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New Zealander, Volume 9, Issue 800, 14 December 1853, Page 3

I Had he received any certain assurance that a Meeting of the General Assembly would he held immediately, he would not have called the Council together until after its Session ; and he now proposed, if a Session of the General Assemhly, should have heen held in the interval, to summon Ihem again in April or May,—the season be considered best for their periodical sittings. Bills would be presented to provide for the manner in which the Executive Government of the Province should be constituted, and the efficiency of the public service secured. He was jn correspondence with the Governor on the question whether the cost of certain departments should he home by the Province or paid from the General Revenue, and had protested against auy liability on the part of the Provincial Treasury for the expenses of departments not under » the control of the Provincial Government. His Honour next congratulated the Council on the increased Exports from the Province. The value of the Exports from Nelson for the nine months ending the 30th September last was 55,214/., to which must be added 5,000/. for the wool sent from the Wairau to Wellington for shipment to Nelson. This made a total of upwards of 40,000/. for the nine.months, being al the rate of about 53,000 J. yearly. The Imports for the same period offline months amounted to 5,956/. 12s. lid.; that received in the previous * twelve months was 5,827/. 3s. Bd. The sum al that time in the Provincial Treasury—received from the Sub-Treasurer and from the Customs—was 2,423/, 18s. Id.; but of this amount 1,499/. 17s. 7d. had been originally received from the Parliamentary Grant towards the cost of making a road to the Waitohi, and should be considered as available only for

that purpose. H The Land Revenue was steadily increasing. '• Pairing the previous ten months the lands sold in the towns of Nelson and Waitohi had produced 2,856/. Bs. 9d.. and the suburban and rural land 20,124/. 18s'. lid. Of this total sum of 22,981 Z. 7s. Bd., 7,387/. 15s. 3d, was in cash, and 15,593/. 12s. sd. in scrip. From these receipts 856/. had been paid, or was due, on account of assisted passages for fifty-four immigrants; and there was a further liability of 1,743/. on account of applications under the same system already forwarded to England. The total number of immigrants arrived during the ten months (to 51st October) was 312. ■.After a few remarks on the importance of promoling Immigration, and the desirability of Steam Communication, (which might be made subservient, he thought, to the purposes of Immigration by the payment of a bonus on the passengers introduced by this means), His Honour proceeded to call attention to the stale of the Roads, and to a scheme for their improvement. A Rill had been prepared to authorize the levying of rate on the lands with this object,— la be raised and expended under the direction of the rate-payers. His Honour's general plan on the subject was thus expressed:—"To enable ' certain of the main roads to be put into an efficient state as speedily as possible, I propose that some portion of the cost of repairing them should be defrayed from the ordinary revenue, in proportion to the nelll amount actually spent within the district in the construction and repair of roads under the provisions of this Rill; but 1 believe that you will agree with me thai, for the future, the greater portion of the suras available for public works would be most properly expended in opening out new districts, and thereby facilitating the settlement of the country." By a late purchase, for the sum of 5000/., from the Natives, all Ihe lands within the Province, with the exception of DTJrville's Island, had beccme the properly of Ihe Crown. Of Ihe purchase money, 2000/. had already been paid, and the remainder was to be paid in sixfannual instalments, for which provision had been made from Ihe territorial revenue. Before Ihe block could be opened for settlement, a meeting of Ihe Natives must be held: this was appointed to ..take-place in Nelson in January next, when Mr. McLean (through whose agency principally the purchase had been effected) would be present, arid the apportionment of the money amongst Ihe Natives, and the reserves to be kept for their use, would be settled. His Honour finally invited attention to the subject of the leading of mines on Crown Lands, —the propriety of providing a Council Chamber and Office, and a Council Library —and the expediency of enacting an Ordinance compelling the attendance and produclion of persons and documents.

Perhaps the most distinctive feature in this Address, as compared with those of the Superintendents of the other Provinces, is Mr Stafford's peculiar style of coquetting with the question of expending the Revenue placed by His Excellency at the disposal Df the Provincial Council. Mr. Stafford is verycoy, but evidently very willing to be pressed. He wishes to appropriate the money, but ho wishes also that, —if there should, by any posibility, be anything unpleasant resulting from iis appropriation, he should be shielded from all participation in the responsibility. The Council manifested a due regard at once to His Honour's nervous apprehensions on his own account, and to the interests of the Province, bypassing a Resolution declaring its opinion, " that the Estimates should be prepared and submitted to it with the least possible delay." The Resolution, of which this formed a principal pan, was adopted by the Council asa substitute for a more formal Reply to His Honour's Address. Dr. Monro, in proposing it, dealt some unsparing blows at both the Superintendent and the Council. He animadverted sharply on the circumstance that His Honour delivered his Address in a sitting posture, and on the bad taste of the "courtly" end " patronizing" air of several passages in it. He thought the Superintendent must have imagined that he was the Representative of Her Majesty,—which he was hot; and, even if he were, it had been the custom of Governors and Lieutenant-Go-vernors in this colony to rise when they addressed the Legislative Councils. Then, as to the position of"the Council, he strenuously contended. that it ought not to pretend to any higher rank than a municipality. —an essentially local Body,—aud admonished the Council "not to forget the old fable of the frog, which trying (o equal its more power,..ful neighbour the ox, blew itself up till it " burst" ', Pr- Monro would have no ostentation, no ; courtly ceremonial; \ he *aw no oc- • .casjon for a Provincial ' Government Gazette; and as for the control, of the .waste lands of the Crown, "he should very much deplore to see it in the hands of the Provincial Council, aud he trusted that that Council would not imitate what had been done elsewhere -and petition the General Assembly to that effect." The Doctor seemed to have the lion's share of. the " oratory" in the Council to himself, but IhcEa-aminer has a long and

earnest" review of Iris arguments in depreciation of the real pmver's c6nferred by the .-ConstitutionfAct on-the Provincial Council, whiVhcohqlndes ihi\s,— ,

Dp. Monro's policy prevail in Ibe • Council, w?.fear. Us. efficiency for any real prae--1 lical good. wHJ ho. We hope, however, baiter things.*.. .>Ye\hope to see [members show themselves conscious of Ihe importance and (he extent of the interests reposed in them, and that, w' ,;, » =%ll Ir** '''ovraecu t* Vvw fo»i*«Mil