MEETING TO CONSIDER THE PROPRIETY OF REQUESTING THAT NELSON MAY BE MADE A MUNICIPALITY.

New Zealander, Volume 7, Issue 577, 25 October 1851, Page 3

MEETING TO CONSIDER THE PROPRIETY OF REQUESTING THAT NELSON MAY BE MADE A MUNICIPALITY.

[From the Nelson Examiner, September 13 ] A Pjblic Rlllting, called by advertisement, " to consider the expediency of an Address to Jhs Excellency the Governor-iii-Cluef, piaving for the establishment of Municipal Institutions in this Settlement," was held in the Court House, on Monday last, ,\t noon : D. Monro, Esq , in the chair. TV Chaihmav commenced by saying, that the Sleeting Lad been called to consider whether it was not desirable that the settlement should possess, for the purposes of local self-»oi eminent, s>uch powers ns could be given it by a Clwiterof Incorporation. At a meeting lately held in the same place, the more ostentatious government by a Provincial Council had been rejected, and it was therefore now a fit subject for discussion whether a Corporation should not be accepted. To show theprobdble powers which such a governing body would possess, the Chairman referred to the despatch addressed by the Goveinor-in-Chief to the Lieutenant Governor of New Ulster, and to the Proclamation which accompanied it Incorporating that Province. Mr. Travers showed in what respecis the Charter of Incorpoiation given to Auckland diffeied fiom the English Municipal Corporations Act, and suggested that in the event of this settlement being incotporated, the English Act should be adhered to as closely as possible. Mr. Jollie would wish to learn, in the event of Nelsoa being incorporated, the probable limits of the Municipality. The Chair-man said that, as the Municipality of Auckland embiaced an aiea of 58,000 acres, be pr< -umed that the whole of the Blind Bay district might be incorporated. Mr. Travers, on proposing the first Resolution, said that the whole of the outlying districts of NeKon might be incorporated in one borough, giving the magistiates the powers possessed by the English Justices jn Quarter Sessions, and that a iSiunicipality, so constituted, might provide for the Local Government of the whole settlement in the least expensive and most efficient manner. In support of such local institutions, Mr. Travers cited the opinions of Lord John Ru-sell, contained in the instructions given to Governor Hobson, and the Report of the Privy Council on the Government of the Colonies. In addition to these general arguments, he adduced others of a local nature. The Governor had declared a willingness to endow Municipalities with grants of land, and had aheady taken some measures in tins settlement with that object, such as directing the Collector | of Customs to retain for a future Corporation all fees for bonding goods in the Government Store, and it was therefore most desirable, before the whole of the available land was given up to the absentees, to get a Corporation established, and to endeavour to prevail on the Governor to make such further endowments as would be necessary to relieve the settleis from incurring any heavy ciiaiges to make it an efficient institution. He would therefore propose — I 1. That in the opinion of this Meeting it is desirable th.it the Blind Bay diaiuct in the Settlement ot Nelson be elected into a Municipality, with as full powers as can be guntcd by the Oio-venioi-iii-Cluef to any such institution in this colony. Mr. SxAFroKD, in seconding the Resolution, advocated the principle of local self-government by Corporations, and stated his desire to see such an institution established here as should embrace at least the whole of the settled portions of the Blind Bay district. Still, as regarded JYlotueka, seveied as it was from the town of Nelson, he thought that unless the residents in that district were themselves deshousof being mcorpoiated with us. we could not with any delicacy require that they should be so, and he thought they should be ] allowed to express their own feelings on the measure. Mr. Jollie said that, although anxious for local self- I government, he thought it inexpedient for that Meeting, which was but thinly attended, to decide upon the question. Brides, a measure for the general government of the tolony would, as it was undeistood, be brought before Parliament at its next sitting, and it was probable that then the subject of Municipal Institutions for the colony might also be reconsidered. Under such circumstances he thought that no harm would result from defornug the question for the present, and ! perhaps in a couple of years we might get something more suitable for us. Mr. Stafford thought it would be better to take the Charter which could now be obtained, which was in fact a very hbeial measure, and while there was a probability of' getting an endowment which would relieve it ! from being a buiden. Mr. Greenwood said, that the very first time he ever entered that room eight years ago, and within a few days of his landing heie, was to attend a meeting held for a purpose similar to the present one. That meeting excited much greater interest, and was much more numerously attended than the present one; and although the motion for a Corpoiation was then moved for by the deservedty most popular man in the settlement — the lamented Captain Walcefield — it was nevertheless defeated. The reasons which prompted the opposition then were yet in foree — that so long as the people were unable by their representatives to control the expenditure of the general revenue, they would not burthen themselves with local rates. On a subsequent occasion, another attempt to obtain a Corporation was made here, and failed on similar grounds. Theie was in fact little good to be derived from local representation, so long as the General Government was not a representative one. In Spain, one of the most despotic of Governments, the fullest powers of local government were enjoyed by every village. Upon general principles, then, he would refuse, under existing circumstances, to take the powers now offered us, and in addition he saw no great public works in existence, nor any source from which funds could be derived for such works, to render such powers particularly desirable. The General Government, as he found, had contributed towards the repair of roads and the formation of bridges in the settlement, and he did not see why the people should relieve the Government from making such contributions. It seemed to him, indeed, that the arguments used by the gentlemen present against giving us a Provincial Council, were equally, or more applicable, as against a Municipality. With regard to incorporating the Motueka into a, borough with Nelson, while he felt indebted to the gentlemen who had proposed it, as showing a desire to bind in close alliance the interests of the two districts, yet as he could not peiccivo the benefit that Motueka

