PUBLIC MEETING.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume I, Issue 39, 5 July 1845, Page 2

PUBLIC MEETING.

On Wednesday last, a meeting was held at the^ Britannia Saloon, in consequence of a public requisition to consider the best steps to be taken under present circumstances with regard to debentures. '' k Mr. Hicksok, on' being called to the chair, briefly stated the objects of the meeting. 1 After explaining the circumstances under which debentures were first issued, he said, that for some time past a general opinion prevailed here that Captain Fitzroy had issued debentures to a much greater amount than as authorized by Lord Stanley and by the ordinance. This opinion, naturally caused them to be regarded with suspicion, which had been considerably increased by its having become known within the last few days, that the Legislative Council had passed a resolution, giving the Governor unlimited power to issue debentures for defraying the expenses of his government. It was not to be wondered -at that these circumstances should have excited suspicion and alarm in the minds of the-trading community here at the evil effects which must arise, and which were now beginning to be felt, from the circulation of an unlimited amount of paper issued in such an unconstitutional manner ; and it was to avert or provide a remedy for this evil that this meeting was called. Mr. Hout, in moving the first resolution, took occasion to congratulate the meeting that they had met together, not for any party object, but as men of business, to consider a matter that seriously affected their interests. In the course of his observations, he said that Captain Fitzroy and his Council had done what the Chancellor of the Exchequer had never dared to do ; for iiu any question that affected the monetary interests,, he always consulted the Bank Directors as to the consequences of t the measure,, and availed himself of the experience of those who were best acquainted with the subject, bat Captain Fitzroy and his Council had tampered with the currency of the colony without consulting any one, and they were deficient in one of the best proofs of sense, namely, experience. It was to devise some means of checking the Governor's extravagance that the present meeting was called, and he hoped by a unanimity of feeling they would secure this result, and eventually advance the general good of the colony. Seconded by Mr. Levin — That this meeting views with much alarm the increased, and daily increasing, circulation of debentures, apparently far exceeding in amount the issue authorised by the Colonial Ordinance; such issue being continued simultaneously with,, and not replaced by the £50 debentures sanctioned by Lord Stanley, in his despatch of the 27th October 1844, to his Excellency Governor Fitzroy : and that such alarm has become greatly augmentedbya resolution passed in the Legislative Council at Auckland, on the 10th April last,, against which there was only one dissenting vote, and which resolution gives unlimited power to the Govereor to issue whatever amount of debentures he may require for the purposes of his government. — a measure more dangerous to the prosperity of the trade of this colony than which could not by any possibility have been devised. Mr. Fitzherbert, before moving the second resolution, wished to disabuse the public mind of any suspicions that might be entertained with regard to the motives of those who originated the present meeting. They had not come, there with any factious purpose of embarrassing the Government, or as partizans of the Union Bank of Australia ; it was not their wish to raise or depress the value of debentures for any stockjobbing purposes of their own; but viewing with apprehension the increasing circulation, of debentures, they had considered the subject as in» volving the interests not of a section, only of the

