NELSON.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume IX, Issue 868, 26 November 1853, Page 3

NELSON.

The Council of this Province met on the 3rd instant. The following 1 Address was delivered by the Superintendent : — ( Mr. Speaker.' and" Gentlemen -op the' Provincial CouMCii.MTKe opening of the proceedings o,f the first Legislative Council' whjcli has ever been assembled in Nelson ; l is f an event of no ordinary character in the history of the Provinpe, . : ' - i . In this remote portion of the British empiVe has'now been established the type of those in^~ stitutions wm'ch. have for ages, in our parent country, earned' the respept,. and secured the' liberties, of our forefathers ; and whjph Have tended to achieve for x ihat country its proud position among the potions of the .world . ,? ■ .That the'privilegeS conferred! by the'ponstjttftionAQt are duly appreciated, .a^d ;thatthey will'notjbe" inconsiderately exercised* the gr,ea't interest* bestoW'd ,on tlie electiqns ; undei-, tfi'e authoHty''of-th"at,,act is a sufficient guaran^, tee. ' \ '" '"" '/"'''',;" "" t , , t '"i The'lnhabUanis ofthe Province, have now for , Jth^ first time, through .their elected Represen?. ■fatives, , tHe means of their wishes ,oir ill "subjects of *• public interest ; as you, ,gentleroen, have the power of carrying, pnt .these arishes to' their .legitimate end. "~ . " * } , TfcaVe the fullest confidence that,' duly considefifig 1 the great responsibilily whiph has^deyolved upon you in undertaking the of legislatmgf for so many' important' interests, the principles which should direct^the J?,olicy of the Gdvefnnient of the Province will receive your most attentive consideration. " ' ; ' '\^ "'" ''/" The powers which , you possess \ are very great),' enabling you w^h,' certain ' exceptions .^'n«ak^ either by new enactments or l>y

