The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1878.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5475, 14 October 1878, Page 2

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1878.

The conduct of business in the House of Repi’esentatives at tho present time is a ourio-us study'. It is superstitiously believed by tho adherents of an effete system of constitutional Government thattho Ministry ought to load tho House. But it is; necessary for this purpose that the Government should bo unanimous, at any rate, on a few questions of principle. Wo have been told over and over again that •under the present regime society is to bo regenerated, and that all old-fashioned ideas of right and wrong aro exploded. Why should s6ven gentlemen who have been scrambled together to servo tho

country be expected to agree on questions of principle 1 If they agree to march through Coventry to a tune of Sir Geohoe Grey’s piping, surely they may bo allowed some of the license of the ragged regiment? Is it possible to b© quite serious when the leader is so extravagant ; to keep countenance and to keep step whilst the audience is laughing at- the performance of the fugleman ? While six members of the Government astonish. the Representative House by their vagaries, their constant disagreements, and their inability to lead, the Minister who has been told off to conduct business in the Legislative Council performs a pas-seul in, happy oblivion of his brethren in another place. He delights in talking about his Conservative principles, while ho introduces an Electoral Bill which he boasts of as containing “some of the principles of manhood suffrage.” That Bill, except in one point, the Maori suffrage, is a harmless Bill enough, but the Colonial Secretary has learned the trick of “ brave words"; that is his contribution to the common stock of liberal sentiments, on the credit of which the Grey Government was launched. But while in the Legislative Council the sober traditions and the pacific genius of the place prevent honorable members from taking advantage of the weak vagaries of their fraction of the Ministry, the exeitable.elements in the Representative House are more sensitive. There the want of a head is fast producing anarchy. By tacit consent of all parties, it has been determined that the session should come to an end as soon as possible. If it lasted much longer, there must be a break up. It would be hard to say which side of the House is most weary of the present Government, or which party most distrusts it. It is believed that even on the Government benches there is no faith in the Premier, who, to do him justice, never hesitates to throw his colleagues overboard upon occasion. This must be the more galling to them that ho boars none of the burden and heat of the day. He occasionally makes a sensational speech, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing, during the delivery of which his colleagues receive the sincere sympathy of those members who are not utterly hard-hearted. The Ministerial work in the House is generally shared between the two lawyers, Mr. Stout and Mr. Sheehan. Mr. Stout’s cue appears to be to exasperate the House by tricks of debate, and by as many uncivil answers as he can conveniently invent. Mr. Sheehan is then brought on the stage to calm the troubled waters, and the House laughs with him at the wonderful impudence of the line he goodhumoredly takes up. Neither of these gentlemen pay much attention to the schemes and proposals of their financial and public works colleagues, Mr, Ballance and Mr. Macandiiew. Nor would it be much use if they did, unless they could persuade those gentlemen to compare notes before they developed their very antagonistic proposals on the floor of the House. The Treasurer’s financial policy was unceremoniously cut up and disposed of a week ago ; but the catastrophe seemed only a pleasing excitement for the other Ministers ; indeed one could not be sure that it did not divert them amazingly. The Public Works scheme of Mr. Macandrew, based on a totally different set of figures, is not yet disposed of. All he wants is to bo lot alone by colleagues and by representatives. Give him only the disposal of some eight or nine millions of money and five years to spend them in as ho likes, and he will be quite content. What more ought anyone to ask for ! This is no quarrelsome, meddling Minister who wants to argue with every one ; Mr. Macandrew only wants to hold his tongue, and do his work in his own simple way. So far as the Cabinet goes he has succeeded. It is said that the Otago men have full confidence in Mr. Macandbbw, and desire to leave everything to his discretion. But the representatives of other parts of the colony may not be as confiding* as either the Cabinet or the Otago members. The sixth member of the "Government in the House of Representatives is a silent supporter of Sir George Grey, and—nothing mure. The proceedings on Friday on a motion to introduce two Bills to endow two smalt hospitals wore a good illustration of the present position. When, on Wednesday, Mr. Bowen’s motion for reserving land all over the colony for the endowment of hospitals and other charitable institutions was carried by a large majority, Mr. Macandrew voted for the motion, and the rest of the Government against it. Yesterday Mr. Stout could not refrain from telling the House that the Government agreed to the introduction of Mr. J. C. Brown’s Bill for endowing one particular hospital, as the outcome of the resolution passed by the House on Wednesday. Of course the House resented this misrepresentation of the decision it had arrived af; then Mr. Sheehan got up, and in a sensible straight-forward fashion declared that any scheme of hospital endowment must be general, and that ho would have nothing to do with such piecemeal legislation. Under these circumstances the Premier was natually appealed to to lead the House. He explained that no one knew anything about the question but himself, and that it it was left to him ho would produce a measure that would be a credit to the colony and a monument for all time. In the meantime ho would vote for Mr. J. 0. Brown’s little Bill. At this stage of the proceedings the House tho'ught it time to take its own coarse, and by a largo majority shelved the introduction of the Bill on a motion of the “previous question.” The House is evidently determined that the Government shall face tho question of permanent provision for tho principal hospitals in tho colony. Later in the evening there was another curious scone on tho discussion of the clause in the Special Powers and Contracts Bill, giving the Government power to keep faith with Mr. Broomhall. The Attorney-General, as in the case of Mr. Barton and the Judges, felt tho responsibility of his position, and explained tho necessity of the clause to enable the Government to fulfil a bargain to which the faith of tho country was committed. But, as in the case of the Judges, the Premier immediately got up to throw his AtcornoyGeneral over, and with his usual lino sense of what is becoming in tho head of tho Government, counselled repudiation. The House will not find it difficult to de-, cido.betwoen them. But in the meantime we may venture to ask Mr. Stout howloug he wiil bo content to look on this new system of constitutional Government, this new relation between a Premier and his Attorney-General, ns a healthy and playful assertion of tho right of private judgment. ____________