"Community, but of the entire body of colonists, and Ijjjn good faith convened the present meeting ; not 1 %o dictate, but to court inquiry, and to avert, if possible, the evils that threatened them. After A;ome observations on the present state of the Circulation, he begged to call the attention of 'the meeting to Captain Fitzvoy's speech in the Y^ouncil on the sth April last, in which, after etating his inability to pay the salaries of the IGoverntnent officers, he said, *' he thought it ffight to give them the best ■security that he -could ; he should therefore pay the arrears with the new debentures of £50 and upwards, which would bear an interest of 8 per cent. — The resolution of payment of- only half salaries would be rescinded, and the new debentures would be, if not actual payment, security, until he ascertained from England how far the Home Government would <issist us." Now, we in the southern and commercial part of New Zealand were liable to be inundated with an irredeemable currency, which, to use the Governor's own words, were at best only a collateral security. We were called upon to sell on our own account, and on the account of our correspondents, tea, coffee, sugar, flour, ~&c, and take in payment debentures/ with $hich we could not replace these articles, and for which we could not obtain bills of exchange. Under these circumstances he thought it incumbent on this community to protest firmly but respectfully, against the increased issue of debentures, which would at any rate have the good effect of shewing that we had from the first repudiated the issue of a doubtful currency. Seconded by Mr. P. M. Hervey — That in consequence of the extreme difficulty that exists in the negociation of debentures, arising from these causes, it is the opinion of meeting, that a memorial be respectfully presented to his Excellency Governor Fitzroy, praying to be informed of the amount already issued, distinguishing those issued up to the] 10th April last from those issued since that; date ; and whether it is his Excellency's intension to apply the specie on board. H.M.S. Deedalus to the payment of any portion of them : and further, ta protest against an issue of a greater amount of debentures than that authorized by Lord Stanley and by the Debenture Ordinance, passed by the Legislative Council in ~May 1844 ; and that a copy of the memorial be forwarded to Lord Stanley : — That the following gentlemen do form a committee for drawing up the memorial, viz. — Messrs. Hort, Stokes, Partridge, Moore, Hickson, and Fitzherbcrt. Mr. Moore, in a very sensible speech., moved the third resolution : seconded by Mr. Waitt. Considering that the Union Bank of Australia. ia.lki&'town.4jas-/or *ome time past refused to receive debentures for any purpose whatever, and consequently that no gpods or produce imported from the neighbouring colonies, or bills of exchange upon any part of the world, can be purchased with them, it is therefore desirable "that, pending his Excellency's reply to the memorial, debentures should be received with the greatest possible caution, Mr. M'Donald said, that before the resolution was put to the meeting, he thought it only fair, as the representative of the Union Bank of Australia here, to give the reason for the policy that had been adopted. lie had lately perceived a considerable increase of debentures in this place, and being aware that the mode adopted by the Government for meeting all engagements was simply to create a fresh batch, he conceived it high time not only to protect the Bank, but also to warn the public (who had engagements to meet) of the fearful result that would inevitably ensue from being inundated with an inconvertible paper currency ; and the most effectual mode of doing so was to decline receiving such paper altogether. He had no wish to depreciate debentures y the Bank held a large share; all that he wished was, to be allowed to start fair. He would receive debentures on the same principle that they did,, namely, to pay them out again ; but would that place the public in a better position, or cure the evil ? What would they think, on presenting a cheque at the Bank for cash, or a bill of exchange, to be handed over debentures T But sucli must be the case, otherwise the whole issue would fall upon the Bank. It had also been inferred from Lord Stanley's despatch, that if the Bank had been more liberal, Captain Fitzroy would not have been driven, to force upon us such a circulation. But what were the facts of the case ? Why, the Bank has freely discounted all bills offered by the Government, and would have taken any amount duly authorized (the funds for which might have been conveyed to Auckland by the Government Brig jtt anytime within a few days); and at this present time a large amount of these bills is outstanding in the books of the Bank, the fate of which is as yet unknown. Instead of there i eing any deficiency in a circulating medium, the Bank here held much larger amotints of specie than could have been required. It would have been more honest on the part of the Governor to have stated to Lord Stanley, that at Auckland they had only a local bank with a limited capital, who were unable to supply his wants; and that the amount of population, commerce, and capital, was in the Company's settlements at Wellington and Nelson, where they had a bank with plenty of means, but that he did not find it convenient to apply in that quarter. After some further observations, Mr M'Donald ,

in support of his" views, read from the Minutes in Council the following protest of Mr. Heale : — " I am of opinion that a measure for the withdrawal ' from circulation of the small debentures now current in ' the colony, in accordance with the despatch from Lord ' Stanley, dated October 27th, and for the payment of ' the arrears of salary due to the Government officers, ' ought to be submitted to the Legislative Council for ' discussion, for the following reasons, namely — . " Because it is of the utmost importance to this col- ' only, that the restoration of the currency to a sound ' state by the withdrawal of the depreciated Government ' paper now in circulation should be effected without any ' avoidable delay ; and because lam of opinion that the 1 course stated by his Excellency the Governor to the ' Legislative Council, on Saturday last, as about to be ' adopted by the Executive Government, of paying the 1 arrears due to Government officers, amounting to sev- * eral thousand pounds, in the large debentures ordered ' by that despatch, to be substituted in the place of snrtdl ' ones, is calculated seriously to retard, if not wholly to ' prevent, this desirable result. By forcing the new de- ' bentures immediately to a discount, as most of the re- ' cipients will be compelled by their necessities to sell 1 them at any sacrifice, — and by destroying the public 1 confidence in them, — a portion of them, not disting uishable from the remainder, being applied to a pur- ' pose different from that for which they are authorized ' by the Home Government to be drawn, and then fo.i ' being liahle to be disowned." After some discussion, Mr. Roots said, he was fully sensible of the evils of such a currency. He had been in America, where it was carried to a very great extent, and where the sterling money seemed to disappear by a sort of conjuration, and in its place were substituted dollar notes, that , often turned out to be worthless. He thought it was high time to put some check upon Capt. , Fitzroy's extravagance; there was no end to his inconsistency or caprice. One day he proclaimed free trade, thenext here-established the Customs. Every day produced some new freak, and be should not be surprised, if, like a second Nebuchadnezzar, Captain Fitzroy were to set up a brazen image, and call upon the colonists to fall down before it. A general discussion then ensued, after which "the thanks of the meeting were voted to the chairman,, and the meeting separated.