would derive from being so incoipoiated with Nelson, be thought tiie ie ideuts tbere would mo^t piobably object to it. On the whole, lie pieferred Piovincial Councils, whose powers were moie extensive, if they could arrange as to their contiibutions to the Geneial Revenue. Mr. Wkbb said that he greatly approved of the principle of Corporations, and paiticularly as, from the extensive naiuie of the franchise, nearly pvejy resident would possess a vote m the election of the oliiceis that would have to adruinibtei the affairs or the borough. He would however desire, as far as possible, to escape additional taxation. Mr. J. P. Robinson was strongly in favour of a Corpoiation for the settlement, and did not anticipate its becoming a burden with the endowments already set a»ide for it, and those which be believed could be obtained. The condition of the people, he said, was so tolall'/ diffeient now to what it was when the question was previously agitated, tint no argument against our piesent acceptance of a Corpoiation could be drawn trom our n>fiisal to take it several yeais .igo. The question of self-government indeed was so mixed up vnih i Municipality, that lie Cad not hesitate to declare for it at once. j Mr. Elliott, in adrcrlin , tlio contiast which bad been dtawn between the n^' .ng held in April, 1313, j and the piesent one, said that it was not one of the least j evils which had arisen out of the cucumstances or the j people having been so long kept nut of the enjoyment j of those institutions which had nr.de the country they loved to call their own the greatest amonrf nations, and which weie so f\mihar to their lecollei-tions on then first anival in the colony, that they had now become in some degiee indiflerem to them. We h.id been so locg kept out of fiee institutions, that many bad foi gotten their v.duo. r l he defeat which local self-government sustained on the occasion referred to, he deplored .it *lie time — he had deploied it often since, though willing to admit that the calamities which afrorwaids befel the settlement haa icndeied that defeat le «» a mattpr of regiet than it otlieiwise would ha< p been. But the tune had now armed when a demand iov local government was most urgent. It was true iherp were no great public woiks in the settlement which needed a Corporation to look after, but theie weie many small ones which stood greatly in need of a local bodj to pi event then £oin» to destutcuon. On all bides he saw roads nnd bridges getting into bad lepair, riveis de&tioymg their bank;., and nuisances of on a kind and another springing up. JS'oi d.d he think it at all piobable that when the other settlements of the colony weie constituted into local bodies to take charge of their own local affairs, that Nehon would be stand alone, and while lelusing to assist Hit It, be allowed to claim assistance fiotn the Government. Although in no way csiving after taxation, he had found that taxation of some kind for local objects was unavoidable, a* d for a lono time he had been subjected to such taxation in its most obnoxious form. When anything of a public natu>e had to he done, it was the practice to send round and beg tor subscriptions By this means money was raiaed/but these contiibutions were always most unequal, i"v it often happened that the persons most inteiested in ice object, and the best able to affoid assistance, gaw little or notliing, while the btnden flls chiefly on the strae fuw mdividvals. 'l lns, then, waea system of taxa'ion be stiongly disapproved c. —it was most paitial in its opeiation, and genially w sufficient for ite object, it never was lesoit. dto 11 p t . l something had been rendered no longer bo ■i■< . If to ns-ist iv repairing 1 a bridge or a road, it ■-. often the cse that a few shillings expended at the piop^'i time would have accomplished what it needed then pounds topeiform; and which, under the eye of local boaids, never would have been allowed to fall into so wietched a condition. In the alarm at the prospect of taxation he did not therefore participate, believing that no amount of rating to which we should be subjected would amount to as much as had for years been given voluntarily, and we should moreover have the satisfaction of seeing all peisons called to contribute — every one accoidingio his means, and the money so raised expended wholly by the direction of the people tbemselvesi Mr. Riley was in favour of a Corporation, which, if it imposed taxes, would at least make them equal m their opeiation; nor would taxation be necessary, except to torward some useful and necessary work. Mr. Joi/lie would propose an Amendment to the Resolution, though in no hostile spirit to it, but only to guaid himself against falling prematurely into the embtaces of that which he might not aftei wards be able to divest himself of— That tins Meeting, whilst appioving gcnei ill) of Municipa Institutions, as pio\uhng the means ot cliicu tit local go\ciniiiLiit ami oigainzation, docs nut ltd al Jibui.) to pledre inrlf an I the community of Nclton 10 the acceptance of a Cliaitei of incoipoiaUon as d Boiough, until it be (letter asceitaineil what lauds 01 othei sources of levenne His Excellency the Goveinoi-111-Oliief might be <li posed to set apait foi the maintenance and suppoit ot a Coipoiation, so as to lcndu it an lusinulion as t4i as possible both inexpensive and elhcient. Seconded by Mr. Guelnwood. Mr. Saxton thought it desirable the Governor should be seen on the subject of endowments for the boiough. There was, he observed, much valuable land within the settlement that might be recovered fiom the sea at no great cost, which would pay with liberal interest the capital expended upon it, and this it would be well to obtain for the futuie benefit of a Coiporation. After a f. w further remarks from different speakers, some of whom w ere in favour of the Amendment, otheis of the Resolution, the Chwiman put the Amendment to the Meeting, which was lost ; the Resolution was then put and carried. Proposed by Mr. Saxton, and seconded by MrElxiott — 2. That a deputation be appointed to writ upon the Goveinoi-m-Cluct to asceitaiQ what endowment* he is piepaicd to make 111 favuni of ail} Corpoiation to be established 111 Nelson, and foi the pmposr of confciiing gcneially upon the piovisions ot the Cliaiter of Inroipmation , and that Messrs. Jollie, Staflbiri, Tiaveis, Mon 10, Elliott, and Savton, form such deputation. A vote of thanks was then given to the Chairman, and the Meeting broke up.