» amending existing Ordinances, alljaws neces- „ safy for the peace, order, and good government of th'e' Province. I ynllirigly declare my > belief that these, powers WilbbVexercised by . you tvith wisdom and justice, '' and 1 lhat your , acts will be directed to secure, upon * firm basis, the liberties bf the people, while calcul ated to increase their attachment to the person i and .throne, of their sovereign 1 ; arid on this, the first occasion of addressing you, I gtadly avail myself- of the opportunity afforded by it J of expressing my earnest desire to co-operate • with' yoV for the ' attainment of. those results.' 1 One" remarkable feature of superiority dis,tinguishes also ' your, legislative powers from ! those of the Councils of the neighbouring ■ British colonies, and of the .General Assembly of Ne^v Zealand, inasmuch as no law enacted \fy you can be disallpwed by any authority put , of the colony. Every act of yours must thus : be considered, affirmed or disallowed, by those who, from their intimate knowledge of the "sub- , ject to which it may relate, are the most competent judges of its fitness. ; With respect also to .those questions excepted from your direct control, any addresses which you may forward to'the Imperial parliament, or ) to the General Assembly, on any public matter affecting the Province, (4 will be entitled to, and will undoubtedly receive, respectful consideration. ■In congratulating you upon the power you thus possess of promoting .the public welfare of the Province, I cannot but regret, at the same time that some uncertainty as to its undisturbed exercise may arise from the fact that no session of the General Assembly of the colony has yet been held ; by which the harmonious operation of the New Constitution would have been much facilitated, the limits of interference in the action of the respective Legislatures declared, and the possibility of conflicting enactments avoided. Prominently amongst the questions with respect to which any conflict may arise, is that of the Appropriation of the ordinary revenue of the Province. On this subject instructions have been issued by his Excellency the' Governor, in pursuance of which the Revenue derived from the Customs has, been apportioned ; whereby, after deducting the expenses of the department, two-thirds of the receipts are paid to the Treasurer of the Province, and one-third remitted to Auckland for the use 1 of the General Government. A copy of these instructions, with my reply thereto, will be laid before you.' Being unable, after the most careful consideration of this most important: - question, to discover any, existing, authority jbr j apportioning the Customs Revenue, other than that possessed by*, the General Assembly,- 1 cannot submit to, you, .except at your express desire, any bill, for appropriating that revenue. ,This determination has been .arrived at most unwillingly, from the circumstance that many subjects connected with the advancement of the Province urgently demand, a considerable expenditure of its revenue; but on a -question, of • such paramount importance, and one so capable of becoming a precedent' for the future, I am unable to act otherwise. Should you be of opinion however, that the peculiar position of the public affa-rs of the Province would warrant ypu in appropriating that portion of the Customs' Revenue now paid to the Provincial Treasurer, it will afford me much gratification to Jefer to your -wishes. In Earning an Appropriation Bill, the strict- ; est economy, consistent with the efficiency of the public service, will be observed; but it is most desirable that, to prevent any uncertainty concerning such appropriation, it should be confirmed by the General Assembly at as early 2l period as possible. Had I received any ceitara assurance that the General Assembly, would have metimme-, diately, I should have preferred, both with reference to this question and many others of. great importance," that this '^Council should not have assembled until, the session of the General , Assembly" was concluded, but in the absence of such assurance I deemed it my duty, at the earliest'possible moment, to L call you together for 'the purpose of considering, what measures were ne.cessary for promoting the r public interest's!' As it is, however, yery inconvenient for 'those members who are^engaged.in agricultural^ pastoral pursuits to attend at this sea.son' of the year, I, propose, should a "session of the Oeneral Assembly have been' "held' in the "interval, to summon you in April or May next, about which time I believe the; periodical sittings of the Council^ might be. most advantageously .held. ' " f -Thfe necessity of providing for the proper, administration' of „the departments which have hitherto : beea controlled.. by, the Governor, but, which we now transferred to the Superintendent, will require your attentive' cori- • siderationi v Jtis ;advisabl& that you should declare, by specific "Ordinances, the manner in which the Executive Government of the Province ghould-b'e 1 constituted-, so as' to ensure that 'the public service may be;^efficiently performed. With this boject f Bills 1 , have .fi'eeri prepared, which will shortly be submitted to you. : With respect to the., question of the cost of ; certain departments ''being- borne by the Province, or paid°from the General Revenue, lam ■ in CDrrespondence with his. Excellency ; a copy of this correspondence, in which I have pro- ( tested against any liability on tbe part of the i Provjnpia.^ Treasury, for the , expenses qf, dp- < partments no}, under ( the> control^ of«the ,Prp- 1 yincial Government, will be fu'rnished^to you • for an^expressipn^f your, opinion. ■ , tr-i t r-i - 1 It is a source. pf^grjeat gratification ,to me to, (i be able .tpi.jCqng^atjglate,' you upon \%e yy t ej% ■-] large increase in the, j valu.ej.of / ,ttie various a.rjti- ; j 'cles' exported from the Province during the ,i last .nine months. By the pfficial returns, the i amount or Exports through^th/e Qustqms ,at r i Nelson^'forthe nine I'months1 'months, r eaiding the 3Qth ,i September 1 1asJ, r 'VPas J £35,214 ;, to" wHich.must 1 be kdded tnat'horfton^bf th'e wpo^ produced in 1 the Wairab^ wjbicK "iYbin a itfc 'haying been sent ( to~WellingtoSi 1 ' for fehippient to Lon,doq,_was i entered at the latter portrfiiid which may, fairly ] be- estimated at £5;000, /inkl^iijg'a total of up- 1 wards of 3£\o;ooQ^for r 'ihe '„pitte mqnths, .being ( at the rate : of ab'out' £,s3/Oi9Q cl yea'riy., ' Xhelra : i ports for'thViame °oV"nitie ' months i "amounted to '£3 1^7 22.. Vj 'As might justly 'have \ been expected from 'so tnateriaPan'-add^itwa to 1 1 the wealth of the Province as evidehceid by s these returns, tHere'^ha^-ljeen'a^ij^respohding i increase icf^he'Cii^tom's'-Reveriue'^ tfi'e amount' 'i

