ENGLISH NEWS. COLONIAL REFORM. (Abridged from the Morning Herald, July 19th.)

New Zealander, Volume 5, Issue 381, 8 December 1849, Page 3

ENGLISH NEWS. COLONIAL REFORM. (Abridged from the Morning Herald, July 19th.)

Yesterday evening about filty gentle-nen, consisting of twenty members of parliament, and thirty of the moBt distinguished bankers and merchants of the mo tropolis, dined together at tli« Tiatnlgar Tavern, Greenwich, for the purpose of conferring together upon the steps necessary to be taken in order to ensure n reformation in our colonial affaias. Sir W. Molesworth presided as chairman, supposed on hi* ii<;ht by Lord Monteagle, and on his left by Lord T,ylHeton. After the company had drunk the usual toasts, Sir W. Molesworth proposed " Prooperity to our <"'< lonies." In giving th.it toast be might be pormiUed tn observe that in order to obtain good government for the colonies it Was necrssiry that they shou'd be well governed ; and, in order to obtain that, it was neoeisary that the people should take a lively interest in promoting good government, (hear, hear). There was a growing conviction in the minds of all that in order that our colonies might be well governed, they must be prosperous and contented, (hear). Among (lie causes which had contribu'ed to fatten public attention upon the tubject, he would take the liberty of referring to that of erni<ration. No less a number than. 280,000 persons left our shores during the past year; nnd in the last 20 years 2,000,000 of persons had emigrated, though n very large proportion of those had gone to the United States of America. This emigration had made the subject of our colonies a matter of deep interest to all classes of the commui ity, especially to the middling classes, because there wai scarcely an individual among them who had not some friend, relation, or acpuaintance, in on(» of thoie colonies ; and, therefore, there must be very few persons who did not necessarily take a deep interest in the affairs of America, of Australia f of New Zealand and of other places. Attention bad been turned to our colonies, under the firm brlief that under good government they would become more prosperous, and would be impr ving markets for our goods. The at ntion of another class had lately been directed to colonial questions, in consequence of eminent and distinguished men having oludied the qucttion more closely than formerly, with a view to remove the difficulty. One of the most eminent of those men was one who had that evening honoured them with hit company — he alluded to Mr. Edward Gibbon Wukefield (hear hear,) who had rendered great serves to all the col ink's, because by his writings he had directed the attention of reflecting men to colonial matters. Listly, the attention of all persons had bedn much turned towards coloniil questions m consequence of the serious events which had occur* red in them, and which lud been freely descanted upon by the public press. When they reflected that these colonies contained not less thanJIOO.OOO.oOO of souls—when he reflected upon the events that had occurred in the colonies— when he considered the large number of English and lriih broihren in all their colonial dependencies— when he reflected that there had been a huge expenditure in these colonies, which had been far from satisfactory — and when he saw that to whatever quarter he turned within the last fifteen years he could discover nothing but war, rebellion or great discontent, and a large useless expenditure, he was not surprised that public feeling should be awakened upon, this momentous subject. During the last fifteen years there had been in Canada a war of races — in South Africa there had been perpetual K.ifF.r wars, and three rebellions of the Brers — in the We->t Indies our landowners had been ruined— in Australasia there was the most vicious community on the face of the carth — in New Zealand a large amount of discontent — and there was no prospect of remedying any one of these evils except by means of self government. In all their other colonies, events of a similtr character had occurred — events too numerous for him to mention on that occasion. In these colonies we were compelled to maintain 45,000 fighting men, at a cost of two-and-a-hnlf millions sterling. Now this huge expenditure, those events which he had been desciibh>£, together with emigration, free trade, the repeal of the navigation laws, and the writings of eminent men, had directed the attention of all clasfes — of the middling classes, the humbler classes of merchants, and of the manufacturing classes, of all thinking and reflecting men, to the state of the colonies. In the present s-ssion of. Parliament more colonial questions had been brought under consideration, for which the country was deeply indebted to several of the gentlemen who were present on that occflsion. Mr. Bailey had well ccm*nenced th» sesiion, by calling the attention of parliament to the case of British Guiana, and undoubtedly the exertions of Mr. Aclderly had yaved South Africa from becom* ing a depot for criminal convicts. 'I hey were indebted to Mr. Scott for having demanded a searching enquiry i and reform in the whole of our colonial system. Het woule not forget, also, the exertions ot Mr. Roebuck and Lord Lyttleton. who had vainly endeavoured to sive Vancouver's Island. For many years an expectation had been entertained by the colonies that they would obtain free institutions — very many solemn promises had been made— but they had all been disappointed. In regard to New Zealand, Governor Greyhad stated that there was no country on the facts of the earth better fitted for free institutions than New Ztt* land. There was a growing conviction in the public mind that there were serious defects in colonial government, and that there ought to be a Heardung investigation, and a complete reformation of the entire system, and they owe their origin to the mode and manner in which their colonial empire had been governed. Our 43 colonies could not possibly be ruled by any Secretary of State— the veiy attempt to do so manifested nothing but ignorance, producing negligence and vacillation. At such a distance as our colonies were from Girat Britain, there must be ignorance ; ignorance would produce negligence, and wore there was ignorance and negligence, bo assured that vacillation would necessarily follow. There must to reform ; free institutions must be freely bettowed upon every colony which was fitted for self-government (hear.) If their colonies were blessed with free institutions they would become extensive fields for our labour and manufactures— they would be our best friends. They ought to cost ut nothing either for defence or for government— and therefore they would bo prosperous. Their proipeiity would ensure the prosperity of the whole empire. He would conclude by giving as a toast " Prosperity to our Colonies," [Foi continuation tee Supplement.]

upon the success of their meeting that night because |he had originated the subject (hear). Australia was already free ; and every British colony was essentially free (hear). Lord Grey had said that the Crown could not give any colony a constitution less free than ihe British constitution itself (hear)- It had been suggested that the meeting ought not to sepernte until they had formed an association to effect the objects which they had so deeply at heart (hear) ; hut he was fine that the gentlemen then assembled were an association ready formed (hear). After having been addressed by several other gentlemen, the meeting broke up, highly delighted with the certain prospsct of speedily obtaining a general reform in the internal administration of her .British colonies.