SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21 1850.

New Zealander, Volume 6, Issue 489, 21 December 1850, Page 3

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21 1850.

Our regular files of English journals received by the Sir Edward Paget do not convey actually later news than had already reached us via Sydney, but they of course contain more abundant details, and many particulars of information on subjects of which we had previously heard little or nothing. The intelligence, however, is not of very striking importance in any respect; and although we hope to derive from these papers material for extracts and comments in future numbers which we anticipate will be acceptable to our readers, it is almost entirely such as will not suffer by a short postponement,or by being presented in such detached portions as more immediately urgent demands on our columns may enjoin. This observation especially applies to the proceedings in Parliament, which, while they included a few topics of considerable political, social, and moral interest to the Home Country, bore the unmistakeable characteristics of the closing of the Session, —when the House is thinning, so that frequently it requires diligent " whipping-in " to secure the numbers necessary for the transaction of business; —and the most long-winded gentlemen make short speeches; —and measures, both ministerial and private, are, " owing to the late pe.rioi of the session," consigned by their authors to what some flippant wags call the annual " Massacre of the Innocents." Punch has given in his own graphic style, a view of 'Ministers getting over the business of the session," in which he depicts them as playing at leap-frog with their own Bills, Lord John heading the band with a vigorous vault over his liish Lord Lieu-

tenancy "Abolition Bill. And yet one would think the House had sat long enough to transact all the business that came before them. According to a " Time-table " given in the Spectator of August 3, the Lords had, up to that date, had 91 sittings, occupying 236 hours, 20 minutes; while the Commons had sat 139 times, occupying no less than 990 hours, 1 3 minutes. If nohle lords and hon. gentlemen did not " deliberate" sufficiently, it certainly was not through want of time for deliberation. The day of the prorogation was not determined, but it was understood that it would be either Saturday the 17th, or Monday the 19th of August. The 20th of August was mentioned, apparently on authority, as the day fixed on for the departure of Her Majesty and the Court for Scotland. While, however, we postpone reference to matters of less interest to our readers, we give immediate insertion to the conversation which took place in the House of Commons, on the 22nd of July, when, in Committee of Supply, the Parliamentary Grant for New Zealand was proposed. The report, though short, is the fullest we have seen, being that given in the Times : — The first vofe proposed was £41,730 to defray (he cbarge of New Zealand. Mr. Bright said he 'observed jff6oo put dowu (or the Bishop of New Zealand, and .£490 for chaplains and schools. He should like some explanation of the s e items, a% he had understood the House was not to be called on to continue votes of that description out of the taxes of this country. Were these grants to be permanent. Mr. Hawea said that they were permanent as far as I they stood ; but when New Zealand should have obtained representative institutions, it would become a question how far such grants should he continued. He begged to explain that they did not stand upon the same ground as those to the North American clei gy, which entirely depended upon the lives of the piesent holders. (Hear, hear.) ,-.,<s Mr. Hume lvgged to move that the vote be reduced being the amount of the bishop's salary. Sir R. Inglis supported the vote, and highly eulogized Dr. Selwyn, the Bishop. Mr. Aglionby also suppoited the vole, and slated that the admirable conduct of Dr. Selwyn hud been productive of the most beneficial results to the colony. In all probability this was the last time the House of Commons would be called upon to ?o eeven this small •urn for the JSishop of New Zealand, the Colonial Secietary having inlonued them that the colony would shortly be invested with representative government. Mr. Hume said it was not the sum he cared about, but the principle, which amounted to thi», that England, having a large ecclesiastical establishment of her own to maintain, was to support ecclesiastical establishments also in the colonies. New Zealand, with a revenue of £'66,000 per annum, was able to provide for a bishop. Lord J. Russell said that ever since 1842 there lad been a vote of the House of Commons for thts puipose. The reason for first proposing it was, thst the missionaries who went out to New Zealand would work far more congruously and efficiently under the superintendence of a bishop ; nnd such had been found to be the fact. He had renson to know that the cause of civilization in New Zealand had been greatly promoted by the exertious of the bishop. The committee divided. The numbers were :— For the amendment 24 Against it 90 Majority —66Another Meeting of the Share-holders and Directors of the New Zealand Company, had been held on the 31st of July, when the fuller reply from the Colonial Office promised in the letter from Mr. Hawes published in our last was presented. It is a long and elaborate document, in which all the pretences by which the " tortuous" Company had endeavoured to fix the blame of their failure on the Government are taken up in detail, and, for the most part, sufficiently confuted. Lord Grey takes high ground, not merely accepting as a right, the admission of the Company that he had not "intentionally injured them," but distinctly denying that " the proceedings of Her Majesty's Government, regarded even as unintentional or unavoidable, could in reality have produced the ill-success" of the Company. The communication absolutely cut off all hope that the Government would give any fuither help to the Company ; and the Meeting, apparently at its wit's end, as well as at its purse's end, merely requested a previously appointed Committee on the " position of the Company" to continue their services, and then adjourned sine die. We may, however, extract, as the programme —so far as there can be said to be any such thing — of the intended movements of the remnant of the broken-up Company, the following statement made in the course of the last meeting, by the Chairman, Mr. Aglionby, M.P.:— Mr. Aglionby said that any appointment of a committee of shareholders to aid the directors in winding up the affairs of the company would be useless, as under the 19th section of the 10th and 11th Victoria the dilectors alone were empowered to wind up the company's affairs. There were vacancies to be supplied in the body of the directors, and the shareholders might infuse fresh blood into the direction by the election of such of their body as they deemed most efficient for the pin pose. There would be much to do both politically and practically in the winding up the affairs of the Company, and perhaps further assistance to the Dheetion might be advisable, it was a misconception to think that the compjny had no longer a chatter; as their charter unnamed until they had wound up the aftahs of the company, and until the salts ot land enabled the lepayments to the company of £268 000, which he feaied would be a long time. The company had ceased its colonizing functions and could no longer sell land or send out ships except upon individual responsibility. This looks very like a corroboration of the suspicion we expressed in our last that the Company, although now as bankrupt in funds as it has long been in character, will yet be troublesome, if not mischievous, in its final stiuggles.