The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1870.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume V, Issue 282, 30 November 1870, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1870.

The Grey Valley Times con tai ds a full report of the Superintendent's meeting at the Ahaura, where, after recapitulating the statement of receipts and expenditure on the South-west Goldfields made by him at Westport, aud which has already appeared in our columns, he proceeded to give his views on the question of the annexation to Nelson of the Grey and Teremakau district. With reference to the Bill introduced into the House of Representatives Mr Curtis is reported to have said — " For my own part I had every objectiou to the Bill. In tho first place, I thought that in so serious a matter as that of burdening the Province with au enormous debt, the members of the Pro- I vincial Council should first have an opportuoity of considering the subject, and hence my opposition to the measure. There could be no doubt that it would be a matter of great convenience were the Grey annexed to this province, and I am not slow to recognise the advantages that would be likely to result from such an union. It would greatly simplify matters, aud miners would then be able to cross and recross the Grey River without an additional tax upon their industry. In reply to several questions which were put to him ou this subject, his Honor said that he had no doubt that an attempt would be a»ain made in the General Assembly to effect the proposed annexation, and that he should offer no objection to it if, in the meantime, the Provincial Council had expressed itself as being favorable to the measure, anel, that it would do so, he had little doubt, if the adjustment of the debt could be arranged to its satisfaction. At the close of his speech a violent attack was made upon him by a Mr. M'Kenna, but Mr. Curtis is seldom at a loss for a reply to his most determined opponents, and in this instance he proved himself quite equal to the occasion. The following extract from his answer to the ger.tleman who attacked him so stroDgly is worth quoting: — "The South-west Goldfields," he said, "have already had considerably more than a fair share of the general expenditure of the province, and I find that where the most money has been spent, there the most discontent is manifested. The inhabitants of each district I have visited meet me with the same cry — that every other district has fared so much better than their own — and this belief seems to be general all over the West Coast." Thus then it appears ibat the loud outcries, which havefrom time to time been raised in the Western portion of the province, have originated in the fact, not that tbe general expenditure there has heen less than it was entitled to, but that it has been distributed over the whole extent of the country, each district complaining that its neighbor has fared better than itself, thus involuutarily beariug testimony to the fact that large sums of money have been speDt on the goldfields, although the inhabitants are still extremely dissatisfied, because the whole .-mount at tlie disposal of the Government was not laid out in that particular district in which she individual complainants happened to be personally interested. Tlie whole ground of complaint, in fact, seems to ivsolvd itself in t o this — the revenue is not nearly large enough. In this view of the e*ise the inhabitants of the West Coast are not singular, but we may safely venture to say that they will meet with many sympathisers on this side of the ranges. However, we liave, unfortunately, to deal with circumstances as tbey are, not as we should like them to be. The resolution passed at the close of ihe meeting was as follows : — " That the explanations of his Houor the Superintendent, as giveu this eveuiug, are not at all satisfactory to the people of the Grey district, inasmuch that there is no implied promise of public works being carried out immediately." Before its being finally canied, Mr. Cuius replied that he was at a loss to know precisely what was required of him. If it was that they waDted him

to withdraw money which justly belonged to other districts to spend it there, all he could say was that he was not prepared to accede to so unjust a recommendation. He had been told that he would flatter them, and say they were a fine industrious community, that their district was the best in the Province, and promise them everything, however inconsistent, that they might ask for, but he could not do that. Whether they passed a vote of confidence or no confidence in him aud the Government was a matter which he could not allow to influence him in the slightest degree. An attempt was then made to move an amendment, to the effect that the thanks of the meeting should be presented to his Honor for his visit, and that it was the wish of the inhabitants that he should visit them oftener and see the requirements of the place. For this, however, only two bauds were held up, from which we may reasonably infer that, after all the complaints that have been made of the Superintendent neglecting to make himself personally acquainted with the Goldfields, this district, at least, does not care to see him amongst, them. In this we think they are wrong, and we even veuture to say that if, on his next trip to the Coast, Mr. Curtis were to omit to visit the Ahaura, he would be reminded of iis existence iu language even more forcible than has hitherto been used in connection with this subject.