!- collected during the same nine months being - £3,956 i2s. lid. That received in the twelve y previous months having been £3.827 3s. Bd. i y It is also gratifying to me to have to inform r you, that when the. Sub Treasurer's accounts a were closed on the 31st August, after all pay- - ments due up to that time were made, the sum a of £1,895 19s/ lid. was paid over to the i, Treasurer of the Province ; W which is to be jr added £717 16s. 1 1 d. received by that officer t from the Customs up to the '3lst October, » amounting in all to £2.613 16s. lOd. From .' this sum is to be deducted £189 18s. 9d., be- . ing the payment made in September under the 1 authority of the last Appropriation Bill, leaving r the sum'nf £2,423 18s. 1 ' Id. now in the Pro- \ vincial Treasury. Of this sum £1,499 17s. 7d. I was originally received from the Parliamentary t Grant, towards the cost of making a road to 3 the Waitohi, and should be considered as only ; available for that purpose. Should you determine to appropriate the . Revenue paid to the Provincial Treasurer in pursuance of his' Excellency's arrangements, a I vote in supply will be required to defray the t expenses of the various departments, which • j have accrued since the 30th September, since • which time no payments have been made. [ * The receipts from the I and Revenue from the commencement of the yemTto' the 31st October, also shew a steady and" gratifying inj crease over the previous year. During the last ; ten months the sales of land in the towns of ', Nelson and Waitohi, have amounted to the sum [ of £2,856 Bs. 9d., and of suburban and rural [ land to £20,124 18s. lid. Of the total sum of £22,981 7s. Bd. thus received, £7,387 , 15s. 3d. was in cash, and £15,593 12s. sd. in L scrip. From these receipts £856 has been , paid, or is due, on account of immigrants, fiftyfour in number, introduced under the system of '. assisted passages, and the further sum of £1,743 is also liable on account of applications already forwarded to England under the same system. The total number of Immigrants who have arrived during the last ten months being 312. The whole question of Immigration should receive from you the most serious consideration^ that upon which all others so materially depend. The steadily increasing demand for all articles the production of the country, requiies that a a correspondent supply of labdur should be obtainable to take advantage of this circumstance, whereby the general wealth of the Province , t ■ and the individual prosperity of its inhabitants, would be manifold increased. It is my duty to submit to you the despatches and communications which' I have received on this subject. - The desirability of establishing steam communication becomes daily more evident, and will I have no doubt be considered by you. I believe it is possible that, by paying a bonus on the passengers introduced by this means, the maintenance of' steam vessels to the Australian , colonies might be rendered subservient to the ■ purposes of immigration. Amongst the most important questions which will engage your attention is that of the public roads, which have been for the last winter in a state of great disrepair. With a view to the maintenance of roads, and works of a similar character, a Bill has been prepared, authorising the lev} ing of a rate upon lands within certain districts, to be expended on public works within the district in which it may* be ..raised. By this BHI the rate payers would determine the amount to be raised (within certain limits) and the manner in which it should be . expended — an economy in the supervision effected — and the community generally within each district accustomed to consider and take part in the management of its "public affairs — while it would materially assist in establishing efficient lines of communication, than which nothing can confer a greater benefit upon any country, and which are especially needed in this.Province at a time when facilities for transporting various articles of production require to be much increased. 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 oidinary revenue, in proportion to the nett amount actually spent within the district in the construction and repair of roads under the provisions of this Bill; but I believe that you will agree with me, that for the future, the greater portion of the sums available for public works would^ be most pro-perly-expended in opening out new districts, and thereby' facilitating the settlement of the country. The necessity of considerable alteration in the lines of (( roads originally laid out| whereby a great saving will be effected in their construction, and the means of communication much increased, requires that a Bill authorising such alterations should be considered by you, and • Iwith that object one will be laid. before you. The recent purchase from the natives of a large tract of country for the sum of five thousand, pounds, by which all the lands within the 'Province, with, the exception of D'Urville's Island, have become the property of the Crown, is calculated to add most considerably to. the future importance of the Province. Within the ' limits pi this purchase many of the finest harbburs in New Zealand are situated, some of them ' in connection with tracts of njost fertilejland.containing large quantities of- valuable timber. An opportunity is ihus afforded^ to an extent w.hich ' did not previously exist, for theexercise of that '■ enterprise a,nd industry for which the inhabitants, pf Nelson have always been distinguished -r-a large field added to the future producing , .meaqs qf ti the Proyince«-and the of (acquiring valuable properties and comfortable . _homes s by, any of the older settlers who "have hik ttertQ.be^n unable, to do^so, or ,by those who . , may; 2 He'reaft;ej; arrive, much. , increased." Two thousand pcunds of the purchase* money liiasal-, r ready- been pajd, a.nd the remainder will be" paid ' in "si? apnual payments, for which provision has bee£ .made from the territorial revenue^ Before this'fbloekwiH be open for settlement, it is necessaryth,at a v meeting of the natives concerned in it should take place in Nelson. This meeting ■ hasten appointed for next January, at wh,ich ' MrVM'ljiean, through whose agency the purchase vas principally effected, wi'l be present, • 'the apportionment of the remaining pay- . merits. amongst" all the natives interested in it, and' the^reserves to be made for their use, will 1 bje 'finally settled. It will also be* necessary that i surveys to some extent should be undertaken in tli'is district, for' the purpose of reserving the i 'sites required- for towns and public purposes, I

and of laying out the best lines of communication before any portions become private property. By which* means the possibility of ranch' future inconvenience will be avoided. The evidence daily received of the existence of many valuable minerals in different parts of the Province, affords the most gratifying 1 prospects for the future. I have been requested to invite your attention to the question of the leasing of the mines on Crown lands,' when I believe that you will carefully consider the manner in which such an, important element of wealth, andmeans of employment, can be most rapidly developed. The absence of any sufficient Council Chamber, and tbe offices 'necessarily connected with it, will require that you should make provision for these objects. I would also suggest that a small 6um should be devoted annually to the purpose of procuring a Council library, which is much required, and which might, under proper arrangement, be a source of great benefit to the whole community. For the purpose of enabling the Council to obtain a knowledge of all questions affecting the public interests, it might be advisable for you to enact an Ordinance compelling the attendance and production of documents : should you desire to enact any other Ordinance establishing your own privileges, it will afford me much gratification to co-operate with you for that purpose. Returns on various subjects will be sent to you. For the comprehensive nature of these returns, and the information afforded in them, I am much indebted to the officers in the departments from which they were received. Should you desire any additional information which can be supplied from the public departments, it will be immediately furnished to you. With reference to any other subjects upon which I may desire to address you, 1 will communicate with you by message,