NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, December 31, 1853.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume IX, Issue 878, 31 December 1853, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, December 31, 1853.

The Despatch arrived yesterday from Sydney, bringing the Chusans mail with English dates to September Bth, consequently later English ■news has heen received here direct by the Northjteet than by this opportunity. We observe that flour is quoted in the Sydney Herald of December 17 (the last received) at 485 per ion, but it is reported on the authority of private letters to be much lower. The barque Eliza is advertised to sail for Wellington and Port Cooper, and the ship Eagle from Newcastle for Port Cooper.

In consequence of a lunch given by the Superintendent yesterday, thero was " no house," and the Council was therefore adjourned to Tuesday next.

The length of our report of the proceedings in Council obliges us to defer to our next number our English intelligence, and other matters of interest.

In our report of the debates in Council on Wednesday will be found a long and able address by Mr. E. G. Wakefield, on moving a resolution to increase the number of members of the Council of this province. We refer to it for the purpose of noticing a claim which Mr. Wakefield makes of having originated the idea of Provincial Councils, which he says he communicated to Lord Grey by whom it was forwarded to Sir George Grey, who, according to Mr. Wakefield, has appropriated the idea without acknowledgment, In short, Mr. Wakefield says, " That's my thunder." We shall merely observe on this, that it is odd Mr. Wakefield, who has shewn no reluctance to publish his communications to Colonial Ministers, has never made this communication public, and that the claim should be first made, so far as we are aware, after Sir George Grey has left the colony.