences which had taken place in Ihe committee ; these, he thought, might have been anticipated fnJm its constitution. He would not then allude further to these, or deieod his own conduct in the committee, but would move the following resolution : — ' That in the opinion of thiß meeting, the General Government expenditure of New Zealand has increased during the last 10 years in a degree much greater than was warranted by the growth of tha colony in wealth and population ; greater than was requisite for any legitimate purposes of government, aud greater than can be maintained in the future.' Mr .Elliott quoted from the published returns of revenue expended on the colonial service and militia for the last 10 years, which showed the gradual increase of taxation from the year 1858-9, when it. amounted to £67,283, and the population wa559,413

— being at the rate of £1 2s. 6d. per head — up to 1886-7, when it amounted to £669,324, and the population was 218,639, being at the rate of £3 Os. Bd. per head.

Mr JVl'lntosh seconded the resolution, hoping that the meeting would ignore the fact that it had been proposed and seconded by members of a committee, in which it was assumed to have lost confidence (laughter).

The resolution was then put and carried uDaniruously.

Dr Irvine rose to move the second resolution, ' That whilesuccessive administrations are primarily answerable lor the prodigal expenditure of the colony, the House of Representatives, which is the constitutional guardian of the public purse, has fallen short of its duty, inasmuch as iD has offered no earnest assistance to the extravagant budgets laid before it.'

Dr Irvine said that tw f o theories had been broached to account for the lavish expenditure which had taken place iu the colony; one by the Premier, who said that the colonists liked an expensive Government — which he denied, for who wished to be heavily taxed, which was the true meaning of an expensive Government? — the other by Sir D. Monro, who in his addresss to the League had said that Provincial Governments were the cause of this expenditure. He thought this so erroneous, that he had determined to combat it in another address. Other colonies where no provincial Governments existed, had been quite as extravagant as this, and other Provincial Governments had cut down their expenditure ; why then should not the General Government do so too ? There was surely no need why this colony should be paying higher for essentially the same services as were performed some years ago at a much lower rate. The greatest responsibility, after all, attached to the members of the General Assembly, who had seconded the extravagance of the Government, and by whose connivance the expenditure of the country had increased year by year.

Mr Webb seconded the resolution, which was then put from the chair and carried

netn. con.

Mr D. M. Luckie then moved the third resolution: —

'That no effectual and permanent reform in the finances of the colony can be expected until such changes have been made in the machinery of legislation as shall render the representatives of the people more fully cognizant of, and more amenable to, public opinion, and with this view this meeting recommends that the duration of Parliaments be shortened, and suggests to the constituencies the expediency of iuviticg their representatives to meet them both before and after each session.

Mr Gilbert seconded the resolution, and said that he had been struck with the remark of a high authority that there was no public opinion in New Zealand. He hoped they would show that evening that this was untrue. He thought that political economy was a subject in which all were deeply concerned, and such as should be brought forward and canvassed.

The Chairman, in putting the resolution to the meeting, said that he thought the policy of the Government was to ascertain how much taxation the people would endure, and their conduct should make the people prove that they had a policy too, and that the Government had got to the end of the tether.

The resolution was then put to the meeting and carried.

The following resolution, propoposed by Mr D. Grant, and seconded by Mr Clements, was put and carried : — ' That this meeting views with disapprobation the wish shown by the present Government to bring about legislation by the Assembly on subjects which can be better dealt with by local bodies, according to the special requirements of each, and protests against the tendency thus evinced to curtail the legitimate action of Provincial and Municipal Councils.'

Mr Clements thought the resolutions did not go far enough, and proposed the following resolution : — ' That this meeting is of opinion that aay representative legislature failing to secure the political happiness and prosperity of the people it represents is no longer worthy of our confidence.'

This resolution was seconded by Mr. Phillips, and being put to the meeting, was lost by a large majority. . Dr Irvine's motion that Rule 6, prohibiting the discussion of local or party questions, be expunged, having been carried,

Mr Barlow moved that Mr E. Lucas be elected a member of the committee, which was declined by that gentleman, and also by Mr James Lucas ; a large number of persons left the Hall, and the proceedings were brought to a somewhat abrupt conclusion, a vote of thanks being given to the chairman, and the meeting adjourned sine die.